Thought's on Pulse Oximeters

[Missedcue]

It's Christmas time and I'm asking for a pulse oximeter (what a nerd, right?) My issue is that I can't find much useful information on the web about different pulse ox devices. Does anyone have an opinion about brands or specs?

They are just so useful when I have a very bari patient and I can't feel a pulse in their squishy wrist.

 

[Shishkabob]

Agency doesn't supply a pulse ox? Just buy one off Amazon for ~$30. That's what I did when I was at an agency that didn't supply, and it worked well enough for what I needed it for.





There ARE other places to take a pulse, too.

 

[Missedcue]

There ARE other places to take a pulse, too.

This is true, but if a wrist is squishy do you think the other pulse points are going to be less squishy?

 

[JPINFV]

If they have a squishy wrist, how do you know you're getting a good reading off of a pulse ox if you can't verify the pulse rate?

 

[Flight-LP]

This is true, but if a wrist is squishy do you think the other pulse points are going to be less squishy?

**cough** carotid **cough**

So if you can't feel a pulse, you'll let a grossly inaccurate machine dictate your treatment and documentation?

 

[mycrofft]

Like someone said earlier.....

"Why waste the money" (on lights for a car) "when you could be spending it on beer and hot girls?".

 

[Shishkabob]

So if you can't feel a pulse, you'll let a grossly inaccurate machine dictate your treatment and documentation?

I bought mine, not for a pulse, but because I got tired of walking in to an ER with a breathing difficulty patient from a nursing home and being asked what the pulse ox was and not having an answer, not due to my ineptitude as a provider, but due to my agency only providing a certain number of some equipment, and the EMTs on BLS trucks take that equipment because they are lazy providers and don't want to do work, even though the Paramedics could actually do REAL medicine with it.





/rant over

 

[MMiz]

If I were working in a rig without a Pulse Ox I actually see it as being a valuable tool. For $20 I'm not sure that you can go wrong.

 

[MMiz]

I'm shocked at the good reviews:

VineBranch Fingertip Pulse Oximeter - $20

Finger Pulse Oximeter SM-110 - $30

I remember only five years ago the cheapest one I could find being $150 or so.

 

[Sasha]

**cough** carotid **cough**

So if you can't feel a pulse, you'll let a grossly inaccurate machine dictate your treatment and documentation?

A lot of my coworkers can't find the carotid. Crazy right?

If all else fails an apical pulse works.

Sent from LuLu using Tapatalk

 

[DV_EMT]

I bought mine from CVS and it's fantastic for anyone without cold fingers. I highly recommend them for anyone on a BLS rig without cardiac monitors or ALS equipment. A digression, but I'm looking at the portable 3 lead as well (only since I'n dysrythmia certified

 

[medic417]

A lot of my coworkers can't find the carotid. Crazy right?

If all else fails an apical pulse works.

Sent from LuLu using Tapatalk

Where's the apical?

 

[medichopeful]

Where's the apical?

Sadly medic a lot of basics don't actually know. It's not something they teach, yet it's pretty dang easy to be taught! :wacko:

 

[medic417]

Sadly medic a lot of basics don't actually know. It's not something they teach, yet it's pretty dang easy to be taught! :wacko:

h34r:h34r: Wow how can we top that? Somewhere between 4 and 5 should be easy. Really breaks my heart.

 

[bigbaldguy]

If all else fails an apical pulse works.

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Yeah duh!

****Google's apical pulse as discretely as possible****

 

[adamjh3]

Yeah duh!

****Google's apical pulse as discretely as possible****

Knew how to get it. Had no idea that's what it was called. Guy who taught me just called it auscultating

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[medichopeful]

h34r:h34r: Wow how can we top that? Somewhere between 4 and 5 should be easy. Really breaks my heart.

Haha I see what you did there!

 

[Bullets]

Knew how to get it. Had no idea that's what it was called. Guy who taught me just called it auscultating

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Same, ive always done this as a check to my tactile pulse, listen for lung sounds, auscultate the heart rate, never knew it had a name

Pulse ox are good for long distance IFT when the pt is sleeping, pop the pulse ox on just to make sure you dont arrive with a dead patient.

My squad is the primary rehab provider for our County. And 3rd alarm fire in county gets our dedicated Rehab team, and we carry the Masimo Pulse ox/ COox, whcih are good for checking the FF CO levels prior to relesing them back into the fire.

Every once in a while you get a AMS pt and everything else checks out, solid vitals, good color and all that, so i use it as a last resort if nothing else can explain AMS. Then you have to decide if the AMS with good perfusion but with a pulse ox of 85% is just a functioning hypoxic or there is something actually going on

Cause ive had a pt who was a function hypoxic at 78%

 

[Sasha]

Same, ive always done this as a check to my tactile pulse, listen for lung sounds, auscultate the heart rate, never knew it had a name

Pulse ox are good for long distance IFT when the pt is sleeping, pop the pulse ox on just to make sure you dont arrive with a dead patient.

My squad is the primary rehab provider for our County. And 3rd alarm fire in county gets our dedicated Rehab team, and we carry the Masimo Pulse ox/ COox, whcih are good for checking the FF CO levels prior to relesing them back into the fire.

Every once in a while you get a AMS pt and everything else checks out, solid vitals, good color and all that, so i use it as a last resort if nothing else can explain AMS. Then you have to decide if the AMS with good perfusion but with a pulse ox of 85% is just a functioning hypoxic or there is something actually going on

Cause ive had a pt who was a function hypoxic at 78%

Chest rise should tell you if you're arriving with a dead patient.

And you also have to decide if the 78% is just your pulse ox being retarded.

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[Bullets]

Chest rise should tell you if you're arriving with a dead patient.

And you also have to decide if the 78% is just your pulse ox being retarded.

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Its 35 degrees in NJ right now, most patients are so bundled in clothing or blankets its hard to visualize the chest rise and fall. plus, its always nice to have a back up

And thats what i thought, but the recieving hospital got similar readings on three different pulse oximeters, they didnt believe me