what is your overnight SPO2 baseline?

[crave303]

on or off CPAP.

does a basal SPO2 of 92 seem low for overnight? (not on CPAP)

[OpalRose]

If your levels drop below 88% for any length of time, that could be a cause for concern.

If you are trying to decide if you have sleep apnea based on an overnight oximeter, you may want to talk to your doctor about an in lab test or an overnight home test, which would be a cheaper option.

[crave303]

my SPO2 does go below 88 but not for long enough i think. only happens 2-3 times a night for a short while, not sure if that is enough to disturb my sleep and cause fatigue or that is normal. i think it is for about an accumulative minute it goes under 88%.

but someone said 92 basal/baseline was low overall.

[OpalRose]

I believe that a 92 reading during wake hours is considered a bit low. My doctor (Pulmonologist) normally looks at wake time readings to be normal if above 94.

If you are tracking this with an overnight recording oximeter and also taking readings during the day, it wouldn’t hurt to gather this information for your doctor to review.

[SarcasticDave94]

As best as I recall, the 88% mentioned has to be documented for 5 minutes during the test duration. That equals medical necessity for supplemental oxygen from what I know.

As for 92%, this February July I fought a bout of pneumonia and had the 92% oxygen level. Besides pneumonia complications, by itself the lower oxygen level gave me an "oxygen deprived headache" and created feelings of dizziness, lightheadedness maybe. I felt the deprived status.

[PaulaO2]

During sleep, O2 can range from 90 on up and still be 'good'. However, 92 seems to be the norm low.

It is when it gets into the 80s during sleep that one should become concerned. And, like OpalRose said, discuss this with your doctor.

Daytime O2 should remain at 94 and up.

However, these numbers greatly depend on the individual. Folks with asthma may need to lower their baseline/norm. COPD, allergies, etc also contribute. And some folks don't have many O2 drops during sleep with untreated sleep apnea. Some folks, it drops immediately as soon as an event happens. Others, it seems to be accumulative with recovery back to sleep-normal being slower and drops going lower. Even more others, it just doesn't drop that much overall. That's why the range for "norm" is fairly loose.

[mesenteria]

my SPO2 does go below 88 but not for long enough i think. only happens 2-3 times a night for a short while, not sure if that is enough to disturb my sleep and cause fatigue or that is normal. i think it is for about an accumulative minute it goes under 88%.

but someone said 92 basal/baseline was low overall.

SPO2 below 90 for any length of time is a cause for concern.  It might turn out to be nothing worth pursuing, but if a person awake can expect to be oxygenated at 94% or higher, why would a person at rest experience periodic dips below 90?  And how would that be 'normal'?  It would be worth finding out, don't you think?

You provide some information, but it isn't complete or definitive. You say, '..not for long enough I think.'  How long?  Is it too long?  How far below 88 does it ever go, at what frequency, and at what duration?

I'm not ragging on you.  I'm being inquisitive hoping that you would eventually want to ask such questions for your own sake.  They're important, and they deserve more information than you can bring to the discussion.

Finally, any time you go short of oxygen for a certain length of time, you run the risk of several things happening, not least of which are developing heart disease, an irritated heart, arrhythmias, arousals, a dearth of the oh-so-necessary REM sleep, and other undesirable outcomes. A reliable and persistent shortage night-to-night can't be salutary in the long run.  If your health begins to slide, it won't be uphill.  As it slides, other unwanted and unfortunate things will take place and very likely make things in your sleep go even worse for you.  You should really tackle this sensibly and soon.  And realistically, with some hard and valid data.

[WillSleep]

Daytime O2 should remain at 94 and up.

However, these numbers greatly depend on the individual. Folks with asthma may need to lower their baseline/norm. COPD, allergies, etc also contribute. And some folks don't have many O2 drops during sleep with untreated sleep apnea. Some folks, it drops immediately as soon as an event happens. Others, it seems to be accumulative with recovery back to sleep-normal being slower and drops going lower. Even more others, it just doesn't drop that much overall. That's why the range for "norm" is fairly loose. 

Totally agree with everything Paula is saying here.  

We have 20-30 year olds, a whole mess of boomers, folks that are 80s, and then probably really senior folks.  

92% is horrible for a 35 year who until now thought they were in good health.  If your a 105 92% is downright awesome!   

What is normal is hard to define for the whole population that read this forum.   I think it might be easier to assess, plan, take action on and monitor progress if we look with these four dimensions:

1. Age - Cant do anything about that
   
2. Health - Most still have some influence here, easier to impact if you start earlier
   
3. Fitness - Nearly all of us can turn this dial to improve daytime and night time SpO2 & Heart Rate
   
4. Therapy - Improving therapy is what brought most people here to this great group.  
   

 

"What is normal for someone my age, health, level of fitness and utilizing this therapy?   What realistic practical things should I do next to improve my level of fitness or my therapy?"   
 
These are powerful question to ask.   
 
I continually ask myself these questions and position forth as an encouragement to all of us this quote from mesenteria.   "I'm being inquisitive hoping that you would eventually want to ask such questions for your own sake.  They're important, and they deserve more information than you can bring to the discussion." 
 

WillSleep