February 9, 2021 – Medtronic plc (Dublin, Ireland) announced the results of an independent, prospective observational study comparing the efficacy and reliability of two pulse oximeters — Nellcor Bedside SpO2 Patient Monitoring System and Masimo Radical-7 Pulse CO-Oximeter, both set at the highest sensitivity (“Neonatal” and “Fast” for Nellcor pulse oximetry technology and “Max” for Masimo) — with electrocardiography (ECG) monitoring following the delivery of 60 term newborns by Caesarian section.
According to the study, a stable signal was obtained from all 60 newborns with the Nellcor pulse oximeter but from only 55 newborns with the Masimo pulse oximeter. Of the 55 newborns with stable signals from both monitors, the mean time to stable signal with the Nellcor pulse oximeter was 15 seconds compared with 27 seconds with the Masimo pulse oximeter. The average difference of 12 seconds between the monitors was statistically significant.
The results of this prospective observational comparative study were published online in the Journal of Perinatology.
The availability of a pulse oximeter for monitoring oxygenation and heart rate of newborns contributes to decision making during resuscitation and stabilization, and can help physicians minimize the risk of either too low or too high blood oxygen levels and associated morbidity and mortality, the authors state in the discussion section. Both the Nellcor and Masimo pulse oximeters provide relatively quick measurements of oxygen saturation and heart rate in most cases well before the so-called “golden first minute” of resuscitation.
The results conclude that Nellcor showed a statistically significant difference in the time needed to deliver a stable signal between devices which could potentially impact the provision of care during neonatal resuscitation, the company says.