My head in the sand. Putting of further

[Peggysugarplum]

Thank you. I live in u.s.a. here most of the time are health insurance will help you get oxygen help if you need it. And are willing to ok oxygen if you would pay for your on consutrater personal unit. That's why I ask for help deciding if when and if it would help me just sometime. Information about useing oxgen for the benefit of my other organs , was a new news for me, I am not under care by a copd Dr just seeing what we call General practice. I am putting of all bad news as long as possible. Any general information on copd would help.

[stone-UK]

Hi

In the U.K. the need for supplementary oxygen is by assessment.

For long term oxygen 15.plus hours, ABG Aterial Blood Gases Test.

For Ambulitory oxygen when exercising or walking about, is by conducting a six minute walk to determine the level of desaturation.

Either way oxygen is a medicine that is prescribed to protect you major organs from damage due to lack of oxygen. In the U.K. our GP would refer us for assessment by the respitory team at local hospital.

The only certain way is ask you GP, for the assessment or be referred to the correct department.

inogen.com/blog/safe-oxygen...

[Hidden]

Try not to worry ....some people have had copd for 40 years plus which I was suprised to learn and some even longer ....I didn't know it had been around that long .....well I mean your gp will know or u could purchase an oxometer and measure your own oxygen levels ...u just put it on your finger and it tells you ur levels but it won't pick up if you are retaining carbon dioxide so you would need an arterial blood gases test usually from back of your wrist or your ear ...quick alot to take in but short of breath may not mean low oxygen ......

[PollyP]

As Stone-UK says here in the UK we are prescribed oxygen supplement if we need it and only if we need it !

It depends on what you Oxygen saturation levels are ?

There is a Facebook page called COPD Navigator which is very helpful and you can request free advice from Respiratory Therapist Mike Hess.

If you use Facebook you can ask there.

PollyP

[GolferWithIPF]

Time to quit putting off all bad news. Peggy, you do realize that you are on the British Lung Foundation website and comments and descriptions provided here may not be applicable to us in the US.

The first thing you need to do is have your Primary Care physician refer you to a Pulmonologist who will run all necessary tests to determine a proper diagnosis and treatment. Tests include Pulmonary Function Tests (PFTs), Arterial Blood Gas (ABG), 6 Minute Walk test (6MWT), High Resolution Computed Tomography Test (HRCT), X-Rays and blood work. You should buy an Oximeter (available @ Amazon, Walmart, Walgreens, etc.) to measure your O2 levels during exercise and at rest and keep a diary. Your Oxygen (O2) saturation levels will determine whether you need O2 and at what flow rate. Oxygen in the US is by prescription only. You will have to do a 6MWT and if your saturation levels drop below 89%, Medicare will provide for O2. You are doing damage not only to your lungs but to your other organs if your sat levels continuously drop below 88%. Yes you can buy your own concentrator out of your own pocket but may soon reach the upper flow rate limit of your system (usually around 6 liters per minute). Once that happens, you will have to go on O2 provided by a Medicare provider. To determine your O2 needs at night, you will probably need to have a sleep study done at a medical facility.

Two resources available for information are the American Lung Association @ lung.org/ and the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation website @ pulmonaryfibrosis.org/

I was misdiagnosed for several years until in 2009 I was referred to a Pulmonologist at Brigham & Women's Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts where I had a single lung transplant on Valentines Day 2016. I have been where you are and it's time to take action. Good luck on this journey.