Oxygen on Everest: the development of modern open-circuit systems for mountaineers.

The use of supplemental oxygen on Mt. Everest is now commonplace. From 1990 to 2006, more than 95% of those summiting the mountain did so using supplemental oxygen at some point during their ascent.

Pulse oximetry.

Purpose Of Review: Pulse oximetry is now a ubiquitous and essential tool of modern medicine, and while it is a relatively recent invention, the technology has rapidly matured since the first commercially available oximeters were introduced in the 1970s. This review seeks to provide an overview of the basic physical operation of the probe and discuss its limitations, sources of error and some current advances in the use of multi-wavelength probes.

Recent Findings: New multi-wavelength oximeters and plethysmographic waveform analysis may expand the information that we can collect and use non-invasively.