The idea was fresh in the mind of respiratory therapist Catherine Abee when she joined the VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System in 2008.
Abee envisioned a device that would warm an area on the body of patients being tested for the amount of oxygen in their bloodstream. Warming the measurement site, she thought, would improve blood flow and thus provide a more accurate reading. The device, a heat-enhanced pulse oximeter, could be attached to one’s fingers, forehead, foot, ears, or toes.
