Validation of a new combined transcutaneous tcPCO2 and tcPO2 sensor in children in the operating theater
Transcutaneous CO2 and O2 measurement have been around for a while, and are almost exclusively used in the neonatal intensive care unit. However, we rely heavily on end tidal CO2 measurement in the operating theatres when we don’t have an arterial line. This paper demonstrates that transcutaneous measurement of CO2 agrees well with arterial measurements in infants and small children, but that oxygen measurements are less reliable, showing wide limits of agreement. Particularly in situations when end tidal and arterial measurements are lacking, such as airway surgery cases, transcutaneous measurements may be a useful monitoring addition.
Reviewed by Dr Justin Skowno
