Recording pulse oximeters that stay on the finger well?

camper · Post by **camper** » Fri Jan 07, 2022 6:14 pm

I'd like reviews of of inexpensive recording pulse oximeters that stay on the finger better, than finger clamp devices like the Contec CMS50DA+ I tried, even if I turn over while alseep.

In addition to staying on the finger, I prefer units that time-tag data, in a format that can be input into OSCAR.

Alternately, I would be interested in inexpensive units that also detect breathing.

Reasons:

I still want to find out if a wedge pillow and neck brace are as effective for me as my CPAP machine. (They are sufficient for me to stop snoring.) This is partly curiosity, partly I want to go back country camping. I'd rather not have to carry the machine and batteries.

Side Issue:

I sometimes breath deep while asleep, raising O2 blood levels, then stop breathing for a while. The machine initiates a Clear Airways event. The O2 levels usually don't drop below 92%. This is sometimes repeated a number of times. Can there be an adverse health effect from stopping breathing even if the O2 levels are reasonably high?

(OSCAR plot clarification: There is a time lag between breathing patterns and O2 levels. This might partly be a problem with the way I synced things: my pulse oximeter does not record time.)

Jeff8356 · Post by **Jeff8356** » Sat Jan 08, 2022 1:42 am

I use the Wellue SleepU and it stays on my finger fine all night. The Contec CMS50F I also have that uses the "duckbill" type sensor. I tend to knock that one around a bit and get odd reading now and then. Neither are really inexpensive though.

scf · Post by **scf** » Sat Jan 08, 2022 11:41 am

The sleep clinic told me to tape it on…worked fine.

camper · Post by **camper** » Sat Jan 08, 2022 1:52 pm

Jeff8356 wrote: ↑
Sat Jan 08, 2022 1:42 am
I use the Wellue SleepU and it stays on my finger fine all night. The Contec CMS50F I also have that uses the "duckbill" type sensor. I tend to knock that one around a bit and get odd reading now and then. Neither are really inexpensive though.

Thanks for the suggestions!

scf wrote: ↑
Sat Jan 08, 2022 11:41 am
The sleep clinic told me to tape it on…worked fine.

Oh! So obvious. I am going to try this. If it works, I will feel like such an idiot. Even if it doesn't, I should have tried it. Thanks!

In retrospect, my OSCAR example was bad - only in one of the cases shown did the oxygen level drop. A combination treatment - CPAP machine selection, mask selection, pillow selection, neck brace, sleep position choice, dental mouth guard, and what I think of as a slow gradual training process (even though many experts say you can't learn during sleep) - has been successful for me - about 1 AHI / night recorded by my CPAP machine (even though it is set on the lowest possible initial pressure), which is within the normal zone. So I have trouble finding good examples where the machine itself detects an event. I can set OSCAR to be more sensitive. Also, the problem with getting the oximeter to stay on my finger gets in the way.

klm49 · Post by **klm49** » Sat Jan 08, 2022 3:08 pm

camper wrote: ↑
Fri Jan 07, 2022 6:14 pm
I'd like reviews of of inexpensive recording pulse oximeters that stay on the finger better, than finger clamp devices like the Contec CMS50DA+ I tried, even if I turn over while alseep.

In addition to staying on the finger, I prefer units that time-tag data, in a format that can be input into OSCAR.

Alternately, I would be interested in inexpensive units that also detect breathing.

Reasons:

I still want to find out if a wedge pillow and neck brace are as effective for me as my CPAP machine. (They are sufficient for me to stop snoring.) This is partly curiosity, partly I want to go back country camping. I'd rather not have to carry the machine and batteries.

Side Issue:

I sometimes breath deep while asleep, raising O2 blood levels, then stop breathing for a while. The machine initiates a Clear Airways event. The O2 levels usually don't drop below 92%. This is sometimes repeated a number of times. Can there be an adverse health effect from stopping breathing even if the O2 levels are reasonably high?

(OSCAR plot clarification: There is a time lag between breathing patterns and O2 levels. This might partly be a problem with the way I synced things: my pulse oximeter does not record time.)

I use a Contec CMS50F. No trouble syncing if you start CPAP and CMS50 at same time. No need to input anything, Oscar can read the CMS50 file after you import it into the supplied software. Only problem is that it records only 1 day at a time.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/143574800753?e ... BM_uWHuMdf

SleepyCPAP · Post by **SleepyCPAP** » Sat Jan 08, 2022 5:16 pm

I use the O2Ring, worn on my thumb. It stays on very well.

- SleepyCPAP

dataq1 · Post by **dataq1** » Sat Jan 08, 2022 10:08 pm

camper wrote: ↑
Sat Jan 08, 2022 1:52 pm
I can set OSCAR to be more sensitive.

Could you please explain how you set OSCAR to be more sensitive? I don't understand.

camper · Post by **camper** » Fri Jan 21, 2022 12:21 pm

dataq1 wrote: ↑
Sat Jan 08, 2022 10:08 pm

camper wrote: ↑
Sat Jan 08, 2022 1:52 pm
I can set OSCAR to be more sensitive.
Could you please explain how you set OSCAR to be more sensitive? I don't understand.

Edit Profile -> Select Profile
File -> Edit -> Preferences
CPAP -> Turn on Custom CPAP User Event Flagging

Note: This detects "User events", detected by OSCAR, not CPAP-machine-detected-events.
The menu explicitly says

Custom flagging is an experimental method of detecting events missed by the machine. They are NOT included in AHI.

For example user event type 1 might be 20% over 8 seconds , user event type 2 might be 50% over 8 seconds.

BTW, if you hover over the fields you will see descriptions. E.g., it says the option must be enabled before importing data.

camper · Post by **camper** » Fri Jan 21, 2022 12:40 pm

SleepyCPAP wrote: ↑
Sat Jan 08, 2022 5:16 pm
I use the O2Ring, worn on my thumb. It stays on very well.

Thanks for the info.

- SleepyCPAP
Sleep study in 2010 (11cm CPAP). Adjusted to 10cm with pillows (Swift FX>TAP PAP >Bleep). PRS1 “Pro” 450/460 until recall, now Aircurve 10 VAuto. Tape mouth. Palatal Prolapse solved by AlaxoStent.

You "tape mouth"?

Is that common?

What happens if your nose gets congested? Could you die? I imagine someone waking, choking, and being too confused to remove the tape.

You can find lots of online info that questions the safety of this. E.g.,

https://www.forbes.com/sites/ninashapir ... 05683566e9

https://www.sleepfoundation.org/snoring ... -for-sleep

Both of those sites do say some people do it, and that some sleep specialists advocate it - but it would be scary to me.

SleepyCPAP · Post by **SleepyCPAP** » Sun Jan 23, 2022 10:36 am

camper,

I’ve been taping, on and off, for years to control mouth leaks during CPAP. I started with the 3M Micropore tape, but found I would drool and it would lift. I’m now using Poligrip strips between my lips and KT Tape over the top. I fold a corner on one or both sides of the tape to grab to take it off.

I don’t claim this is safe for others, but I was glad to learn how it works for me.

I might find, at my new low pressures, that Poligrip would work by itself or combined with the weak 3M Micropore tape. I haven’t tried.

- SleepyCPAP

camper · Post by **camper** » Sun Jan 23, 2022 1:56 pm

SleepyCPAP wrote: ↑
Sun Jan 23, 2022 10:36 am
I’ve been taping, on and off, for years to control mouth leaks during CPAP.

Oh.

I use a full face mask (Resmed F20) that completely covers my mouth and nose. It also creates a little tension that keeps my mouth closed.

Recording pulse oximeters that stay on the finger well?

Recording pulse oximeters that stay on the finger well?

Re: Recording pulse oximeters that stay on the finger well?

Re: Recording pulse oximeters that stay on the finger well?

Re: Recording pulse oximeters that stay on the finger well?

Re: Recording pulse oximeters that stay on the finger well?

Re: Recording pulse oximeters that stay on the finger well?

Re: Recording pulse oximeters that stay on the finger well?

Re: Recording pulse oximeters that stay on the finger well?

Re: Recording pulse oximeters that stay on the finger well?

Re: Recording pulse oximeters that stay on the finger well?

Re: Recording pulse oximeters that stay on the finger well?