CO2 retention

[Tykelady]

I hear about CO2 retention quite a lot but it has never been explained to me. Is this an invisible condition or would I have signs of it? My oxygen nurse seems to have been spirited away.

[Thepainterswife]

Hi Tykelady , my husband retains Co2 , we had never heard of it until he was rushed to hospital in a very serious condition two years ago . Sadly we were never warned about the condition and when he became extremely short of breath and felt very unwell we assumed it was infection or exacerbation. The doctor visited twice in the week before he was admitted and checked his oxygen levels etc which were all ok . Basically the problem is that Geoffs trouble is more about getting the Co2 out of his lungs rather than oxygen in ie his lungs perform better on the in breath than the out . The only way to determine if Co2 is building up is by blood tests . With hind sight there were small signs the main one being confusion When Geoff left hospital his oxygen was lowered from 2 to 1 , originally years ago he was on 3 but found it made him feel unwell and gave him headaches ( another possible sign?) so was reduced to 2 ) He is now classed as oxygen sensitive, normal (safe) oxygen levels for him are 88-92 and he carries a card so that in the event of an accident ambulance crews would not automatically put the mask on and give him too much O2 which could be fatal Hospital staff told me that they have some “ regulars” who can tell by how they feel if the Co2 levels are high and get themselves to hospital asap Hope this helps 😊

[Tykelady in reply to Thepainterswife]

Thank you so much for taking the trouble to reply. I know I am allowed to increase my oxygen level up from 2 when active or going upstairs if necessary so I expect I'm okay but will make a point of confirming this with the respiratory team at RLI. Dorothy x

[Thepainterswife in reply to Tykelady]

You should be fine Dorothy , Geoff is ok to increase to 1.5 or even 2 if he feels the need but only for short periods. The real problem seems to be the continual use of oxygen through the night . When Geoff was hospitalised I found him in the morning in a terrible state , nebulisers etc not having any affect whatsoever . In hospital he was on a Bipap ventilator but hasn’t needed one since so hopefully reducing the O2 has been enough 🤞😊 Val x

[Tykelady in reply to Thepainterswife]

Thanks for that. x

[Ian1967]

Hi Tykelady, yes Co2 retention is a fairly invisible illness, but can be very serious if not diagnosed and treated properly, I was admitted to hospital in April 2017 suffering from Type II Respiratory Failure, when I was in hospital they diagnosed me with Co2 retention.

Co2 retention is caused by your lungs not being able to exchange gases properly, Co2 (Carbon Dioxide) is a by product of Oxygen, the symptoms are headaches and extreme drowsiness in the morning also bodily tremors, I had the tremors and morning drowsiness and I had to carry a card saying if I was requiring oxygen my flow rate couldn’t go above 2, because I was a retainer and it could poison me going above that.

I was told I would have to use a BiPAP ventilator and oxygen at bedtime for sleeping, eventually I was given my own BiPAP at home and since then I haven’t looked back, I no longer have any symptoms and I’m able to go walking and exercise and oxygen use has gone from 24/7 to just ambulatory oxygen for walking and exercise and oxygen and BiPAP at bedtime, the BiPAP was daunting at first, but now it’s second nature when I go to bed.

I hope I have been some help.

Ian.

[Tykelady in reply to Ian1967]

Thank you so much. Since I was told I could increase my oxygen from when going out or upstairs I can assume I am okay. I will try to get in touch with the respiratory team at RLI to confirm this but I expect I would have been told. Dorothy

[Alberta56 in reply to Ian1967]

That sounds so positive. Good advice for anyone who needs it.

[NUTZ2140 in reply to Ian1967]

Hi Ian, I've been advised to go onto bipap but I can not bear the thought of anything tight over my face and forcing oxygen in, is it awful to start with and then gets better quickly?Penny.

[Ian1967 in reply to NUTZ2140]

Hi Penny, I was like you at the start and as I said it is daunting, but you quickly get used to it. Please don’t think all masks are like the ones you get put on as a hospital in patient, they can resemble something you see in horror movies, I use a ResMed AirFit F20 Full Face mask and even though they cover your mouth and nose, there is no straps on your forehead, you can also get full face masks that just cover your mouth and sit on your nostrils like the ResMed AirFit F30 and F30i, the F30i even has the tube on top of your head which is a lot more comfortable to wear.

You might even be able to wear a Nasal cushion or Nasal pillow mask, the Nasal cushion mask just sits under nostrils and on the Nasal pillow mask the pillows sit in your nostrils.

I can’t really use a Nasal mask because my IPAP pressure is too high at 28, I have tried but it gets uncomfortable in my nostrils and the back of my throat, but if you are not on a high pressure like me a Nasal mask might be the answer for you.

I hope I have been some help.

Ian.

[NUTZ2140 in reply to Ian1967]

Thank you Ian that has made me feel a bit better, I'll have a word with my respiratory nurse next time she comes. Have you bought your own masks etc?

[Ian1967 in reply to NUTZ2140]

Hi Penny, no I haven't had to buy my masks, I just order them through the hospital sleep clinic, I also order replacement mask cushions through the hospital, I have bought a few masks that hospital don't have and at one time I ordered a replacement F20 mask from ResMed because the hospital had no stock.

I hope I have been some help.

Ian.

[NUTZ2140 in reply to Ian1967]

Thank you so much Ian you have been very helpful, if I start it I will let you know how I'm getting on. 😄

[Patk1 in reply to NUTZ2140]

Do give it a try.ive niv too.i didn't have any probs and felt somewhat better for it.ive chronic rhinosinusitis too which whn sinuses infected r painful.they changed my mask to reduce pressure on sinuses + it's much more comfy

[Karenanne61]

Like Ian 1967 I too was rushed into icu with type two respiratory failure. I was placed on life support. I learnt I was 'allergic' to oxygen, retained co2 and carry an oxygen alert card. I hope in the future I would recognise the symptoms before it got that bad.

[anng18]

Hi Tykelady,

My mum was given too much oxygen whilst in hospital. It caused her to hallucinate and created respiratory failure. The advice from above is excellent, so there isn't anything I can add.