Tekleab AM, et al. Pediatric Health Med Ther. 2019 Aug 15;10:83-88.
Tekleab AM, et al., conducted a study to evaluate the impact of SpO2 screening conducted before discharge in detecting Critical Congenital Heart Disease (CCHD).
Almost 941 healthy term new-borns were included in the study. During the period from January 2018 to July 2018, oxygen saturation was measured. SpO2 reading ≥95% was considered as a negative screening result. SpO2 reading <90% in any extremity was considered as positive or a persistent SpO2 of 90%–94% in both right arm and lower extremity sites on three measurements or a persistent right arm to lower extremity SpO2 difference of >3%. During the SpO2 screening test, confirmatory echocardiography examination was done for those new-borns that tested positive. By using Statistical Package for Social Sciences version 20.0, data were assessed.
During the screening test, of 941 new-borns, 56 (6.0%) new-borns tested positive. Of those 56 cases, ten (17.9%) cases with persistent pulmonary hypertension of the new-born (PPHN) (subsequently two of them were found to have sepsis), eleven (19.6%) cases with patent ductus arteriosus, and two (3.6%) cases with atrial septal defect were identified by subsequent echocardiography examination. Among the screened new-borns, no case of CCHD was identified.
SpO2 screening identified non-cardiac causes of hypoxemic illnesses (sepsis and PPHN) which otherwise would have been missed. However, this study advises using a larger sample size study to analyse the ability of SpO2 screening in detecting CCHD.
