6519 Discrepancy in oxygen saturation readings between different monitor technologies

Objectives Oxygen saturations (O2sats) are measured using two competing technologies in intensive care settings. GE monitors use Nellcor technology, whilst Tempus and Masimo monitors use Masimo technology. The gold standard in measuring O2sats in the paediatric population is widely accepted to be arterial blood saturations but is not always readily available, particularly in a transport setting. Anecdotally at a tertiary Paediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) and transport service, we noted a significant discrepancy in O2sats between different technologies. The differences were such that changes in respiratory support would be indicated depending on the technology used. Methods A service evaluation was conducted looking at patients on PICU with arterial lines. When arterial gases were taken, simultaneous readings using GE and Tempus monitors, with recommended saturation probes, were recorded to compare to arterial saturations. Additional data including weight, ethnicity and age were also recorded. Results N=13, with 79 blood gases taken, 53 of these with both GE and Tempus monitoring recorded to date. Tempus saturation monitors appear to underread O2sats vs the gold standard by 3.1% (table 1, figure 1). The rate of readings being greater than 2% different from the gold standard is more frequent with Tempus technology than with GE technology. Conclusion Under-reporting of O2sats with Tempus monitors has significant implications for potentially over treating patients if using Masimo technology. Masimo are also the standard monitors used for sleep studies. GE monitors were well aligned with blood gas saturation data.