OBJECTIVES This study was undertaken to evaluate whether the surgeons' oxygen saturation of hemoglobin was affected by the surgical mask or not during major operations. METHODS Repeated measures, longitudinal and prospective observational study was performed on 53 surgeons using a pulse oximeter pre and postoperatively. RESULTS Our study revealed a decrease in the oxygen saturation of arter...

The accuracy of the Radiometer OSM3 oxymeter for measurement of fetal haemoglobin (HbF) in infants was investigated, and compared to one of the standard reference methods using alkali electrophoresis of haemoglobin. Blood samples of 37 infants with different gestational (27-41 weeks) and postnatal (1-198 days) ages were analysed. The two methods gave very close results but a significant mean di...

Iron is essential to erythrocyte oxygen transport and is a catalyst for oxidative metabolism in all cells. Iron is absorbed by the duodenum and requires an acidic environment for optimal absorption. Iron is found for 70% in erythrocytes, and 30% in storage, and a small amount in myoglobin and cytochromes. Iron supplementation reduces anemia in breastfed infants and increases in significant dose...

We have examined the filterability of sickle erythrocytes, using an initial-flow-rate method, to determine whether sufficient hemoglobin S polymer forms at arterial oxygen saturation to adversely affect erythrocyte deformability. The amount of intracellular polymer was calculated as a function of oxygen saturation to estimate the polymerization tendency for each of eight patients with sickle ce...