Blood Oxygen Monitor
A blood oxygen monitor -- sounds almost like a high tech medical tool for the likes of a futuristic doctor. In the very least, it sounds expensive and complicated doesn't it? The good news is it is not only totally not-futuristic; it is also not expensive or complicated. Of the many advancements in electronic gadgetry over the last few years the ability to own and operate your own blood oxygen monitor is no more out of reach than buying a small and simple microwave oven and is significantly easier to use.
Chances are, if you have been advised to purchase one you have likely seen one. If not, it is a small device about the size of a salt shaker that gently clasps on to your finger or ear lobe like a clothes pin and works its magic by much the same principal as your TV remote, with the use of infrared and LED (light emitting diode) technology. The blood oxygen monitor is completely noninvasive (meaning it does not have to prick you to get your blood), painless and simple.
Interestingly this little wonder, the blood oxygen monitor, also tells you your pulse rate which often goes right along with the effectiveness of your heart in distributing oxygen to your organs.
Uses for the Blood Oxygen Monitor
There are many different individuals who may wish to use (or may be instructed to use) a blood oxygen monitor as a means of monitoring the amount of oxygen in their blood. These include:
People diagnosed with Chronic Pulmonary Obstructive Disease (COPD). Since the function of this device is to report on the efficiency of the body's oxygen delivery system to the bloodstream and, naturally, one of the primary sources of this oxygen is the lungs, the blood oxygen monitor helps those patients with COPD determine if they are receiving an adequate supply of oxygen under varying conditions and circumstances. Many with COPD use a portable supply of oxygen delivered through a tube and a nasal cannula, a plastic tube which fits behind the ears, and a set of two prongs placed in the nostrils. This small, lightweight fairly tough piece of equipment can be easily used to help ensure proper saturation levels almost anywhere and anytime. Normal ranges are considered between 95% and 100%.
Heart patients. The heart is the other primary deliverer of that freshly oxygenated blood to the body. Those with a history of heart disease may benefit from not only the measurement of the pulse rate but the monitoring of their oxygen saturation level as well. That is because heart disease can affect your heart’s ability to pump strongly and the ability for blood to circulate through your heart and body. A blood oxygen monitor can help you watch the progress of the disease and the success of your medications and surgical procedures.
People concerned with personal fitness. Many people who exercise use pulse monitors in the form of a watch, although some have a separate attachment that is worn around the chest and others just require the placement of two fingers on defined positions on the watch its self. These are fine for strictly pulse rate monitoring but in order to see what your oxygen saturation levels are the blood oxygen monitor is the solution. It not only delivers your pulse rate quickly and easily but also your oxygen saturation level.
No matter what you need a blood oxygen monitor for, be sure to read the instructions before using it. Incorrect usage of a blood oxygen monitor could result in feedback from the machine that is inaccurate which could make you panic thinking that you have too little oxygen in your blood or could make you feel secure when you really have too little oxygen.
