Doctors Warn About Devices Monitoring Babies' Vital Signs At Home

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- There are concerns about popular devices that monitor the vital signs of babies at home, as some local doctors and researchers say they're unnecessary and potentially dangerous.

CBS 3's Stephanie Stahl reports that babies who do need monitoring at home usually get that equipment from doctors.

The makers, who sell these devices online directly to parents, say they're not medical devices and are only designed to provide information to parents.

However, doctors at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia say they're potentially harmful.

CHOP neo-natologist Dr. Elizabeth Foglia says vital signs infant monitors are designed to give new parents peace of mind and an easy way to make sure infants are OK, but there are concerns.

"We have no idea whether these monitors are safe, whether they're accurate, whether they're reliable, and so that's a huge question that needs to be answered," she said.

Foglia and researchers from the ECRI Institute wrote an article for the journal of the American Medical Association, expressing concerns about the monitors that have become very popular recently.

"They are not held to any FDA regulatory standard, so we really have no idea how well they do what they're meant to do," Foglia said.

The devices, made by a variety of different companies, are supposed to monitor things like heart rate, blood oxygen levels and respiration, as the information is sent to a cellphone app.

"You could have a lot of false alarms and that would unnecessarily cause anxiety and fear in the parents," Foglia said.

Foglia said babies who are fine have been hospitalized for observation because of the monitors, and there's also concern that they could miss something, giving parents a false sense of security.

"Pediatrics has been fairly consistent in their recommendation that there is no role for home monitors for healthy babies to prevent SIDS [sudden infant death syndrome]," she said.

One maker Owlet, which said its done extensive product safety testing, said it has tens of thousands of satisfied customers and is committed to empowering families.

It is always best to check with your pediatrician before buying these types of vital signs monitors.