Oxigen for the acutely ill

thebmj

Oxygen therapy for acutely ill medical patients: 

a clinical practice guideline

BMJ 2018; 363: k4169

 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.k4169 (Published 24 October 2018) 

"What you need to know

• It is a longstanding cultural norm to provide supplemental oxygen to sick patients regardless of their blood oxygen saturation
• A recent systematic review and meta-analysis has shown that too much supplemental oxygen increases mortality for medical patients in hospital
• For patients receiving oxygen therapy, aim for peripheral capillary oxygen saturation (SpO2) of ≤96% (strong recommendation)
• For patients with acute myocardial infarction or stroke, do not initiate oxygen therapy in patients with SpO2≥90% (for ≥93% strong recommendation, for 90-92% weak recommendation)
• A target SpO2 range of 90-94% seems reasonable for most patients and 88-92% for patients at risk of hypercapnic respiratory failure; use the minimum amount of oxygen necessary"