IRVINE, CA /PRNewswire/ -- Masimo, the inventor of Pulse CO-Oximetry and Read-Through Motion and Low Perfusion pulse oximetry, reported that a new independent study presented at the 2006 American Association for Respiratory Care Congress in Las Vegas concluded that the Masimo Blue sensor is the most accurate technology for monitoring babies with cyanotic congenital heart disease. This patient population has represented a difficult challenge for pulse oximeters due to the patients' unique physiology and the need to keep their saturation at a low level. The researchers compared Masimo SET Radical using the Masimo Blue sensor with the Nellcor N600 LoSat technology using a Max-I sensor and concluded that only the Masimo Blue sensor demonstrated acceptable accuracy on this patient population.
The study titled "New Pulse Oximetry Sensors with Low Saturation Accuracy Claims - A Clinical Evaluation" was conducted at The Toronto Hospital for Sick Children by a research team headed by Dr. Peter Cox. The researchers indicated that, despite many advances in pulse oximetry technology, accuracy on patients with low saturations was still a problem. Dr. Cox's specific interest was the performance of pulse oximeters on babies with cyanotic congenital cardiac lesions (CCCL), which typically are kept at very low blood oxygen levels to maintain a balance of blood flow to the lungs and the body. He explained that careful maintenance of oxygen saturation levels on these babies is critical to their survival. The study was prompted by the fact that two pulse oximetry manufacturers have recently introduced products specifically suited for this patient population. Masimo introduced the Blue sensor in 2005 and Nellcor introduced their LoSat technology in 2006.
Dr. Cox and his team compared the Masimo Blue sensor with a Nellcor N600 with LoSat technology on babies with CCCL. The researchers found a statistically significant difference between the Masimo and Nellcor pulse oximeters and concluded, "Despite advances in technology, only the new Masimo Blue sensor demonstrates acceptable accuracy as demonstrated by a smaller bias, precision, and A(rms)."
About Masimo
Masimo develops innovative monitoring technologies that significantly improve patient care, helping solve "unsolvable" problems. In 1995, the company debuted Read-Through Motion and Low Perfusion pulse oximetry, known as SET, and with it virtually eliminated false alarms and increased pulse oximetry's ability to detect life-threatening events. More than 100 independent clinical studies have confirmed that Masimo SET technology allows clinicians to accurately monitor blood oxygen saturation in critical care situations, establishing the technology as the "gold standard" pulse oximetry and substantially contributing to improved patient outcomes. In 2005 Masimo introduced Masimo Rainbow SET Pulse CO-Oximetry, which, for the first time, noninvasively monitors the level of carbon monoxide and methemoglobin in the blood, allowing early detection and treatment of potentially life-threatening conditions. Masimo, founded in 1989, has the mission of "Improving Patient Outcome and Reducing Cost of Care by Taking Noninvasive Monitoring to New Sites and Applications." You can obtain additional information about Masimo and its products on the company's Web site or by contacting Tom McCall at 949-297-7075.
Masimo, SET, Signal Extraction Technology, Radical, Radical-7, Rad57, APOD, and Improving and Reducing Cost of Care by Taking Noninvasive Monitoring to New Sites and Applications are registered trademarks of Masimo Corp. Rainbow, SpCO, SpMet, and Pulse CO-Oximeter are trademarks of Masimo Corp.
New Pulse Oximetry Sensors with Low Saturation Accuracy Claims - A Clinical Evaluation. Cox PN. Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Canada, 2006.