Racially biased oxygen readings could be putting patients at risk
E-Mail Thousands of times a day, doctors and nurses use a small device called a pulse oximeter--which fits on the end of a patient's finger to measure the percentage of oxygen in the blood--to help them make vital treatment decisions. However, a new study by Michigan Medicine researchers finds that the pulse oximeter may be less accurate in Black patients than in White patients. "These results really surprised all of us," says Michael Sjoding, M.D., assistant professor of internal medicine in the division of pulmonary and critical care medicine. As he and his colleagues cared for critically...
Source: eurekalert.org