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. 2011 Oct;6(4):217-20.
doi: 10.4103/1817-1737.84776.

Evaluation of a transcutaneous carbon dioxide monitor in patients with acute respiratory failure

Antonello Nicolini  1 , Maura Bravo Ferrari
Affiliations

Evaluation of a transcutaneous carbon dioxide monitor in patients with acute respiratory failure

Antonello Nicolini et al. Ann Thorac Med. 2011 Oct.

Abstract

Background: Non-invasive measurement of oxygenation is a routine procedure in clinical practice, but transcutaneous monitoring of PCO(2)(PtCO(2)) is used much less than expected.

Methods: The aim of our study was to analyze the value of a commercially available combined SpO(2)/PtCO(2) monitor (TOSCA-Linde Medical System, Basel, Switzerland) in adult non-invasive ventilated patients with acute respiratory failure. Eighty critically ill adult patients, requiring arterial blood sample gas analyses, underwent SpO(2) and PtCO(2) measurements (10 min after the probe was attached to an earlobe) simultaneously with arterial blood sampling. The level of agreement between PaCO(2) - PtCO(2) and SaO(2) - SpO(2)was assessed by Bland-Altman analyses.

Results: Both, SaO(2) from blood gas analysis and SpO(2) from the transcutaneous monitor, and PaCO(2) and PtCO(2) were equally useful. No measurements were outside of the acceptable clinical range of agreement of ± 7.5 mmHg.

Conclusions: The accuracy of estimation of the TOSCA transcutaneous electrode (compared with the "gold standard" blood sample gas analysis) was generally good. Moreover, TOSCA presents the advantage of the possibility of continuous non-invasive measurement. The level of agreement of the two methods of measurement allows us to state that the TOSCA sensor is useful in routine monitoring of adults admitted to an intermediate respiratory unit and undergoing non-invasive ventilation.

Keywords: Non-invasive measurement; PaCO2; PtCO2; SaO2; SpO2; respiratory failure; transcutaneous electrode.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of Interest: None declared.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Bland-Altman plot of difference between two estimation of (a) PO2 and their average (b) PCO2 and their average
Figure 2
Figure 2
SatO2 and PCO2: Averages and 95% confidence limits
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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