But $2,000 seemed awfullysteep, so I shelved the idea. Brent thought it would be an excellent idea, andoffered to write me a presecription if I wanted to buy one. Brent Blue - a good friend and Senior AviationMedical Examiner based in Jackson Hole, Wyoming - I mentioned the idea of using aportable pulse oximeter in the cockpit. Furthermore, the distributors were notcomfortable selling such a device to anyone but a doctor or hospital, and told me that atthe very least I’d require a doctor’s prescription. Theleast-expensive pulse oximeter I could find was rather bulky - about the size of abattery charger - and cost about $2,000. I did some checking with medical supply houses to see whether it might be possible topurchase such an instrument for in-flight use. I decided that I wanted one of these instruments for myairplane. As a pilot who does quite a lot of high-altitude flying inunpressurized airplanes, I was intrigued by the notion of carrying such an instrumentalong in the cockpit and using it to monitor my hypoxia level and that of my passengers.Such instrumentation would let me know precisely when I needed to start usingsupplemental oxygen, and precisely what O2 flow rates were necessary to preventimpairment or discomfort.
Oximetry for in-cockpit use?Īlthough my encounter with HAPE was scary and messed up my vacation, I was certainlyfascinated by the pulse oximeter technology that had been used to measure the oxygensaturation of my blood. When I returned the next morning, my oxygensaturation readings were in the 90s and I was given a clean bill of health. I was instructed to stay overnight in Bishop, remain on supplemental O2, andreturn the next day for another check. My wife drove us down to Bishop, Calif., at 4,000-foot MSL and I checked into theBishop Hospital ER, where I was hooked to another pulse oximeter and pronounced out ofdanger. The only remedy was for me to be transported immediatelyto lower altitude (while continuing to breathe supplemental oxygen) and stay there for 24to 48 hours until the fluid was reabsorbed and my lungs started to function normally onceagain. But when he first hooked me up, thereading was 75% - a severely hypoxic state that was literally life-threatening if it hadbeen left untreated for a few more hours.Īfter listening to my lungs with a stethescope, the ER doc diagnosed HAPE - HighAltitude Pulmonary Edema - which is a form of altitude sickness in which fluid startscollecting in the alveoli (tiny sacs) of the lung tissue, interfering with the lungs’ability to oxygenate the blood. Readings of 95% to 100% are normal at sea level,he explained, and even at the 8,000′ elevation of Mammouth Lakes, the oxygen saturationfor a flatlander like me should still be 90% or so. The doctor told me that I was profoundly hypoxic - he classified my condition as cyanotic(meaning I was actually starting to turn blue) - and said that the instrument connectedto the finger clip probe was a pulse oximeter that was reading the percentage ofoxygen saturation in my arterial blood. Then he stuck a cannula up my noseand started administering oxygen therapy. The probe wasconnected by an electrical cable to a box with a digital readout on it, and the physiciannoted some readings from the instrument onto my chart. Bis zu 2.When I arrived at the hospital, the ER doc took one look at me,told me to lie down, and clipped some sort of probe onto my finger.An verschiedene Fingergrößen anpassbar (8mm bis 26mm).Schnelle und einfache Stichprobenmessung.
21 Stunden Dauerbetrieb ohne Batteriewechsel. Das Fingerpulsoximeter «Onyx II 9550» ist besonders energiesparend und ermöglicht ca. Das sehr gut ablesbare LED-Display, die automatische Ein- und Abschaltung und die kabellose Bedienung machen das Finger-Pulsoximeter besonders angenehm für Patient und Behandler. während oder nach chirurgischen Eingriffen oder einem Notfall. Das kleine und leichte Fingerpulsoximeter «Onyx II 9550» ermöglicht die schnelle Ermittlung von Sauerstoffsättigung und Pulsfrequenz und ist hervorragend in der Zahnarztpraxis einsetzbar, z.