Oximeter is working correctly. Just want to hear others experience. I’m aatd/ZZ end stage and heart affected.
Question: Anyone have experienced ox... - Lung Conditions C...
Question: Anyone have experienced oximeter reading 79/38 for several minutes to rise to 90! Then back to 38 bpm?
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Maricopa
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Sorry to hear,I have experienced my respiratory rate dropping to 86 and then slowly climbing up to 90.
I have noticed that sometimes it’s dependent on how cold my hands are. (I have raynaud’s )
Hope you get an answer.
🕊Anne
I haven't had those readings but I would be just as concerned about the very low oxygen levels if I had. Have you consulted your doctor?
I had an odd experience a few months ago. I felt rather confused when I got up in the morning. When I started to do my first round of meds, I was having to go over and over things to make sure I was getting it right. I really didn't feel right at all so popped the oximiter on and was concerned to see my O2 was down to 84. I got out my other oximeter and popped that on another finger. Both oximeters read the same, or as near as dammit.
So I phoned the surgery. All GP appointments were taken up but I explained what had occurred but that things had now improved and O2 had now risen to 90 so they got the paramedic to phone me.
'Oh,' she said, 'Your oxygen couldn't have been that low as you said you were able to make yourself a drink and take it into the other room. If your O2 was that low, you wouldn't have been able to function so well.' I reminded her about my uncharacteristic confusion and the fact that BOTH oxymeters had given me the same figures. I asked to go to the surgery to get the oxymeters checked which she agreed to. As I was going anyway, I decided to take a sputum sample along.
The paramedic was very nice and, once I was there, she gave me a good examination and pronounced that my chest was clear. By then my O2 was up to 93. I mentioned that I'd dropped off a sputum sample and she asked why. I explained that's it's standard practice for patients with bronchiectasis to drop in a sample if they think it needs testing. She hadn't heard of this!
I carried on the rest of the day without any problems and my O2 rose to 96. But when the sputum test results came back it showed I had pseudomonas! The GP I spoke to said I didn't require any treatment. I was unhappy about this and contacted the RESP nurse who liaised with my consultant. Eventually, I saw him and he prescribed the antibiotic for pseudomonas that I can never remember the name of. You have to be careful of any pain in your heel as it can cause your achilles tendon to rupture.
I haven't really looked back since then. I've had no further episodes of confusion or such low O2 but it was frightening when it happened.
I have been told that if it ever happens again I'm to go straight to A&E as they don't keep oxygen in the surgery so the doctors there wouldn't be able to help me.
I don't know if my experience is helpful to you but sometimes, it's good to know something similar has happened to someone else.
xx Moy
i SUFFER THE SAME THING my new consultant didn`t believe me so I went to my GP he put the oximeter on and said , Heck you should be in hospital but then it rose to 93% and dropped to 92which is aledgebly my normal.We just have to put our trust IN ourselves as we know our bodies far better than a man with a stethoscope. I can drop to 95% and up to 96% HAY HO!!!
My 02 will very easily drop to 79 on very little exertion. It is taking longer to recover these days. It peaks at about 91. However, my main concern is my heart rate for the past few month, maybe a year has gone regularly to around 38. It will stay there several minutes. Then may pop up to 90 a few minutes, then 38 bpm yet again. I’ve become accustomed to it. But thinking by what I’ve read it’s not so good.
Sorry I meant I can drop to as low as85% and raise up to 96% and heart rate is all over the place. at least my heart is still working 🤣
38bpm is very low - Id be just as worried about that as the low O2. It might be ok for an exceptionally fit athlete - they have low heart rates - but not someone with lung disease.
You dont say if your O2 dropped again, when the bpm went back to 38. At 38 it could be that your heart isnt able to pump enough blood/oxygen round the body, hence the drop in O2.
Anyway obviously Im not qualified and know nothing about your condition. So I would advise you to call your GP.
No my oxygen didn't drop. It was at 79 and slowly rising. But the heart toggled back and forth from 38 then popped up to 90! It’s been doing this for months. It now stays several minutes at 38 before popping back to 90. I actually mean popping it doesn’t slowly rise from 38 bpm to 90 bpm. It just reads 38 then 90. Now it’s not my oximeter. I’ve used several I own and they all read the same. It’s like is my heart skipping???
Could it be some kind of arrhythmia? It's possible to skip beats due to high CO2, Ive had that when doing Buteyko breathing method, which is why I stopped doing it!
Please do talk to your GP. It may be fine but you should check.
Hello. Does your doc know that your heart rate is going so low? Need to see him if he doesn't. Mine was dropping to 38 when I was asleep. Cardiologist put pacemaker in that stops it going below 50. You need to get checked x
A few months ago as well my legs began swelling with fluid from the knee down. Dr told me to wear compression socks. Of course this causes me to pee constantly day and night. Then Dr says your legs are going to continue getting larger it’s going to happen with what you’ve got. I’m on about 4 different meds for heart. That’s really all they have for me. So I’ll assume the 38 heart rate is due to ventricle failure. Electrical? All they can do is try meds. The lower oxygen must be due to fluid in the lungs. Pulmonary hypertension. Dr just acts like it’s all par for the course of my alpha one antitrypsin deficiency ZZ
Try checking yr pulse yrself - I find oxometer doesnt detect all of my beats
My O2 levels can drop to 88-89 normally come in at 90 ish but these are normal levels fir me , still up on my feet doing things not confused . Mine have ran low for few years since had a PE now COPD amongst other things! We are all different over my years on wards I've seen lots if patients with different readings same as diabetics all have own levels of blood sugar. Go by your gut feeling you know your body better than anyone else.
reading the above comments you could have what is known as AF ,monitor your pulse rate and then speak to GP unless you are already on a beta blocker.Im afraid some of the pulse oximeters are not as good as they should be.Good luck if low sats always try another finger 🙂
When having my last bloods done the nurse was concerned at my erratic pulse rate and suggested I have an ecg. As previous ones have come back normal I declined but was told I could have one if I changed my mind. My O2 levels even with oxygen on can drop to the 70s on exertion but recover quickly with rest and deep breathing.
Gosh I can see why you are worried. My O2 levels will drop to 81 on exertion, and return to 92 when resting and breathing forcefully. My BPM also varies significantly. I am on amlodipine which only adds to the variations. I guess you could take a video by mobile phone during your oximeter/BPM variations and show it to your GP. Hope you are feeling better soon.x
Mine always starts quite low then slowly rises. Dr often panic at first. I not sure if it’s thin fingers and cold hands. Ours works fine on husband.
Does your heart seem to be skipping beats? Mine has been skipping beats, or what feels like skipping beats but I get a premature beat and then a long space until the next one. So I essentially get two beats almost on top of each other and then a long pause between them. This has gotten worse or more frequent over the years and at times there are so many “skipped beats” in a row that my oximeter reads half of what my actual heart rate is, and then all of a sudden my heart starts beating normally so the oximeter jumps back up and then my heart starts skipping beats again so the heart rate shown on the oximeter is half of the actual rate. If you feel your pulse in your neck when this happens you will feel what I am talking about in your heartbeats.
Sorry, my earlier reply probably wasn't at all helpful. I didn't realise your concern was more about the slow heart beat suddenly rising then dropping agains.
I think it would be good to let your GP know it's happening and see if you can get a face to face appointment so they can check it themselves.
I have had Paroxysmal Atrial Fibrillation for years but it's become more of an issue recently and I'm now waiting to have a catheter ablation done. My heart rate tends to be high rather than low, but it can certainly skip about from high to low and back again, all very quickly. Infection will set it off and the day before I tested positive for COVID it was all over the place, making me feel really unwell. A large meal will also affect it and, for some reason, a bacon and egg breakfast will too, even though I only have one slice of bacon, grilled, scrambled egg and, occasionally, some boiled mushrooms.
My husband had the slow heart beat rising quickly and then falling again and had a pacemaker fitted to stop it going too low. It's regular now at around 58 bpm.
If it turns out you do have atrial fibrillation, it's not life threatening in itself, but it can cause a stroke due to the heart not properly emptying the atrium (I think) and some blood stagnating and causing a clot. This can be prevented by taking blood thinners . I'm on Apixaban now and my husband has to take a soluble aspirin every day.
The Atrial Fibrillation Association has a forum on HU if you want to find out more.
I hope you find there's nothing untoward going on, but better safe than sorry. xx Moy
My heart rate dropped similarly it went down to 54 and my oxygen dropped but I can to remember what. I spoke to the Dr on the phone. I don’t think he believed me. I then had to go for a blood test to see if my heart was ok. It came back that it was alright. I was supposed to go for a heart scan so they told me last year when I was in hospital. I still haven’t been almost a year later.
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