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Clinical Examination and Pulse Oximetry to Detect Congenital Heart Defects

2015; Sociedade Brasileira de Virologia; Volume: 28; Issue: 2 Linguagem: Inglês

10.5935/2359-4802.20150023

2359-5647

Fernanda Cruz de Lira Albuquerque, Elizabeth Trigueiro Maia, Vanda Lúcia de Figueiredo, Felipe Alves Mourato, Sandra da Silva Mattos,

Cardiovascular Conditions and Treatments

Background: Many studies have shown that arterial-pulse oximetry is an effective tool for screening congenital heart defects (CHD), and most of these studies have been carried out in developed countries. Objective: Analyze primary data from the CHD screening performed through clinical examination and arterialpulse oximetry in a maternity hospital, in the Brazilian Northeast. Methods: Neonates born after 34 weeks of pregnancy and in good clinical conditions were screened for CHD through clinical examination (CE) and arterial-pulse oximetry (APO) after 24 hours of life and before hospital discharge. Results: Screening techniques increased the detection of CHD at the maternity hospital. However, most cases were detected through clinical examination. Underperformance of arterial-pulse oximetry. Conclusion: The combination of arterial-pulse oximetry and clinical examination is crucial in the detection of congenital heart defects. Arterial-pulse oximetry alone, although useful to detect critical cases, has underperformed against clinical examination.