Duncan74 wrote:
Ok, this isn't a medical forum, and I take all the caveats that this therefore will come with. Over the last few years I've done occasional PulseOx tests off the back of a Samsung phone. Then late last year I got a dedicated finger PulseOx monitor. 6 weeks ago I got a FR955 and have it set to read overnight. Finally, I'll add a few readings at my Doctors as part of just routine test.
I do have very mild asthma, I'm 47 with a RHR of low/mid 40s at the moment, and according to Garmin a respiratory rate of 12 in daytime and drops to 8 overnight. My wife has always complained that she gets freaked when I seems to stop breathing in my sleep. Never really seemed to be an issue to me. I think/thought it was related to my large lung volume - tested as part of my asthma diagnosis.
Anyway, back to the question. I'd always kinda ignored the pulseOx readings from the spot tests - typically in the 90-94 range. I just put that down to the skin on my finger or equivalent impacting the readings. Now with the benefit of consistent readings from the Garmin that shows that 90-92% and dropping to high 80s over night then I'm wondering if there is an issue here with me more than the readings. Note that this is now 4 separate machines reading the PulseOx as consistently lower than normal.
However, these low readings continue through the daytime too, so not 'just' sleep apnea. The low Resp rate and heart rate don't match the medical descriptions either. So is there anything here to be concerned about?
I'm curious. Are you at altitude?
While I don't consider my Garmin a medical device, it does always agree with the doctor when I am there. I've never seen numbers that low except at high altitude or with sickness. I generally report a stable level from 96 - 98%. The lowest has been 92 or 93 maybe when I'm unwell. I have diagnosed asthma as well, but uncertain about sleep apnea.
My wife has told me for years that sometimes I stop breathing. After checking back, my watch seems to register that. Its very sporadic though and I've never pursued a sleep study because I feel like I sleep well.
Last edited by:
turdburgler: Aug 14, 22 18:12