Determine Your Oxygen Levels With Oximetry Testing Pulse oximetry has become increasingly useful in checking the oxygen levels in the blood. Prior to the invention of the pulse oximeter in 1972, the only way to detect oxygen content was through an invasive, painful, arterial blood draw. Luckily, the pulse oximeter became commercially available in the [...]
Insomnia: Symptoms, Causes, Types and More We have all experienced a restless night filled with tossing and turning and stressing about when you will finally fall asleep. While restless nights happen from time to time, it can become a problem if these nights occur often. Everyone's sleep needs are different, but the average adult typically [...]
Making Diagnosis Easier With Pulse Oximetry Sleep apnea is one of the most common sleep disorders, affecting nearly 22 million Americans. However, diagnosis of this condition remains low, with 80 percent of moderate to severe cases being undiagnosed. What’s unsettling about this is untreated obstructive sleep apnea can lead to cardiovascular problems, including high blood [...]
Cardiac Arrhythmias Guide: Types, Symptoms, and Diagnosis Cardiac arrhythmias refer to conditions where the heart beats too fast, too slow, or in an irregular pattern. When this occurs, the heart does not function efficiently, decreasing the amount of blood being pumped throughout the body. Arrhythmias develop due to changes in heart tissue, activity, or electrical [...]
Overnight Oximetry to Test for Low Oxygen Levels Sleep-related breathing disorders, specifically obstructive sleep apnea, is a common condition that regularly goes unrecognized. Approximately three to seven percent of the general population suffers from sleep apnea, with 93 percent of women and 82 percent of men remaining undiagnosed. If obstructive sleep apnea goes undiagnosed and [...]
How Pulse Oximetry Works The body's need for oxygen is undeniable, and the correct amount is essential for sustaining normal daily activities. If oxygen content falls, even slightly, it can lead to disruptive symptoms like shortness of breath and headaches. That's why it is important to know the oxygen content of the blood. But it [...]
Everything you Need to Know About Blood Oxygen Levels Blood oxygen levels indicate how much oxygen is circulating in the blood at a given time. So, how does oxygen get from our lungs to the rest of the body? When we breathe, air enters the lungs, and available oxygen binds to circulating red blood cells [...]
Sleep-Related Hypoxemia and Its Treatment When we begin to fall asleep at night, typically, the last thing on our mind is if our breathing is changing. However, it may come as a surprise that as we move through sleep cycles, our breathing changes and becomes more irregular. After we fall asleep and enter into non-REM [...]
The Difference Between Hypoxia and Hypoxemia Oxygen is one of the most abundant gases on the planet, so it may come as a surprise that people with certain health conditions cannot get enough to maintain daily activities. As blood circulates throughout the body, it delivers oxygen from the lungs to the cells, tissues, and organs. [...]
Uses and Limitations of Pulse Oximetry Pulse oximetry is often overlooked as an unimportant stat to record for a patient's overall health. But one of the first things a physician will ask for in a medical emergency is the oxygen saturation of the blood. Knowing the blood oxygen levels helps physicians understand what a patient's [...]