Clinical use of pulse oximetry in adults

The article is devoted to the practical aspects of pulse oximetry. Pulse oximetry is a photoplethysmographic method for determining heart rate and the percentage of oxyhemoglobin in arterial blood. The method allows you to objectively evaluate arterial hypoxemia, therefore, it can be used in functional diagnostics and in the daily practice of interns of any specialization. The article briefly presents the history of pulse oximetry and a description of the technique. Particular attention is paid to the accuracy of measurements and reference values of pulse oximetry. The functional significance ofpulse oximetry is also considered here. Several sections are devoted to practical issues: interpretation of the results of pulse oximetry in the diagnosis of arterial hypoxia, in the differential diagnosis of shortness of breath, the diagnostic value of the phenomenon of desaturation. A large section is devoted to the importance of pulse oximetry in viral pneumonia COVID-19