My Apple Series 8 watch has been showing drops of oxygen. It has shown 71-83% but then can go up to 100%.
Sometimes during day I have a very hard time breathing but night even sleeping elevated I am short of breath. Even side sleeping . Back is the worst.
I am not on any meds, not overweight. 55, non smoker , no alcohol etc etc
Does anyone else have this with their Afib.
Waiting for my date for ablation from my EP
I don’t have this problem with oxygen levels but I have exactly the same problem with my iwatch!
It’s my understanding, and I’m not a medic, that If your oxygen level is really that low you would be unconscious, your brain and other organs seriously affected.
Having said this you should really get medical help asap as I don’t think it’s usual to feel breathless at night with Afib. I’d be ringing 111 for advice.
The iwatch is notoriously bad at measuring oxygen even though it’s quite reliable for HR and Afib. You’d be best purchasing an oximeter.
I would confirm those numbers with the reliable finger pulse oximeter before getting nervous. I'm a big fan of the Apple Watch but I turned off the oxygen function for that reason.
As to being out of breath, are you currently in a fib and is your heart rate controlled? If you're in a fib, that may be the reason, but always a good idea to report shortness of breath to your doctor.
Jim
Oxygen levels showing back to 100% now
The shortness of breath comes and goes . Sometimes for days, minutes or hours .
I bought an oximeter today and it arrives tmrw. I see Dr at 2:30
I am not in Afib at all.
I just find I have a hard time taking in full air and sometimes breath catches but right now no issues at all.
Do you mouth breath? Is your breathing fast, high and shallow? If you have anxiety one tends to breath fast, high and shallow whereas you need to relearn to breath Long, Slow and Deep = L S D breathing through your nose.
I agree that you need to check the levels with a finger oxymeter - iWatch is notoriously inaccurate for O2 sats - especially at night. What it is sometimes helpful for is tracking averages. If you O2 sats STAY below 92 for any sustained length of time - at rest yet you are breathing well - then yes you need to get checked out so straight to A&E.
I have afib and heart failure. I have 3 oximetres. They do vary on the oxygen by 2 or3%. When l move about, the most they show is 93 or 94% . When l am sitting they show anything fom 78 to 88%. I have mentioned this to the doctors but they don't seem concerned. Maybe it is my age .....87 years old. When l do deep breathing l can get it up 1 or2 % but it is only temporary. When l go back to normal breathing ( not shallow ) it goes down again. When l am doing work or even getting washed and dressed , l find that l have to stop every few seconds as l am so breathless.
This is the same thing I have . I am 55. I have an Apple Watch as well as Oxyimeter and compare numbers. Often mine drops to 88 during the day.
I am waiting for results of my sleep study as well. Yet I am not overweight, I do not snore or have alcohol etc etc …
Frustrating
I will add to and agree with the Apple Watch comments. It is very useful instrument with many good health features, but the O2 measurements have limitations. I find they are fairly accurate if you are sitting up, have the watch on snuggly, and you initiate the measurement and hold your wrist steady. Inaccurate readings often happen at night when the watch may not be exactly snug on your wrist or it moves a bit…so I turned the automatic functions off. No need for additional needless worries.
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