pulse oximetry
oximetry
[ok-sim´ĕ-tre]pulse oximetry
pulse oximetry
Oxygen saturation measurement, SaO Critical careA method used to determine the O2 saturation–SaO2 and desaturation of blood in a continuous noninvasive fashion, through the noninvasive assessment of arterial Hb-bound O2 saturation, based on the combined techniques of optical plethysmography and spectrophotometry; PO is accurate within 5% of a standard co-oximeter when the SaO2 is in the 70-100% range; accuracy plummets below 70%; PO is used to detect O2 desaturation accurately, inexpensively, quickly, safely, and is useful in endoscopy, recovery, intensive care, and for evaluating obstructive sleep apnea syndrome, for which the gold standard is the costly and onerous nocturnal polysomnography