Pulse oximeter with alarm

January 26, 2023 9:24 AM

My wife has pulmonary fibrosis and is on nasal oxygen. Sometimes at night the nasal cannula gets displaced and her pO2 goes down. Can someone recommend a device that measures blood oxygen while sleeping and gives a good alarm if the pO2 goes below a set level? Thanks!
posted by spulver to Health & Fitness (5 answers total)

This model has an alarm. You would probably want to tape it on when your wife is asleep.

Also worth reaching out to whoever prescribed the oxygen and asking if they can provide a pulse oximeter/if there's something they recommend.
posted by mskyle at 10:15 AM on January 26, 2023

Hospitals use continuous pulse ox - it's typically a fingertip band-aid type sensor connected by a hardwire to their cardiac monitors, which definitely alarm when oxygen saturation dips below pre-set numbers. There is no doubt a home version, and I think her pulmonologist might be helpful in researching this. I don't know how reasonable it is for your wife to wear a monitor with a wire all night, but perhaps she's a quiet sleeper who won't get tangled in the wire. I'm not aware of a wireless alarmed model for continuous wearing, but her pulmonologist can probable advise you about what is available.
posted by citygirl at 11:55 AM on January 26, 2023

There are wireless wearables with alarms that come in ring form, either freestanding or with a short wire to a fitness device worn on the wrist, which is a lot less of a hassle than a wire to a bedside device. You can find them on Amazon. However, I'm not sure how reliable any of them are.
posted by praemunire at 3:58 PM on January 26, 2023

I use this thing daily. It's got a vibrating alarm in the finger-cuff that is settable to a SpO2 threshhold, and it is really, really irritating when it goes off.

https://www.amazon.com/Bluetooth-Health-Tracker-Overnight-Saturation/dp/B094JG4JD7
posted by the Real Dan at 4:01 PM on January 26, 2023 [1 favorite]

I like the O2Ring as a wearable continuous SpO2 monitor. It's a ring, very comfortable and small. The alarm may not be enough though. It vibrates, it doesn't make a sound. It's definitely noticeable even when asleep but mostly to bug you enough to encourage you to roll over. I would not rely on it to wake someone up to replace a nasal canula.
posted by Nelson at 8:03 AM on January 27, 2023