How to Choose the Right Pulse Oximeter for Home and Clinical Use             

The Pulse Oximeter is one of the most commonly seen medical pieces of equipment since the pandemic period. Whenever you enter any clinic, the first thing the caregiver will do is to check your blood oxygen level and heartbeat per minute. 

The device uses a light that passes through and determines blood oxygen level and your heart rate. They are small in size but have great uses in the medical field. You must have seen this device in clinics, hospitals, nursing homes, etc. 

Some people even keep such products at home for frequent health monitoring. But before you buy this device for your personal use, you should know how to choose the right pulse oximeter. Let’s learn some tips and tricks regarding the same. 

What is a Pulse Oximeter? 

The pulse oximeter is a small medical device which is used to check the oxygen saturation level and your heart rate. The device needs to be attached to your fingertips, earlobe, or toe. A light passes through the body part where you have clipped the oximeter, and depending on the light absorption during heartbeats, it generates the reading of your current blood oxygen level and heart rate. 

This device is also known as Spo2 monitor. It produces great results when used in monitoring patients suffering from COPD, Asthma, Pneumonia, COVID-19, etc. There are different types of this device available in the market, which serve different purposes. To determine the right type of oximeter for home and clinical use, you have to first understand its types and uses.

Different Types of Pulse Oximeters and Their Uses

Depending on the body part you are gonna attach the device to, SPO2 monitors or oximeters could be of different types. 

1. Fingertip Models

Fingertip pulse oximeters are usually attached to the index or the middle finger. An LED light passes through the finger, and it helps determine the body’s oxygen saturation level and heart rate. This is the most commonly seen oximeter that we are familiar with. 

Uses

• These types of oximeters are suitable for basic clinical uses and home applications. 
• If you have a heart, asthma, COPD, patient in your home, these pulse oximeters can help you in monitoring oxygen saturation and heart rate constantly.
• In medical clinics, caregivers use such devices for walk-in patients to check their instant saturation level. 
• The device is also suitable for self-checking of the saturation level and heart rate.

2. Handheld Oximeters 

This is another small type of oximeter that you can wear on your wrist. It can determine the oxygen saturation level from the arterial blood. This type of SPO2 monitor can easily be attached to the earlobe, fingertips, or toes. They are comfortable to attach and produce good reading. The operating process is very similar to that of the fingertip oximeters. Handheld oximeters also use similar LED light saturation technology to produce results. 

Uses

• Handheld oximeters are suitable for emergency use. In ambulances, or in other field medicine where an emergency saturation level check-up is required, you can use this detachable probe-based oximeter for better results.
• The device also functions best for children and infants, who don’t have proper finger circulation, and you need to attach the probe to other body parts. 
• In some cases, when elderly patients can’t use finger reading, because of deformity of fingers or due to age and poor finger circulation, handheld pulse oximeters could be the perfect solution to your problems. 

3. Benchtop or Tabletop Pulse Oximeter

Another variety of oximeter is the Benchtop or Tabletop oximeter. Unlike the previous types, this pulse oximeter has two separate units, one probe and one display monitor. The probe has to be attached to the human body, while the display device is placed over a table or bench. 

The machine follows the spectrophotometry principle. Here, the wavelength of the light penetrates through the skin tissue of the patient. Based on the absorption of light by the tissue, the sensor present in the device detects the oxygen saturation level.

Uses

• These kinds of SPO2 monitors are used for constant monitoring of the oxygen level of a patient. During surgery or a long operation procedure, caregivers and doctors need constant reports of oxygen level, heart rate, pulse, etc.  Using this kind of oximeter will provide the necessary help. 
• Even after the operation, patient monitoring also needs constant monitoring of the oxygen saturation level of the patient. Benchtop or tabletop pulse oximeters are the perfect solution in such scenarios.
• You can also find tabletop oximeters in NICU or children’s monitoring wards for stable reports of oxygen level. 

4. Phone-based or Bluetooth Enabled Oximeter

This is one of the innovative types of top pulse oximeters that you can operate through a phone. A tech-savvy approach is used to design this device that also functions through Bluetooth. You can connect the oximeter to your smartphone and monitor the oxygen saturation level remotely from your phone. 

Uses

• If you are availing treatments through telemedicine consultation, then you need to use such devices to connect with the medical consultant team and share your reports with them. 
• Also, if your aim is to track your health constantly for a long period of time, and you need proper reports, like charts, graphs, and alerts, etc., to compare, then these phone-based or bluetooth enabled oximeters are the right choice for you. 

5. Wrist or Wearable

Wearable or wrist pulse oximeters are usually a watch-like device that can be attached to your wrist. They can be connected through bluetooth and you can even wear it overnight for constant monitoring.

Uses

• Mostly used by patients who have sleep apnea, where there are chances of a sudden drop in oxygen saturation level during sleep. Patients sometimes stop breathing briefly, which leads to a lowering of the oxygen saturation in the body. Wrist or wearable oximeters constantly monitor the oxygen level and vibrate when it drops. As a result, you can wake up to breathe comfortably. 
• The monitor shows a detailed chart of oxygen saturation levels, which helps doctors to treat apnea patients better.
• This device is perfectly suitable for personal use at home. 

6. Multimodal Oximeters

This is an advanced version of oximeters that is specially designed to provide a full patient report. It has multiple probes to be attached to different body parts of the patient, to check all the essential vitals and provide reliable reports. The device can be used as a handheld version or just like a tabletop oximeter. 

Uses

• Multimodal oximeters are used in critical medical conditions, where you also need full patient tracking. 
• You can find such pulse oximeters in surgery rooms, ICUs, etc., where critical patients need constant monitoring of different vitals like oxygen saturation, body temperature, pulse rate, respiration rate, haemoglobin saturation, etc.

How to Choose the Best Oximeter for Your Home and Clinic

Those who are looking for the perfect pulse oximeter for their home or a clinic, then they have to list down the features they are looking for in an oximeter. For normal health checkups, walk-in clinics, etc., fingertip oximeters work perfectly fine. But if you need detailed charts, graphs, etc. from your oximeter, you need to invest in handheld models, benchtop models, etc. 
Furthermore, before you buy any of such devices, you must verify the model, its certifications, customer reviews, etc., to have a fair idea about its features. Select your budget and go for reputed brands only. This is the best way to select the perfect pulse oximeter.