Newborn Pulse-Oximetry Screening

Pulse oximetry screening (POS) is a noninvasive tool for the detection of critical congenital heart defects (CCHD) that has moderate sensitivity and high specificity. It is readily accepted by parents and health care professional and has significantly reduced mortality from CCHD. This article discusses the impact of POS on CCHD screening, variations in algorithms used for implementation, practical aspects of POS programs, and challenges such as the effects of skin color and low detection rates for left-sided obstructive lesions, along with recent efforts to address these limitations by incorporating perfusion index and machine learning into POS algorithms.