What is

Blood oxygen saturation

Blood oxygen saturation is the amount of oxygen that is in your blood. As we know, oxygen is essential to functioning and staying alive, and our blood is what transports oxygen throughout the body. It is important that our blood oxygen levels remain normal and within range, as hypoxemia (low blood oxygen levs) can seriously damage organs such as the heart and brain. A low blood oxygen level would mean the circulatory system or lungs are functioning abnormally.

Hemoglobin is a protein located on red blood cells, whose main purpose is to transport oxygen from the lungs to the tissues and transport carbon dioxide back to the lungs to be exhaled. A blood oxygen saturation level will measure how much hemoglobin is bound to oxygen and how much hemoglobin is unbound.

A blood oxygen saturation level can be used in the following ways:

To assess lung and respiratory function. Low blood oxygen saturation cold be indicative of lung conditions like asthma, COPD, or pneumonia.

To detect hypoxemia. An oxygen saturation level below 90 percent means someone’s tissues aren’t getting enough oxygen.

To monitor chronic conditions. Blood oxygen saturation can be useful in monitoring heart failure, lung disease, or other chronic illnesses.

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