FAQ's of Pulse Oximeters

A pulse oximeter is a noninvasive medical device that measures the oxygen saturation in a patient’s blood and pulse rates. These devices are very convenient and useful as they can be used with no trouble anytime and anywhere. This particular model is known as the portable pulse oximeters. Here is explained how pulse oximeters work. These are clipped to a translucent part of a patient’s body which can be usually a finger or earlobe, a photodiode is faced with a pair of small light-emitting diodes, which has two different wavelengths. One LED is an infrared and the other is red. Absorption at the said wavelengths differs a lot between oxygenated and deoxygenated blood, thus, making it possible to calculate the ratio between the two. The most widely used types of pulse oximeters are the finger pulse oximeters which are attached to the fingertip.

The major reason of applying a pulse oximeter is that this device reads the current amount of oxygen present in blood by placing the sensor over the fingertip (or sometimes the earlobe). The exact reading will indicate whether you need to stop your activity, or to have supplemental oxygen. Earlier, doctors mainly had to rely on their clinical eye for the judgment, diagnosis, and evaluation of various medical conditions of the patient. This was a major concern as some symptoms may noticeable already at the late stages of the disease, especially with problems regarding respiration. When patients breathing becomes weaken, arterial blood oxygen levels may quickly fall and deficiency of oxygen may be dangerous and would definitely put patients at risk. In the past, there were only a few tools that could help out them in examining patients, but fortunately, with the advancement of medical technology, a pulse oximeter helps doctors to diagnose and treat diseases more effectively.

There are many types of pulse oximeters and each of these is made to cater to one’s medical needs. One of the most widely known and used type of pulse oximeters is the finger pulse oximeter. These variants of pulse oximeters are attached to the finger and from there give the blood oxygenation and pulse rate reading. These have become very handy as they are portable and efficient to use, thus, making these pulse oximeters the most common among the pulse oximeter types. Another pulse oximeter type is one that is the handheld oximeter. These are models which basically involve the use of a probe. This probe is normally attached, using a special cord, to a unit. When testing, place the probe to your earlobe or finger and then switch on the oximeter.

Fingertip pulse oximeter, clips onto a patient's finger, and comes with a tiny computer and screen. This type is very light and portable and will be easy to store in your pulse or pocket. The clip emits light from one side and measures the light on the other. Its computer is further used to measures the light over several pulses and gives readout of the patient's blood-oxygen level. Merely slip the device on your finger and wait for the readings to display on the screen on the face of the fingertip pulse oximeter. This particular type is very easy to operate and is often used at home. The only disadvantage of fingertip pulse oximeter is if the patient's hand is damaged or his blood flow is slow because of a clot or injury, it may not give an accurate reading or it may not work at all.