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Recently diagnosed with MAC and nervous about meds
MAC & Bronchiectasis | Last Active: Mar 18 9:27am | Replies (23)Comment receiving replies
Something else to think about "...those warnings on the internet..." -
Who is doing the warning? What are their qualifications?
Who is their audience? Young, healthy people suddenly experiencing shortness of breath? Heart patients where low oxygen sats can indicate a sudden drop in heart function? Asthma patients who cannot get their sats up to 90, even with nebs and inhalers? Or those of us who have compromised lungs, and whose bodies have adapted to lower oxygen levels?
A triage nurse in our clinic system once told me "If every person went to the ER when "the internet" told them to, out entire medical care system would break down!"
Sue
Replies to "Something else to think about "...those warnings on the internet..." - Who is doing the warning?..."
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Excellent point. Most of what got my attention was during Covid when low oxygen levels were considered a dangerous symptom.
Many of the sites are reputable, such as this from ClevelandClinic: "When should I call my doctor? If you're using an oximeter at home and your oxygen saturation level is 92% or lower, call your healthcare provider. If it's at 88% or lower, get to the nearest emergency room as soon as possible."
Yale says something similar and Mayo says, "Values under 90% are usually considered low."
I have not been particularly worried since I am able to do my two mile walk along with my healthy neighbors, and do all other activities with minimal breathlessness, but I have been curious as to why the oximeter was giving me such varied readings. Was one more accurate than another? So it was reassuring to read that that sort of fluctuation is normal. Again, Thank you!
Anna