NEW PFT NUMBERS ... AM I BAD?

[DENNISAMERICA]

Hi  again,  i just had  another  basic  pft spirmoetry  done  on  4/9 /2016   and heres   the numbers ... my  fvc  was 87%   fvc1 was 81% FVC1/FVC  WAS 92%   AND  THE FEF25%  WAS 83%... AND FEF75% WAS 52%....  AND FEF25%-75% was 61%..... and fefmax was 93%....  is this bad  and  should i be having alot of symptoms?   what  stage might i be  in im  55 years old  and  been  smokinh  for  43 years now ..  also  below   are  the numbers   from all my pft  tests   done   since  2004   and   1   full  complet  pft   done  in2015   showing  more   numbers

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Am no expert but look good to me .. Infections can cause lots of swings in FEV & PEF if ya feeling breathless and have suffer feet swelling need to ask your doc to check ya heart out valves.

Like I say am no expert but numbers look ok to me near normal if the using 100% as total value with what looks like infections now and again even ya dlco looked ok.

If you worried ad talk to you doctor as stress panic attacks can be just as bad 

[Katinka46]

The only thing I am picking up from your full PFT numbers from last year that seems to me to be significantly abnormal is your RV, (residual volume) which is high, as is your RV/TLC, (residual volume as a percentage proportion of the Total Lung Capacity). This indicates air trapping. Do you have emphysema? 

Sorry, some of us are somewhat fixated on our "numbers" on this site! I may be completely wrong, there are lots of variations and each case is different. The best person to talk to about this is your pulmonologist. 

all the best

K xxx

[lynnekay]

To be honest, I don't take any notice of numbers such as these. I'm much more interested in what I have planned for the day and whether I can do it,  which stops me worrying about how poorly I am!!

[Katinka46 in reply to lynnekay]

I absolutely agree with you. But my problem is that I cannot do much at all, plans are a thing of the past, (involving any activity anyway) and doctors can be dismissive. My numbers demonstrate that I am not making it up, being a wimp, couch potato, lazy lump, hypochondriac.  So they are, in a perverse way, strangely reassuring.  When I walk upstairs and feel "yonderly" (good Yorkshire word, that needs no explanation) then it is no surprise that my oximeter shows desaturation. And that I need to slow down and find somewhere to sit. If I ignore the signs then everything, symptom wise, gets significantly worse. 

But I do what I can. Luckily painting, reading, and embroidery do not take much breath. Sadly talking does, but I refuse to give up on my friendships. 

Love to you all

K xxx

[lynnekay in reply to Katinka46]

Are you having all the treatments available such as Pulmonary Rehab and thorough medication checks?  If not you could ask for a referral to the respiratory nurse who will have much more time that the GP, and to Pulmonary Rehab.  The thought of exercise at Pulmonary Rehab probably scares/ worries you, but the physio will work at your pace and you will improve!  Both are worth doing, and I was much better after my first PR.  

Also if you're still smoking you could consider going to smoking cessation and asking for Champix - this is the only treatment that ever worked for me, and alleviated all my cravings

Hope it works out for you

Lx

[Katinka46 in reply to lynnekay]

Dear Lynne

Thank you very much for taking the time to offer such good advice. The vast majority of people on this site  have COPD, and most of them were (hopefully in the past) smokers. So it is very understandable to assume that everyone falls into that bracket.  But I am one of the exceptions. I do not have COPD. And I am not a smoker. Both the conditions that are going inside my ribcage are unusual/rare: Chronic Thromboembolic Disease and Obliterative Bronchiolitis. To make things even more misleading OB is actually a chronic obstructive airways disease, so no wonder it is confusing! But it behaves very differently from COPD.  CTED is in the blood vessels and more often than not leads to Pulmonary Hypertension. Both these conditions are degenerative, and there is no treatment or medication.  I have tried PR. If you look at my profile and scroll down to my post about it, called "Pulmonary Rehabilitation" you can read my account of what happened. 

Because these diseases developed very quickly over the course of a few weeks just after I had post-operative PEs six years ago.  It never occurred to me that I wouldn't be able to walk myself better. So I did in effect do my own pulmonary rehab until gradually I had to accept the fact that there was nothing I could do to increase my exercise tolerance.  

When I told my consultant that I was going to do PR he paused then said "Hmmm...  I think you'll find it interesting.  Hmmm.... You'll enjoy it."  What he didn't  say was "That's really good idea, it will help your confidence and get you doing the things you were doing before." He had already told me that I was not deconditioned because he knew I pushed myself. I think he suspected that it would not do a lot to help me.

I hesitated to reply to you because I know that your response was entirely caring and concerned and I didn't want you to feel embarrassed.  The vast majority of people with lung diseases, not just COPD sufferers, do benefit from PR so you were absolutely right to suggest it.  Some people do not put their conditions on their profiles so it is not always possible to tell what their physical problems are. 

With love and thanks again for your concern. 

All the best

K xxx

[lynnekay in reply to Katinka46]

Hi Katinka. 

I am sorry for making assumptions - I read your posting as a new one and hadn't realised there were others which gave a deeper understanding of your condition.  You have a very hard load to carry and I feel deeply for you, but not embarrassed.

I haven't any advice for you except to say keep up with the painting, reading and embroidery which are very therapeutic in many ways.

My thoughts are with you

Love Lynne x

[Katinka46 in reply to lynnekay]

Thanks for your very generous reply.

Love

K xxx

[punkyb]

The only number I have ever looked a t much is the fev1 and I don't see it above... but your numbers look pretty good to me. I would like them better than mine!

[DENNISAMERICA in reply to punkyb]

SORRY  I  MADE  A   TYPO ERROR....  THE   FCV1   IS  THE    FEV1 ......  I  TYPED   FVC1  INSTEAD OF   FEV1

[punkyb in reply to DENNISAMERICA]

mine is 31 so you are doing much better!

[diesel12]

I'm no expert but your FEV1 is far better than mine (52) and I still work full time, go to gigs and stuff (although secretly I do get really tired) so not looking bad at all

[gwapo]

Here is an Easy Guide to Understand PFT numbers....Whether you are interested in knowing or not, being aware of what is going on is to be pro Active in Your journey...As I follow the BODE INDEX ,,,My Staging is only as Accurate as I can Perform General Activity, so always listen to what your Body tells you and EXERCISE....The Whole Thing is about Building up Endurance,,,  With a Fev.1 @ 18% and With a Gas Exchange Issue...Not getting Enough Oxygen won't do me in..My heart will when the Blood gets Over Saturated with Carbon Dioxide that has no ways left to be removed.....At this point in time I often am in a much better condition compared to others with Fev,1's in their 40%..s.

noairtogo.tripod.com/pft.htm