Comparison of oxygen saturation values between term and pre-term neonates.

Objective: To determine mean oxygen saturation (SpO2) values in normal newborns and compare mean Spo2 values between term and preterm infants. Study Design: Descriptive Case Series. Setting: Hameed Latif Teaching Hospital Lahore. Period: March 2023 to November 2023. Material & Methods: The study involved 100 neonates from operation theatre and labor room. Informed consent was obtained from parents. Immediately after birth, pulse oximeter was applied and serial monitoring of oxygen saturation was carried out starting at 1 minute and recording values after every 1 minute till 10 minutes of life. Results: There were 50% male and 50% female neonates. The average SpO2 values were 76.13±10.41 at first minute, 89.68±6.62 at 5 minutes & 95.84±3.65 at 10 minutes of life. Mean SpO2 was significantly high in term babies as compared to preterm babies at one minute and 5 minutes. However there was no significant difference in mean SpO2 at 10 minutes in term and preterm babies. Conclusion: The process of transition to normal postnatal oxygen saturation requires more than 5 minutes in healthy newborns. In healthy term newborn, oxygen saturation rises slowly. SpO2 monitoring may help identifying the infants requiring resuscitation to avoid overexposure to high supplemental oxygen after birth. Many newborns have SpO2 <90% during the first 5 minutes of life. This should be considered when choosing SpO2 targets for infants treated with supplemental oxygen in the delivery room.