1. Racial discrepancy in pulse oximeter accuracy in preterm infants.
- Author
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Vesoulis Z, Tims A, Lodhi H, Lalos N, and Whitehead H
- Subjects
- Adult, Blood Gas Analysis adverse effects, Humans, Hypoxia, Infant, Newborn, Oxygen, Infant, Premature, Oximetry methods
- Abstract
Objective: Pulse oximetry is commonly used in Neonatology, however recent adult data suggest racial disparity in accuracy, with overestimation of oxygen saturation for Black patients., Study Design: Black and White infants <32 weeks gestation underwent simultaneous arterial blood gas and pulse oximetry measurement. Error by race was examined using mean bias, A
rms , Bland-Altman, and linear/non-linear analysis., Results: A total of 294 infants (124 Black, 170 White) were identified with mean GA of 25.8 ± 2.1 weeks and mean BW of 845 ± 265 grams, yielding 4387 SaO2 -SpO2 datapoints. SpO2 overestimation, measured by mean bias, was 2.4-fold greater for Black infants and resulted in greater occult hypoxemia (SpO2 > 90% when SaO2 < 85%; 9.2% vs. 7.7% of samples). Sensitivity and specificity for detection of true hypoxemia were similar between groups (39 vs. 38%; 81 vs. 78%)., Conclusion: There is a modest but consistent difference in SpO2 error between Black and White infants, with increased incidence of occult hypoxemia in Black infants., (© 2021. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature America, Inc.)- Published
- 2022
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