International Journal of Innovative Technology and Exploring Engineering (IJITEE)
ISSN: 2278-3075, Volume-8 Issue-12, October 2019
4618
Published By:
Blue Eyes Intelligence Engineering
& Sciences Publication
Retrieval Number: L3866081219/2019©BEIESP
DOI: 10.35940/ijitee.L3866.1081219
Abstract: Non-invasive haemoglobin (SpHb) estimation using
Photoplethysmograph signal has gained enormous attention
among researches in order to provide an earlydiagnosis to
polycythemia, anaemia, various cardiovascular diseases, etc. The
primary objective of this work is to evaluate the performance
efficiency of SpHb monitoring using PPG in clinically ill pediatric
population. PPG signal was obtained from the pediatric patients,
and SpHb was calculated from the characteristic features of PPG.
Haemoglobin value obtained through venous blood sample was
compared with SpHb. Theabsolute mean difference between the
SpHb and Hb
ref
was 0.78g/dL (SD 0.99; 0.1 to 4.1).For a statistical
analysis of the correlation between SpHb and Hb
lab
, IBM SPSS
statistics software was used. Bland-Altman analysis, T-test and
Linear regression analysis were further used for finding the
agreeability limits. Overestimation of SpHb value was observed
for lower Hb
lab
values, and SpHb failed to detect anaemic subjects.
Keywords: Haemoglobin, Neural Networks, Non-invasive,
PPG, Regression
I. INTRODUCTION
Haemoglobin (Hb) is a complex protein molecule in red
blood cells. Its main responsibility is to transport oxygen to
the body's tissues. Hbmeasurement is a part of routine blood
test and is one of the most widely/commonly performed
laboratory tests. A routine blood test is generally advised
during a general health assessment or when an individual
shows indications and signs of anaemia (a very low Hb level)
or polycythemia (condition with elevated Hb level) [1-3].
Haemoglobin test is one of the mandatory steps to make
decisions during blood transfusions. Haemoglobin
measurement is generally performed by the traditional
“fingerstick method” i.e., by invasively drawing blood from
the body. Although the conventional laboratory measurement
is accurate, it has its own limitations such as time delay,
inconvenience of the patient, exposure to biohazards and lack
of real-time monitoring in critical situations. The above said
limitations can be overcome by Non-invasive haemoglobin
(SpHb) monitoring. SpHb monitoring has gained enormous
attention as a point of care testing that facilitates to monitor
haemoglobin concentration in a continuous, accurate, and
Revised Manuscript Received on October 05, 2019
* Correspondence Author
M.Lakshmi*, Research Scholar, Department of ECE, Karpagam
Academy of Higher Education, Coimbatore, TamilNadu, India.
Dr.S.Bhavani, Professor and Head, Department of ECE, Karpagam
Academy of Higher Education, Coimbatore, TamilNadu, India.
Dr.P.Manimegalai, Associate Professor, Department of BME, Karunya
Institute of Technology and Sciences, Coimbatore, TamilNadu, India.
non-invasive fashion. Various technologies and methods are
employed by researches all over the globe to develop a
system/device for SpHb monitoring [5-13]. Among the
various methods, research on SpHb monitoring using
Photoplethysmograph (PPG) is huge [14-18]. PPG signal is
generally used for measuring oxygen saturation, to monitor
the depth of anesthesia, heart rate, respiration monitoring and
blood pressure [19-23]. Currently, SpHb, using the
characteristic features of PPG signal, has shown an excellent
correlation with the Haemoglobin (Hb) measured using an
invasive method [4]. However, the procedure was conducted
over a sample of 33 subjects and it did not include any
pediatric subjects. So, the study was conducted to evaluate the
performance efficiency of calculating SpHb among clinically
ill pediatric population using the characteristic features of
PPG and machine learning, and the results are discussed in the
following sections.
II. MATERIALS AND METHODS
A. PPG Signal Acquisition
The subject database acquisition was done in Sri
Ramakrishna Hospitals, Coimbatore after obtaining
permission for collecting the PPG signals of pediatric
patients. A formal consent was obtained from the parents or
the representative of the pediatric patients before enrolment.
Subjects aged between 3 and 13 years were enrolled. The
subjects’ data were stored in a spreadsheet of Microsoft
Excel. The IR Plethysmograph transducer and Labchart
software (version 7) of ADInstruments was used for signal
acquisition. The sensor was placed in the forefinger of the left
arm of the subjects. While the venous blood sample was
collected by the trained professionals for calculating Hb
lab
,
corresponding PPG signal was acquired for a 15-period
sample. The study flow of the work is presented in Fig 1. In
total 132 pediatric subjects were approached, out of whom 83,
aged between 3 and 13 were enrolled for the study after
receiving consent. Subjects with a mean age of 8 were chosen
for the study with a standard deviation (SD) of 3.3.
Evaluation of Non-Invasive Measurement of
Haemoglobin using PPG in Clinically Ill
Pediatric Patients
M.Lakshmi, S.Bhavani, P.Manimegalai