Reference values for oxygen saturation from sea level to the highest human habitation in the Andes in acclimatised...

Oxygen saturation, measured by pulse oximetry (SpO₂), is a vital clinical measure. Our descriptive, cross-sectional study describes SpO₂ measurements from 6289 healthy subjects from age 1 to 80 years at 15 locations from sea level up to the highest permanent human habitation. Oxygen saturation measurements are illustrated as percentiles. As altitude increased, SpO₂ decreased, especially at altitudes above 2500 m. The increase in altitude had a significant impact on SpO₂ measurements for all age groups. Our data provide a reference range for expected SpO₂ measurements in people from 1 to 80 years from sea level to the highest city in the world.