What is the amount of o2 drop that requires you to need o2

I have been on apap for over 5 years. One of the symptoms that I had in the beginning was terrible headaches.My pressure is 13.6 to 20. My leaks are very low. My AHI is less than 2.0 and usually less than 1.0. But recently I started having headaches again. I am using a wrist oximeter which is indicating that my oxygen level is dropping below 85. A couple of times down to 75.
I have 2 questions.
1- What amount of drop will convince a Doctor that I need o2 supplement?
2- If I do need suplemental o2 what o2 concentrator would you suggest to purchase. If the unit is expensive I would think it would be better to rent it?
I am scheduled to see the Doctor on Thursday.

Thank you in advance for any suggestions that you can offer.

Bobby269 wrote:I have been on apap for over 5 years. One of the symptoms that I had in the beginning was terrible headaches.My pressure is 13.6 to 20. My leaks are very low. My AHI is less than 2.0 and usually less than 1.0. But recently I started having headaches again. I am using a wrist oximeter which is indicating that my oxygen level is dropping below 85. A couple of times down to 75.
I have 2 questions.
1- What amount of drop will convince a Doctor that I need o2 supplement?
2- If I do need suplemental o2 what o2 concentrator would you suggest to purchase. If the unit is expensive I would think it would be better to rent it?
I am scheduled to see the Doctor on Thursday.

Thank you in advance for any suggestions that you can offer.

Is your pulse-ox capable of generating reports so you can see what's happening during the night.....to be able to line them up with your CPAP reports? Or, is it just "numbers"?

If you do have reports which can be lined up with the CPAP software reports, do you seen any pressure settings corresponding with the O2 drops?


Den

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Hi, there's no one level cutoff that would make it necessary for you to go onto 02. Everyone's different and many factors should be taken into account. We all desat sometimes for different lengths of time and I think you need to first check your overall results with Sleepyhead for a while (week?) and then if there are no answers there (like needing to raise your low pressure a bit) I'd see a neurologist or even cardiologist about your headaches and of course get your BP checked. Not everything is about OSA or 02 and you should get a good once over before jumping to conclusions.

I think more important is how long a drop in SpO2 lasts.

Some insurance companies DO have a numerical requirement;
but their judgement has a numerical basis as well.

I was at 85 all the time when awake and my doctor prescribed an oxygen concentrator. After 6 months my insurance company bought it for me. Now I average around 90-92 awake, less asleep, and hook the oxygen concentrator up to the CPAP machine at night. It helps.

I have sleepyhead for the mac.It has all the data. The worst 02 drop to 70 lines up to a pressure increase from 13.6 to 16.

I thought it was 85 but I just looked it up and it is 90 on the Mayo Clinic page. Is the drop during the day or just at night? Insurance just rents the machine forever I think. My provider never comes and checks my machine. It is working fine but they are supposed to come once a month but I haven't seen them in over a year. I think the machines are pretty reliable.

I was led to believe the magic number is 88.
I have been using the O2 concentrator since just before my OSA diagnosis.
When I asked my DME for some replacement filters for the one I own I had to provide proof of desalination below 88.
I also have a CMS 50i wrist oximeter.

Now after 5 years, I am starting to get some alarms on my concentrator.
New year, new insurance, new concentrator?

The number Medicare uses is anything below 89, but the number doesn't matter if you have certain conditions or issues. For instance, someone can have 91%, but have spikes that go down to the 60s (with a cpap), may qualify for insurance.

My best recollection is a drop below 88% that lasts for a total of 5 minutes or more. The time is cumulative for the night, not just one instance. So a single drop that lasts 5 minutes as does two drops that total 5 minutes between them.

Bobby269,
When I was diagnosed w/COPD the studies showed I was only producing 76% on my own. I was put on 4LPM resting, 6LPM active. Also, told me not to let it fall below 88%. Don't know if this answers your question, but that's what I was told.
Cheers,
otrpu

It answers question #1. Would a couple people answer question #2. when you have time.

Bobby269 wrote: 2- If I do need suplemental o2 what o2 concentrator would you suggest to purchase. If the unit is expensive I would think it would be better to rent it?

This was my experience with rent vs. purchase:

At DME #1, I was told that they would only rent me my requested unit for a $79/month charge to me after insurance paid. I asked how long it would be before I owned it, and they said never. It would be a continual rental. I asked what I would get for my $79/month and they said that they would service it as needed and upgrade it after 5 years. Yeah, right!

At DME #2, I was told that I could purchase my requested unit for $79 outright. Same machine, same insurance policy, same day. Since the machines are so reliable, servicing is not a selling point for rental in my mind. When I got the bill after insurance paid, I owed a grand total of $69; $10 less than 1month's rent from DME #1.

I have had my machine for almost a year now with perfect performance. If your insurance will allow an outright purchase, I think you should do the math and decide if that's a better way to go. It was for me.

Bobby269 wrote:It answers question #1. Would a couple people answer question #2. when you have time.

The "final say" on #1 will be up to your doctor, since it depends on a lot of factors.
You will want to bring documentation for your desats to your doctor.
Even then, he may need to get formal results from a loaner machine, as home equipment is often viewed as inferior.