STUDY OBJECTIVES To assess the impact of pulse oximetry (SpO2) on the indications and the number of arterial blood gas (ABG) levels ordered in an adult emergency department (ED). DESIGN A prospective study during a 2-month period in 1993 with a pulse oximeter available and a comparison with the same period in 1992 without the oximeter. SETTING An adult medical ED of a university hospital in...

I Boushey HA, Holtzman MJ. Experimental airway inflammation and hyperreactivity: searching for cells and mediators. Am Rev Respir Dis 1985;131: 312-3. 2 Bennett JD, Davies RJ. A comparison of histamine and methacholine bronchial challenges using the DeVilbiss 646 nebuliser and the Rosenthal-French dosimeter. BrJ' Dis Chest 1987;81:252-9. 3 Woolcock AJ, Peat JK, Salome CM, et al. Prevalence of b...

A commercial human pulse oximeter was used in several species to measure heart rate and arterial oxygen saturation (Sa02), and the results compared with those from an ECG and bench oximeter. The heart rates were always the same, but differences in the Sa02 ranged between 4.2 per cent to 10.3 per cent. Correlation coefficients between the two Sa02 measurement techniques ranged from 0.81 to 0.94,...