Measurement of hemoglobin oxygen saturation in capillaries.

We present a computer-aided videodensitometric method for the determination of oxygen saturation in red blood cells flowing through capillaries of the hamster cheek pouch retractor muscle. The optical density (OD) of red blood cells is determined at two wavelengths. At the first, 431 nm, there is a maximum difference between absorption by oxygen deoxyhemoglobin. At the second, 420 nm, absorption is equal for the two absorbing species (isosbestic wavelength). In capillaries of the retractor muscle a relationship between oxygen saturation (S) and the following OD ratio was obtained as S = -1.71 (OD431/OD420) + 2.20. The error (95% confidence interval) in oxygen saturation associated with a determination of the OD ratio is estimated to be +/- 4.8%. The computerization of the method employs a frame-by-frame analysis of the light intensity over a selected capillary segment. The light intensity waveform along the segment is digitized and the minimum (I) and maximum (I0) light intensities are used to compute an optical density (OD = log10 [I0/I]). These minimum and maximum intensities correspond to the presence and absence of a red blood cell, respectively. The method permits the off-line analysis of videotaped scenes and provides a means of assessing the extent of temporal and spatial heterogeneity of oxygen saturation in selected capillary networks. The method has been developed for use in capillaries in transilluminated striated muscle but should be generally applicable to the measurement of capillary oxygen saturation in other tissues.