Skin Pigment/Pulse Oximeter in Congenital Heart Disease (CHD)

February 11, 2026 updated by: Garrett Burnett, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai

Pulse Oximetry Accuracy and Skin Pigmentation in Congenital Heart Disease: A Prospective Observational Study

Recent retrospective studies have demonstrated differences between pulse oximeter values (SpO2) and measured arterial oxygen saturation (SaO2) in patients identifying as Black or Hispanic. These retrospective studies have limitations because self-reported race is likely not an accurate metric for level of skin pigmentation and the retrospective nature of these studies may impact the accuracy of simultaneous measures of arterial oxygen saturation and pulse oximeter values. The few prospective studies that have evaluated this issue have utilized color-matching techniques to quantify skin pigmentation, and fewer studies have directly measured skin pigmentation in relation it to pulse oximeter accuracy. The aim of this study is to prospectively measure pulse oximeter accuracy in relation to measured levels of skin pigmentation in the congenital heart disease population.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Recruiting

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Detailed Description

This is a prospective observational study aiming to evaluate the relationship between pulse oximeter accuracy to the measured level of skin pigmentation in pediatric patients with congenital heart disease (CHD). These patients live with varying levels of hypoxemia, making them an ideal study population to investigate this critical patient safety issue. The study population will be pediatric patients (age <18 years old) with a diagnosis of congenital heart disease presenting for cardiac surgery at the Mount Sinai Hospital. These patient's will undergo surgery as per protocol, as if they were not in a research study, but will have their skin pigment measured using a non-invasive device (color spectrophotometer) prior to surgery. As part of the normal surgery protocols, arterial blood gas samples will be completed. The measured oxygen levels (SaO2) on arterial blood gas will be compared to the pulse oximeter value using simultaneous measurements to ensure the measures are concurrent. After cardiopulmonary bypass is initiated for the surgery, the subject's involvement in the study will be completed.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Observational

Enrollment (Estimated)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
92

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • New York
      • New York, New York, United States, 10029
        • Recruiting
        • Mount Sinai Hospital
        • Contact:
        • Principal Investigator:
          • Garrett W. Burnett

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Child
  • Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Sampling Method

Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Pediatric patients with a past medical history of congenital heart disease presenting for cardiac surgery under general anesthesia with anticipated arterial vascular access.

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Pediatric patients (age less than 18 years old) with a diagnosis of CHD (cyanotic or acyanotic) who are presenting for cardiac surgery under general anesthesia with planned arterial access.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Age greater than 18 years old
  • Emergency surgery
  • Significant preoperative anemia (hemoglobin <8.0 g/dL)
  • Preoperative hemodynamic instability (i.e., >1 vasoactive infusions or mechanical circulatory support)
  • The presence of any colored nail polish on the planned site of pulse oximeter placement, planned use of any intravenous dyes intraoperatively, and patient, parent, or guardian refusal.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort

Group / Cohort

A group or subgroup of participants in an observational study that is assessed for biomedical or health outcomes.
Pediatric Patients with Congenital Heart Disease
No intervention will take place in this observational study. All patients will have their skin pigment measured using a color spectrophotometer and color matching techniques (Fitzpatrick Scale, Monk Skin Tone Scale). Two pulse oximeters will be utilized and pulse oximeter readings will be compared to simultaneous measured arterial saturations. After cardiopulmonary bypass is initiated for the surgery, the subject's involvement in the study will be completed.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Level of Skin Pigmentation
Time Frame: Day 1 of study participation
Pulse oximeter accuracy as it relates to level of skin pigmentation as measured by color spectrophotometry. Pulse oximeter accuracy will be measured using the Accuracy Root Mean Squared (ARMS), mean bias, and proportional bias (Bland-Altman).
Day 1 of study participation

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Fitzpatrick Skin Tone Scale
Time Frame: Day 1 of study participation
Pulse Oximeter Accuracy in measuring skin pigmentation as measured by Fitzpatrick Skin Tone Scale Pulse oximeter accuracy as it relates to level of skin pigmentation as measured by Fitzpatrick Scale. Scale from I-VI, with higher number indicating darker skin tone
Day 1 of study participation
Monk Skin Tone Scale
Time Frame: Day 1 of study participation
Pulse oximeter accuracy as it relates to level of skin pigmentation as measured by Monk Skin Tone Scale. Scale from 1-10, higher numbers indicates darker skin tone.
Day 1 of study participation
Number of participants who experience at least one episode of occult hypoxemia
Time Frame: Day 1 of study participation
Incidence of occult hypoxemia, defined as SpO2 ≥92% despite SaO2≤88%, as it relates to measured skin pigment and incidence of occult hypoxemia will be described. Incidence will be measured by assessing the total number of participants who experience at least one episode of occult hypoxemia.
Day 1 of study participation

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: Garrett W. Burnett, M.D., Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
October 29, 2024

Primary Completion (Estimated)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
July 1, 2026

Study Completion (Estimated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
July 1, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
August 26, 2024

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
August 26, 2024

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
August 28, 2024

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
February 13, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
February 11, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
February 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • STUDY-23-00956
  • TE00003017 (Other Grant/Funding Number: Anesthesia Patient Safety Foundation)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

YES

IPD Plan Description

All of the individual participant data collected during the trial, after deidentification.

IPD Sharing Time Frame

Upon study completion and in accordance with any peer-reviewed journal requirements.

IPD Sharing Access Criteria

Researchers who provide a methodologically sound proposal. To achieve aims in the approved proposal. Proposals should be directed to garrett.burnett@mountsinai.org. To gain access, data requestors will need to sign a data access agreement.

IPD Sharing Supporting Information Type

  • STUDY_PROTOCOL
  • SAP
  • ICF
  • ANALYTIC_CODE
  • CSR

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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