Spectrophotometric apparatus and method for monitoring oxygen saturation.

摘要

A continuous spectrum of light (10) in a selected wavelength (12) band is transmitted through selected tissue. The spectral distribution of light transmitted through the selected tissue is monitored and differentiated (36) with respect to wavelength. The differentiated spectral data is processed (38) to determine the oxygen saturation in the tissue. The spectral data may be digitized (34) and stored in a storage device (33) that correlates the transmitted intensity with the wavelength. The intensity values for a predetermined number of spectra may be averaged (35) to smooth the spectral data. The first derivative of the averaged spectral data is then determined at predetermined wavelengths and processed (38) with an algorithm to determine the oxygen saturation.