EFFECT OF ROUTINE PULSE OXIMETRY MEASUREMENTS ON ED TRIAGE CLASSIFICATION

Pulse oximetry is commonly used to rapidly determine oxygen saturation and is incorporated in emergency triage as a screening for potential cardiopulmonary complications, This study examined the effect of routi ne pulse oximetry measurements on emergency department (ED) triage cla ssification, Using a portable pulse oximeter, oxygen saturation of 1,2 35 adults presenting to a university based, urban ED was obtained and each patient was assigned a classification of severity based on a stan dard 1 to 4 scale before and after the measurement, According to data obtained, a small but statistically significant group (2.8%) benefitte d from the routine use of pulse oximetry in an emergency triage system and only 40% of these patients required admission or extended care. A lthough this group is small in number, the potential consequences of m issing a hypoxic condition could be devastating for the individual pat ient, Since pulse oximetry is presently an inexpensive technology, it would seem to be a worthwhile screening tool for emergency triage. Cop yright (C) 1998 by W.B. Saunders Company.