Title:On the Analysis of Fingertip Photoplethysmogram Signals
Volume: 8
Issue: 1
Author(s): Mohamed Elgendi
Affiliation:
Keywords:
Photoplethysmography, acceleration plethysmogram, second derivative plethysmogram, digital volume pulse, ageing,
artery, autonomic function, blood pressure, cardiovascular, heart rate, pulse wave analysis, vascular disease
Abstract: Photoplethysmography (PPG) is used to estimate the skin blood flow using infrared light. Researchers from different
domains of science have become increasingly interested in PPG because of its advantages as non-invasive, inexpensive,
and convenient diagnostic tool. Traditionally, it measures the oxygen saturation, blood pressure, cardiac output,
and for assessing autonomic functions. Moreover, PPG is a promising technique for early screening of various atherosclerotic
pathologies and could be helpful for regular GP-assessment but a full understanding of the diagnostic value of
the different features is still lacking. Recent studies emphasise the potential information embedded in the PPG waveform
signal and it deserves further attention for its possible applications beyond pulse oximetry and heart-rate calculation.
Therefore, this overview discusses different types of artifact added to PPG signal, characteristic features of PPG waveform,
and existing indexes to evaluate for diagnoses.
