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WO-2026096679-A1 - DETERMINING BLOOD-OXYGEN LEVEL (SPO2) USING BROADBAND SPECTRA TO REDUCE OR ELIMINATE SKIN-TONE BIAS IN THE DETERMINED SPO2 VALUE, AND/OR USING BROADBAND SPECTRA TO DETERMINE PULSE RATE

WO2026096679A1WO 2026096679 A1WO2026096679 A1WO 2026096679A1WO-2026096679-A1

Abstract

An embodiment for determining a blood-oxygen level ( e.g., SpO 2 ) of a subject includes exposing a body portion of the subject to more than two wavelengths of electromagnetic energy, receiving a portion of the more than two wavelengths redirected by the body portion, converting the received portion of the redirected more-than-two wavelengths into signals each representing a respective group of at least one of the more than two wavelengths, and determining the blood-oxygen level ( e.g., SpO 2 ) of the subject in response to the signals. For example, such an embodiment can determine the blood-oxygen level of the subject with little or no skin-tone bias. That is, such an embodiment can determine the blood-oxygen level of the subject independently of the subject's skin tone, i.e., with little or no skin-tone-induced corruption of the determined blood-oxygen level.

Inventors

  • ARAKAKI, Lorilee S.
  • TRONRUD, Thor J.
  • MCMECHAN, Christian T.
  • MACCALLUM, KENNETH

Assignees

  • Opticyte Inc.

Dates

Publication Date
20260507
Application Date
20251029
Priority Date
20241220

Claims (20)

  1. CLAIMS
  2. 1. An apparatus, comprising:
  3. at least one electromagnetic-energy source that is configured to emit more than two wavelengths toward an exposed body portion of a subject:
  4. a spectrometer configured
  5. to receive a portion of the more than two wavelengths redirected by the body portion, and
  6. to convert the received portion into signals each representing a respective group of at least one of the more than two wavelengths; and
  7. a computing circuit configured to determine a blood-oxygen level of the subject in response to the signals.
  8. 2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the blood-oxygen level is an estimate of the arterial-blood-saturation level SaO2 of the subject.
  9. 3. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the blood-oxygen level is an SpCh of the subject.
  10. 4. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the computer circuit is configured to execute a machine-learning model that determines the blood-oxygen level of the subject in response to a respective characteristic of each of the signals.
  11. 5. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the computer circuit is configured to determine the blood-oxygen level of the subject by selecting a blood-oxygen level from a look-up table in response to a respective characteristic of each of the signals.
  12. 6. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the computing circuit is configured to determine the blood-oxygen level of the subject in response to a skin color of the subject.
  13. 7. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the computing circuit is configured to adjust the determined blood-oxygen level of the subject in response to a skin color of the subject.
  14. 8. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the computing circuit is configured:
  15. to select, in response to a skin color of the subject, a machine-learning model from multiple machine-learning models; and
  16. to determine the blood-oxygen level of the subject in response to the selected machinelearning model. 9. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the computing circuit is configured:
  17. to select, in response to a skin color of the subject, a look-up table from multiple look-up tables; and
  18. to determine the blood-oxygen level of the subject in response to the selected look-up table.
  19. 10. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the computing circuit is configured:
  20. to select, in response to a skin color of the subject, a look-up table from multiple look-up tables; and

Description

DETERMINING BLOOD-OXYGEN LEVEL (SpO2) USING BROADBAND SPECTRA TO REDUCE OR ELIMINATE SKIN-TONE BIAS IN THE DETERMINED SpO2 VALUE, AND/OR USING BROADBAND SPECTRA TO DETERMINE PULSE RATE RELATED PATENTS [0001] This patent application claims priority to U. S. Patent Application No. 18/991.196 filed on December 20. 2024, and to U. S. Provisional Application Serial No. 63/713.397 filed on October 29, 2024, both of which are incorporated by reference herein. [0002] This patent application is related to, and discloses improvements to and other differences relative to, the subject matter described in U. S. Patent 9,951,999, titled DETERMINATION OF TISSUE OXYGENATION IN VIVO, filed 02 May 2013, and issued 14 March 2017, U. S. Patent 10.463,286, titled DETERMINATION OF TISSUE OXYGENATION IN VIVO, filed 10 February 2017, and issued 05 November 2019. patent application PCT/US2022/024891 (published as Patent Application Publication WO 2022/221579), titled DETERMINING A LEVEL OF OXYGENATION OF ONE OR MORE CELLS, and filed 14 April 2022, and patent application PCT/US2024/034398, titled DETERMINING A LEVEL OF OXYGENATION OF ONE OR MORE CELLS, and filed 17 June 2024, which patents and patent applications are incorporated by reference herein. SUMMARY Summary of Techniques For Determining SpO2 [0003] An embodiment for determining a blood-oxygen level (e.g., SpO2) of a subject includes exposing a body portion of the subject to more than two wavelengths of electromagnetic energy, receiving a portion of the more than two wavelengths redirected by the body portion, converting the received portion of the redirected more-than-two wavelengths into signals each representing a respective group of at least one of the more than two wavelengths, and determining the blood-oxygen level (e.g., SpO2) of the subject in response to the signals. For example, such an embodiment can determine the blood-oxygen level of the subject with little or no skin-tone bias. That is, such an embodiment can determine the blood-oxygen level of the subject independently of the subject’s skin tone, i.e.. with little or no skin-tone-induced corruption of the determined blood-oxygen level. [0004] An embodiment for determining SpO2 (e.g., pulse oximetry, pulse-oxygen level, oxygen level in blood, pulse ox, blood-oxygen level) and/or pulse rate includes using broadband spectra. Such a technique can result in an SpO2 and/or a pulse-rate determination with reduced skin-tone bias, which is an error introduced into a measurement, such as an SpO2 and/or pulse-rate measurement, due to the color (e.g, tone, pigment, shade) of a subject’s skin. For example, the darker a subject's skin, typically the higher the level of melanin in the skin, and, therefore, typically the higher the skin-tone bias, which, for example, can cause a machine (e.g., a conventional pulse oximeter) to render an pCh reading that is one to several percentage points higher or lower than the actual arterial blood saturation (SaCh). For example, skin-tone bias may cause a conventional pulse oximeter to render, for a subject, an SpCh reading of 92% when the subject’s actual SaCh is significantly lower (e.g., 88%). Thus, skin-tone-bias-induced error may lead a medical professional to believe that a condition of a subject/patient is significantly better medically, or significantly worse medically, than his/her actual condition. [0005] A technique for determining SpO2 and/or pulse rate includes using a machine (and/or the architecture of such a machine), such as described herein (and also in Patent Application Publication WO 2022/221579 titled DETERMINING A LEVEL OF OXYGENATION OF ONE OR MORE CELLS, and in Patent Application PCT/US2024/034398, filed June 17, 2024 and titled DETERMINING A LEVEL OF OXYGENATION OF ONE OR MORE CELLS, which are incorporated herein by reference), for determining a level of oxygenation of cells other than blood cells (e.g., muscle cells). Summary of Techniques For Determining Oxygen Level in Cells Other Than Blood Cells [0006] Lack of oxygen to one or more vital organs is a complication that an emergency medical specialist (EMS) or a critical care specialist (CCS) (e.g., an emergency-room (ER) doctor, a trauma surgeon) strives to prevent, and, if it occurs, strives to reverse, in a patient who is, for example, critically ill (e.g., has an infection, has had a heart attack) or who is critically injured (e.g., has one or more broken bones, is bleeding internally, is in shock). [0007] Fortunately, there are a number of effective treatments that an EMS or CCS can render to a patient who is experiencing a lack of oxygen to one or more vital organs. [0008] But a key to an EMS or CCS treating such a patient with a high probability of success is the EMS or CCS knowing, with reasonable certainty and within a reasonable time frame, whether the patient’s vital organs are adequately oxygenated. [0009] Unfortunately, currently available medical devices and techniques are often unable to