Relationship between oxygen saturation and clinical symptoms or signs in infants from 2 months to 12 months age with acute respiratory distress due to hyper reactive airway disease

Background: Facilities to measure SP02 are not available at all centers especially in the resource poor developing countries. This study is therefore important to identify a minimum set ofclinical signs that can reliably predict presence of hypoxemia in children with hyperreactive airway disease that can be used by health care provider to institute oxygen therapy. Methods: study was carried out as a single centre, prospective, observational study fromyear 2005 to 2007. A total of 51 children were studied equally divided in three groups depending upon oxygen saturation. A clinical scoring system was used which was generated after reviewing many studies and taking more practical aspect in relation to its use in peripheral set up. Result: The average age of the infants with oxygen saturation > 95% (Group A), 90–95% (Group B) and <90% ( Group C) was 7.82, 8.02 and 8.17 months respectively. It was observed that clinical score for group A (Sp02 >95%) was ranging between 1 to 6, for group . (90–95%) was between 6 to 11 andfor group C ( <90%) was between 8 to 13. Median score for patients with Sp02 > 95% was 3, with Sp02 90–95% was 8 and with Sp02 <90% was 11 ( Table 2). Correlation coefficient was −0.906, as oxygen saturation was inversely related to clinical scoring of respiratory distress. Confidence interval at 95% for group A was 3.235±0.815,for group . was 8±0.672 andfor group C was 10.882 ± ft 917. The difference of clinical score between group A, group . and group C were statistically significant (p< 0.001). Conclusion: Oxygen can be started for all babies with hyperreactive airway disease who are having clinical score of 7 or more and amount of oxygen to be increased as score increases from 7 to 14