SPO2 meters & Dehydration detection

I have been monitoring my SPO2 levels with my consumer-grade CONTEC CMS-60f meter. I found my readings dip to 88-94, when fatigued, especially at night. This prompted the home Oxygen treatment at night. But I noticed my SP02 levels increased about 2-3%, about 30 sec after gulping ice water.

Further testing found that any water increases SPO2 levels, though only
temporarily. There is plenty of info on the internet about the value of drinking fluids, 8-10 glasses, ...or more. But I can’t find anything that relates low SPO2 levels to dehydration.
I normally have a 32oz insulated hospital style mug filled with (ice) water
nearby. But evidently the equivalent of 6-8 glasses/day just isn't enough. I should be gulping rather than sipping. I suspect, along with the other things going on (age, CVD, medication, Compression Stockings, etc.), I have probably been very dehydrated.
The Nurse Practitioner from the Integris Urgent Care opined that water contains Oxygen. Indeed water (H2O) is likely an important part of the Oxygen transport system. Fish get Oxygen directly from water through their gills. My skin has been rough, and one of the VA nurses noted this and asked if it was contagious.

I would suggest: if a pt has evidence of dehydration and low SPO2, that offering them a full glass of water during assessment might be a potent teachable moment. It made a believer out of me.
Have any of my fellow sleepy heads noted this phenomenon?

What is the difference between SpO2 and SaO2?
SpO2 simply means that the SaO2 was measured using pulse oximetry. Very simply, SpO2 is an indirect measurement of the oxygen content of blood (oximetry) where Sao2 is a direct measurement of the oxygen content of the blood (arterial blood gas sampling).

Thanks, I fixed that.

But does and increase in SP02 levels while drinking water indicate dehydration?

JayR_1945 wrote: ↑

Wed Mar 14, 2018 9:24 pm

The Nurse Practitioner from the Integris Urgent Care opined that water contains Oxygen.

That's disappointing. Water does not contain bioavailable oxygen.

JayR_1945 wrote: ↑

Wed Mar 14, 2018 9:24 pm

Fish get Oxygen directly from water through their gills.

This process is often misunderstood. Fish do not get oxygen from the 'O' in H2O. They get oxygen from dissolved air in water. If you don't believe it, put your aquarium fish in distilled water (no dissolved air) and watch them go belly up in a few minutes.

JayR_1945 wrote: ↑

Wed Mar 14, 2018 9:24 pm

ut I can’t find anything that relates low SPO2 levels to dehydration.

You would have to be so very badly dehydrated that your blood, which carries oxygen from your lungs, was moving inefficiently.

JayR_1945 wrote: ↑

Wed Mar 14, 2018 9:24 pm

But I noticed my SP02 levels increased about 2-3%, about 30 sec after gulping ice water.

I'm going to speculate that sitting up and taking a drink caused you to subsequently breathe harder taking in more oxygen. It also drove up your pulse which causes the absorption of more oxygen from your lungs.

Here is an easy way to check if you are properly hydrated - https://dripdrop.com/blogs/news/chart-dehydrated

It probably doesn't make a difference in a generally healthy person. But if you have a cardiac or some other type of related issue, i could see being dehydrated as being a problem. Having an adequate amount of water decreases your heart rate, decreases your blood pressure, improves circulation, and also improves cardiac output (the volume of blood that your heart pumps out per beat). An efficient and well working heart is of course important for proper oxygenation. On the other end of the spectrum, if you have a heart problem you can also drink too much water, causing the same problems.

I wouldn't rely on drinking water to maintain oxygen saturation. If you're desaturating during the day, that calls for making a doctor appointment to find out the cause.

JayR_1945 wrote: ↑

Wed Mar 14, 2018 9:24 pm

I have been monitoring my SPO2 levels with my consumer-grade CONTEC CMS-60f meter. I found my readings dip to 88-94, when fatigued, especially at night. This prompted the home Oxygen treatment at night. But I noticed my SP02 levels increased about 2-3%, about 30 sec after gulping ice water.

I believe this is a perfect example of "correlation does not equal causation".

Your SpO2 level is *VERY* dependent on your breathing. Breath a little shallower, or slower, and it'll drop a little, breath a little deeper or faster, and it'll go up...

When you drink water, what happens... you hold your breath... then you breath more to make up for the buildup (however minor) of CO2 during the drinking... unless you've got a NG tube down your throat, you can't breath and drink at the same time, so you're disrupting your breathing while drinking.. especially if "gulping ice water".... So, that's going to have an effect on your SpO2.

So, No, no dehydration indication.

Thanks for the informative feedback. Indeed there is a lot going on in this complex human system, especially for those diagnosed as sleep apneics, with CVD as we age.

And even today, OSA is still fraught with Old Spousal Tales. Yes, correlation does not necessarily imply causation.

But I was really interested in feedback from actual SP02 meter users.

JayR_1945 wrote: ↑

Sat Mar 17, 2018 10:53 am

But I was really interested in feedback from actual SP02 meter users.

Oh, I have a recording pulse-ox meter similar to yours and have used it. I believe PaleRider has one also.

However, you can discount my experience - my heart and lungs are normal for my age. My problem is obstructive sleep apnea. So, the pulse-oximeter is redundant - keep the breathing events treated and the pulse and oxygen saturation level will be good. You list a problem with CVD, so maybe a pulse-oximeter can be useful.

JayR_1945 wrote: ↑

Sat Mar 17, 2018 10:53 am

But I was really interested in feedback from actual SP02 meter users.

What makes you think I'm not an "actual" oximeter user?

The data that led to the code in sleepyhead that reads the CMS50I came from my oximeter.

Based on observations of my family members and myself, I don't think there is a correlation between blood oxygen and run of the mill dehydration. My late brother was severely dehydrated, yet, his oxygen level was normal up until his last hospitalization. Nothing else was normal, but that level was. My BIL has been hospitalized a couple of times now for dehydration and both times, his oxygen level was completely normal. Dehydration coupled with another medical problem - well, maybe that's a different story. I have a slow heart and thus low oxygen. If I move, even a small amount, my heart speeds up and my oxygen level goes up quite rapidly, sometimes almost to my new normal (95%). So, yeah, drinking a glass of water would change my oxygen level, but not due sudden hydration but due to increased heart rate. Since I'm starting at an abnormally low heart rate (40s-50s), it's much more noticeable than someone starting from normal (60+). Anyway, that's my theory and I'm sticking to it. Unless Goofproof comes up with something better.

SewTired wrote: ↑

Sat Mar 17, 2018 1:47 pm

Based on observations of my family members and myself, I don't think there is a correlation between blood oxygen and run of the mill dehydration. My late brother was severely dehydrated, yet, his oxygen level was normal up until his last hospitalization. Nothing else was normal, but that level was. My BIL has been hospitalized a couple of times now for dehydration and both times, his oxygen level was completely normal. Dehydration coupled with another medical problem - well, maybe that's a different story. I have a slow heart and thus low oxygen. If I move, even a small amount, my heart speeds up and my oxygen level goes up quite rapidly, sometimes almost to my new normal (95%). So, yeah, drinking a glass of water would change my oxygen level, but not due sudden hydration but due to increased heart rate. Since I'm starting at an abnormally low heart rate (40s-50s), it's much more noticeable than someone starting from normal (60+). Anyway, that's my theory and I'm sticking to it. Unless Goofproof comes up with something better.

I'll go along with you, my heart rate drops low, drink water if you want it, but don't think it's the cause of your O2 rise, you did work, your heart did too that raised your O2 Cause and effect can make a difference, but first you have to get the thinking right, some conclusions have the bar set too low, we tend to stumble over them. Jim