An indispensable tool, like the thermometer, that every family should have. The president of the Higher Health Council and member of the CTS, Franco Locatelli, also expressed his opinion on the validity of home controls, simple and effective. "Every family should have one, like the thermometer. Pulse oximeters are extraordinarily useful for considering respiratory compromise even early on, with low levels of" oxygen "saturation..
An oximeter in every family, just like the thermometer to measure fever: a small, easy-to-use, low-cost tool that can speed up diagnoses. The general practitioner, in fact, will be facilitated in remote diagnosis and will be able to refer the patient to the emergency room in case of need, according to the parameters communicated.
"It is therefore important to provide general practitioners with indications on the therapies to be given to Covid patients so that they do not arrive in resuscitation. - explained the president of the Higher Health Council, Franco Locatelli, speaking at the press conference on the "weekly epidemiological analysis - They should be provided with an oximeter for careful and constant home management". A" home self-management that would make it possible to promptly manage the occurrence of any pneumonia.
Another key tool to counter the spread of the virus could be an antiviral nasal spray, currently being tested.
or oximeter, is an automated instrument capable of measuring the degree of oxygen saturation inside the blood, or oximetry (or pulse oximetry, oximetry). The medical device, easy and practical to use, is also able to determine the frequency heart rate of the patient, which appears on the screen with the abbreviation Bpm (beats per minute).
In the past it was an instrument used exclusively in the hospital medical field, while today it is also widely used in the home environment. The measurement is carried out by attaching the device to the finger: the saturimentro is copied by a probe that is usually "pinched" on a finger of one hand (it can also be positioned on the earlobe); in newborns, on the other hand, the preferred position for the "Application of the oximeter is represented by the foot.
Once the measurement has taken place, the data relating to heart rate, pulse and blood oxygen saturation will appear on the screen. chronic and pneumonia, and so on. Faced with a pandemic like the current one, Covid becomes a particularly important tool, useful for monitoring the oxygenation of Covid positive people who develop fever, cough and, in the most serious cases, shortness of breath , the so-called dyspnea, for this reason it is useful to have a saturation in every home, just like the thermometer.
), values between 86% and 90, indicate moderate hypoxemia, while values below 90% are not physiological and indicate oxygen deficiency (severe hypoxia).
In both cases, that is when the oximetry in young and healthy subjects, is less than 95%, it is useful to inform the general practitioner who will be able to direct the patient. In the case of elderly subjects with previous pathologies, however, the threshold below which the value would not be physiological is 92%.
emitted by the oximeter probe and thus distort the results.
Free pulse oximeters are now available for some categories.
Further information and updates on 2019-nCov
For more detailed information on the new Coronavirus, on correct prevention, on infections in Italy, on the rules to be respected and on the quarantine procedures, we recommend reading the dedicated articles:
- Coronavirus 2019-nCoV: How to Recognize the First Symptoms and What to Do
- New Coronavirus: Rules to Follow
- Coronavirus: how to prevent the risk of contagion from 2019 nCoV
- New Coronavirus vaccine: updates
- Coronavirus: prevention and updates on the 2019 nCoV infection in Italy
- Coronavirus and SARS: similarities and differences on infection and transmission of the virus
- Maskne or Acne da Mask: What is it? Why does it manifest itself?
- Templates: Comparative Types, Functions and Methods of Use
- Physical Activity and Masks
