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Pulse oximeter bench tests under different simulated skin tones.

Suvvi K Narayana SwamyChenyang HeBarrie R Hayes-GillDaniel J ClarkSarah GreenStephen P Morgan
Published in: Medical & biological engineering & computing (2024)
Pulse oximeters' (POs) varying performance based on skin tones has been highly publicised. Compared to arterial blood gas analysis, POs tend to overestimate oxygen saturation (SpO 2 ) values for people with darker skin (occult hypoxemia). The objective is to develop a test bench for assessing commercial home and hospital-based POs in controlled laboratory conditions. A laboratory simulator was used to mimic different SpO 2 values (~ 70 to 100%). Different neutral density and synthetic melanin filters were used to reproduce low signal and varying melanin attenuation levels. Six devices consisting of commercial home (Biolight, N = 13; ChoiceMMed, N = 18; MedLinket, N = 9) and hospital-based (Masimo Radical 7 with Neo L, N = 1; GE B450 Masimo SET with LNCS Neo L, N = 1; Nonin 9550 Onyx II™, N = 1) POs were reviewed and their response documented. Significant variations were observed in the recorded SpO 2 values among different POs when exposed to identical simulated signals. Differences were greatest for lower SpO 2 (< 80%) where empirical data is limited. All PO responses under low signal and melanin attenuation did not change across various simulated SpO 2 values. The bench tests do not provide conclusive evidence that melanin does not affect in vivo SpO 2 measurements. Research in the areas of instrument calibration, theory and design needs to be further developed.
Keyphrases
  • soft tissue
  • blood pressure
  • healthcare
  • wound healing
  • machine learning
  • big data
  • room temperature
  • deep learning
  • data analysis