Oxygen Levels --- Help Please

[njean]

I went to see my Pulmonary specialist yesterday.

I told him that I had had a recent Echo about 2 weeks ago, (my cardio's ofc was supposed to have faxed to him but never did! ) because I wanted him to see that the Rx revatio has really improved my pressures, from the 60-65% before, to 46% now! And that I was only taking 20mg because I had tried upping it to 30 as he had advised & I still could not tolerate that. He agreed that if I was doing fine with the 20mg then just to continue with it. He checked my heart & said that the clicks were crisp & clear & didn't notate any fluid in my lungs or anything.

Then he said, that my oxygen levels were low (89) & that he wanted me to call oxygen providers so that I could get set up with a monitor to see if my oxygen levels would decrease during the night time.

I do have a low-grade headache almost every day & he thinks that's due to my oxygen levels being low.

Does anyone know what normal oxygen levels should be? I thought anywhere between 85-95 is considered good?

I came out of his office feeling a little uneasy as I hate the thought of having to be hooked up to oxygen when I feel pretty good as I am.

Any thoughts?

 

[Duffey]

I went to see my Pulmonary specialist yesterday.

I told him that I had had a recent Echo about 2 weeks ago, (my cardio's ofc was supposed to have faxed to him but never did! ) because I wanted him to see that the Rx revatio has really improved my pressures, from the 60-65% before, to 46% now! And that I was only taking 20mg because I had tried upping it to 30 as he had advised & I still could not tolerate that. He agreed that if I was doing fine with the 20mg then just to continue with it. He checked my heart & said that the clicks were crisp & clear & didn't notate any fluid in my lungs or anything.

Then he said, that my oxygen levels were low (89) & that he wanted me to call oxygen providers so that I could get set up with a monitor to see if my oxygen levels would decrease during the night time.

I do have a low-grade headache almost every day & he thinks that's due to my oxygen levels being low.

Does anyone know what normal oxygen levels should be? I thought anywhere between 85-95 is considered good?

I came out of his office feeling a little uneasy as I hate the thought of having to be hooked up to oxygen when I feel pretty good as I am.

Any thoughts?

89 is on the low side, Norma. I'll ask Bob when he gets home, but I think 89 qualifies for paid home oxygen care (some need it but the O2 saturation is too high for the provider to pay for it).
I don't think you would have to use it all the time, but let me ask.

 

[njean]

89 is on the low side, Norma. I'll ask Bob when he gets home, but I think 89 qualifies for paid home oxygen care (some need it but the O2 saturation is too high for the provider to pay for it).
I don't think you would have to use it all the time, but let me ask.

I appreciate the info Mary!

 

[Nancy]

they always wanted Joe to be at 95 or better, preferably 98 or better. So 89 is rather low. If your oxygen level is going lower during the night, that isn't too good at all. So getting a monitor is a good idea.

Are they possibly thinking about a CPap machine or oxygen for you? They wanted Joe to be on a CPap, but he had claustrophobia and is wasn't possible. He did have oxygen.

Is upping your medication a possibility? I know you said you couldn't tolerate it, but maybe in light of the new information, you might reconsider.

I am hoping for a good solution for you, it must be very uncomfortable.

 

[Nancy]

Forgot to add, possibly some of the side effects of the higher dose of medication, or even another PH medication would only be temporary. I know at the beginning with Tracleer Joe had many uncomfortable side effects. Eventually, they went away, but it took a couple of months.

 

[Danny]

Norma, i dont know the specifics of oxygen, but i hope you get the answers you need.

 

[njean]

Forgot to add, possibly some of the side effects of the higher dose of medication, or even another PH medication would only be temporary. I know at the beginning with Tracleer Joe had many uncomfortable side effects. Eventually, they went away, but it took a couple of months.

Thanks Nancy & yes, I am thinking of forcing myself to take a higher dose of the revatio in light of the new info.

I do know that I have a rather hard time falling asleep & sleeping all the way thru. I wake up several times during the night all stuffy & desparate for some fresh air. Just chalked it up to allergies.

And the dr didn't mention the CPap machine. I think I'd have a hard time with that one too!

 

[njean]

Norma, i dont know the specifics of oxygen, but i hope you get the answers you need.

Thanks Danny! I hope so too!

 

[njean]

I guess I should have posted this at the beginning of my thread......

The test they want to conduct is called an "overnight oximetry" to measure my oxygen levels throughout the night. I do have a feeling however, that I will have to be set up with oxygen after this test is conducted!

Oh well, all part of the territory I guess!

 

[Bina]

Oh Norma, what a drag.....However, if u can get by with just regular oxy at night time, you may find new energy and better sleep.
Yes, I've been told that docs like O2 levels to be around 95% if possible.
((hugs))

 

[deano89]

i can only add about 3 days my op my oxyen level showed on one occasion 93% and the nurse said it was on the low side and would need watching ,she told me at that time to take some deep breaths and it went up to 95% which she siad was better, but after that it semed to stay around 98%, hope you can get a solution that doesnt require oxygen

 

[ShezaGirlie]

Aaaaaaaack Norma, what a drag is right. Here's hoping you can breathe in easy as pie and won't need the oxygen. But, if you do....doesn't matter since breathing is what it's all about..!

 

[EireCara]

Im sorry you are going through this Norma. I will keep you in my prayers.

 

[KristyW]

Something Similar

Something Similar

Hey Norma,

I'm going through something similar. My recent trips to the hospital have given me some insights. When in the hospital, the alarms went off anytime my O2 sats dropped below 90%. The nurses were quick to come in and remind me to take deeper more frequent breaths. Wearing the oxygen when I was sleeping helped keep the O2 levels up.

Now on to my current dilemma. I also have problems with low O2 at night. My doc thought that maybe I had sleep apnea, so I did a sleep study last night. (I did the overnight O2 a couple of years ago.) The technician said that I don't have "classic" obstructive sleep apnea, but I do have central apnea...that means I stop breathing during my REM (dream) sleep. It's not an obstruction, but I just stop trying to breathe. There's a possibility of a CPAP for me, but not sure that would fix the problem.

The issue with the low O2 is that your body registers that there's not enough oxygen to keep your internal organs oxygenated, so it starts to make more red blood cells (hematocrit). This creates a condition called poylcythemia vera (sp). Too many red blood cells actually does make your blood thicker! LOL. So here I am taking warfarin to prevent clotting and I also have a condition that make my blood like sludge (thus more likely to clot).

Think on it Norma... you may be able to tolerate a CPAP or oxygen at night. If it makes you healthier and more aware and awake during the day, it's probably worth trying.

 

[rckrzy1]

what's the elevation where you are ? Might need to move to lower altitudes . Mine runs 96 to 99% depending on my allergies / asthma .

 

[Lily]

Norma, I'm very sorry to see this; but as soon as I saw your first post, I wanted to suggest a possible altitude issue also. I've been having some trouble with high altitude recently so that's the first thing that jumped to my mind; my oxygen saturation recently was 85% in a high altitude; I can get sluggish and headachey and recently had some very uncomfortable angina. I hope you find some good answers and relief.

Edit - I was doing some web searches, trying to find out more information and I found an article, "Pulmonary Pressure and Cardiac Function in Chronic Mountain Sickness Patients," that sounds very interesting but it needs a subscription; let me put the link here: http://chestjournal.chestpubs.org/content/135/2/499.full

 

[AgilityDog]

My husband has a very exaggerated gag reflex, yet he quickly learned to tolerate the cpap, and now takes naps with it, too.
He has both central and obstructive sleep apnea. I knew he was an accident waiting to happen, and am grateful he went for the sleep study.

You might be surprised how easily you learn to tolerate the mask. There are several different types, so try them all.

 

[njean]

Thank you all so much for your replies.

In reference to the elevation where I live, it's not high at all (3900') to be exact. Now this summer, we went to a campground in AZ that was 9200' in elevation & we had to leave because I was simply miserable. And now I can understand why.

But like I said before, it comes with the territory. My poor heart is trying it's darnest to keep me alive considering the mal-functioning of the old mechanical mitral valve, coupled with high pulmonary pressures, scar tissue, enlargement, blah, blah, blah, so if I have to start using oxygen to help alleviate the load, then I'll do what I have to do to keep on going.

I just booked a Carribean cruise for us for next May, so my goal now is to get there & be able to go on it!

 

[BDMc]

Dear Norma, Sorry you are having this trouble, but glad it was caught before causing more! Thanks for the laugh on Mary's FB post! All the best, your valve brother, Brian

 

[Ross]

Heck I'm 92% with 4 LPM flowing. Take it away and watch me fall to panic level.