Measuring oxygen saturation of skin with advancing age using iterative optical path-length matrix method

Abstract

We measured the oxygen saturation of skin at various ages by iterating our previously proposed method that can rapidly simulate skin spectral reflectance with high accuracy. Oxygen saturation is commonly measured by a pulse oximeter to evaluate oxygen delivery for monitoring the functions of heart and lungs at a specific time. On the other hand, oxygen saturation of skin is expected to assess peripheral conditions. Our previously proposed method, the optical path-length matrix method (OPLM), is based on a Monte Carlo model of steady-state light transport in multi-layered tissue (MCML), but can simulate skin spectral reflectance 27,000 times faster than MCML. In this study, we implemented an iterative OPLM with a nonlinear optimization technique such that this method can also be used for estimating hemoglobin concentration and oxygen saturation from the measured skin spectral reflectance. The iterative OPLM was over 25,000 times faster than the MCML with 95 % accuracy. Before measurements in clinic, stability of oxygen saturation among measuring pressure was confirmed. Then, the skin reflectance spectra of 72 outpatients aged between 20 and 86 years were measured by a spectrophotometer. Three points were measured for each subject: the forearm, the thenar eminence, and the intermediate phalanx. The result showed that the oxygen saturation of skin remained constant at each point as the age varied.