The mountaineer's method for peak detection in photoplethysmographic signals

Abstract

Several efforts have been made to develop algorithms for accurate peak detection in photoplethysmographic (PPG) signals. Most of those algorithms have been specifically conceived to perform under high motion artifact and baseline drift conditions. However, little has been done regarding peak detection in low-amplitude PPG signals. In an attempt to address this issue, a simple and real-time peak detection algorithm for PPG signals was proposed. In comparison with two other well-established peak detection algorithms, the proposed method was able to achieve over than 98% sensitivity and less than 3% failed detection rate, even when the amplitude of the PPG signal dropped to 0.2 V. Still, further work is needed to improve its robustness to motion artifacts.