• Carlos Antonio Tapia-Rombo, María Guadalupe Isabel Rosales-Cervantes, Víctor Joel Saucedo-Zavala, Julio César Ballesteros-del Olmo, Luisa Sánchez-García, and Isela Santos-Vera.
• Servicio de Neonatología, Hospital General Dr. Gaudencio González Garza Unidad Médica de Alta Especialidad, México D.F., México. tapiachar@yahoo.com.mx
• Gac Med Mex. 2008 May 1; 144 (3): 207-12.

BackgroundOxygen peripheral saturation (SpO2) is crucial for an adequate management of critically-ill newborns infants (NB). The objective of the present study was to determine SpO2 by pulse oxymetry among healthy term and preterm NBs at an altitude of 2240 m above sea level.MethodsObservational, cross-sectional and comparative. 218 NBs were prospectively studied between January to April 2004. Eighty nine were term and 128 were preterm. Alpha levels were set at p<0.05.ResultsThe recorded lower value for SpO2 was 88%, and the maximum was 99%. We observed a significant SpO2 difference among the term NB (93.5+/-2%) and preterm NBs (92.9+/-2%), p=0.01.ConclusionsSpO2 in Mexico City's altitude is on average lower when compared to that observed at sea level. In general with a minimum and maximum values found in our study the SpO2 needed to maintain a critically sick NB with supplementary O2, is suggested. Values should be kept at between 88% and 94% to avoid hypoxemia and hyperoxemia.

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