What is Capnography

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What is capnography? Capnography is the monitoring and graphic display of the concentration of carbon dioxide (CO₂) in exhaled air over time.

Capnography provides real-time information about

ventilation (how well air is moving in and out),
perfusion (pulmonary blood flow),
cardiac output, and
metabolic activity.

Capnography measures

exhaled CO₂ (End-tidal carbon dioxide, EtCO₂), and
ventilation status.

EMS clinicians use capnography to

confirm initial airway placement (e.g., ET tube or supraglottic airway),
continuously monitor airway device integrity,
evaluate ventilation adequacy,
monitor CPR effectiveness (e.g., EtCO₂ >10–20 mmHg suggests good compressions), and
help predict the return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC) or patient deterioration (American Heart Association [AHA], 2020; Neumar et al., 2020).

Audio Transcript

What’s capnography? Capnography is the monitoring and graphic display of the concentration of carbon dioxide (CO₂) in exhaled air over time. Capnography provides real-time information about ventilation (how well air is moving in and out), perfusion, (pulmonary blood flow), cardiac output, and metabolic activity. Capnography measures exhaled CO₂ (End-tidal carbon dioxide, EtCO₂) and ventilation status. EMS clinicians use capnography to confirm initial airway placement (for example, ET tube or supraglottic airway), continuously monitor airway device integrity, evaluate ventilation adequacy, monitor CPR effectiveness (for example ETCO₂ greater than 10 to 20 millimeters of mercury suggests good compressions), and help predict the return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC) or patient deterioration.

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