effects of desaturation

[skate4life]

Just want to ask if anyone has or is experiencing the ff: When I desat into the mid 80's (bending over several times, or climbing stairs too quickly) I get sudden onset of severe pain of both iliac crests (top of the pelvic bones), low bladder pain and can quickly lose urine (small or large amount, once it starts I can't stop it.) PLB resolves the bone pain, but not the urine. I just bought a package of bladder control thick pads for my panties, but I don't want to have to wear them all the time Sats do come back up to 93-95 so I'm not worried about long term effects...... It used to happen on occasion when I would go for for my outdoor 1-2 mile walk. But it started happening more often and then my hip arthritis got bad, so now just use my treadmill (less time & speed, but closer to the bathroom.)

I have Internet searched for days and I've yet to read the same symptoms that relate with copd/transient desaturation. Anyone have this happen to them? Can anyone explain the physiology of this? Thanks

[bobbioh]

I can get that way also with the urine when i get real desaturated. I was told by plumo its because my body is using the o2 else where where its needed more like your heart , liver ect.and the bladder just isn't that big of worry to your body at the time.its in distress. Ive never had the pain with it. I'm sure the urine thing happens to most or all of us its just not a pleasant thing to speak of. i just wear a pad when i go out and try not to get to that point plb before the fact or rest more often. Also keekle (sp ?) exercises help allot! hope i helped Bobbi

[Blossom/Jackie W.]

No; not the pain for me Skate.
And Bobbi's bang on.
It can also happen to me when I get into a bad coughing fit.

You know; if you want, you can ask Mark (our RRT for our main site). The answer won't get posted till next weekend but, here's a link if you're interested....
copdcanada.ca/ask_the_rt_your_COPD_question.htm

[shelley]

Totally agree with Bobbi and I was told by my respirologist (pulmonologist) that when we desaturate, as Bobbi said, our body works very quickly to preserve vital organs. Prior to being on oxygen, I often noticed that if I got out of badly out of breath, I would get the urge and need to access a bathroom. Once I was on oxygen that stopped. However, like most women, if I cough too hard like when I'm sick, I can get a drip. So I take precautions and wear a pad and I tell myself to step up those kegel exercises. There are other things you may notice when you desaturate, cold hands and feet, headache and/or dizziness, inability to retain general body warmth, abdominal/intestinal cramping, inability to concentrate, sleepiness and a number of other wonders of the oxygen starved body. ! If your normal sats are at 93-95, have you been tested for ambulatory oxygen? My normal resting sats are usually 92-94 but even when they were 95% steady, when I started to move around I was entering the high 80s and therefore needed oxygen and wow, suddenly I felt a whole lot better and could do so much more. If you haven't been tested (it's only a 6 minute walk) then you might want to ask your doctor about it just to be safe.

[skate4life]

Thanks everyone. I can understand the bladder issue, it is just the bone pain that is unusual and distressing. I do have degenerative disc disease with severe osteoporosis of lumbar spine. My rheumy thought my symptoms were due to PAD. My sats are all over the place, but dive when heart rate gets up (120+) and irregular, but not all the time. I'm still pretty active and maintain my own home and yard. They do quickly settle back down with PLB and rest. I am not on O2 (and don't want it.) My pulmy is no help......

[sandy07]

I always worry when people say they don't want oxygen. I didn't want it either but after I got it for sleeping I soon realized how bad off I had been without it. If you are having problems you are likely very close to less than 90%. Usually it shows up in sleeping and walking first. Ask the doctor for the overnight sleep test. It's easy and you do it at home. You're not helping yourself by refusing oxygen. After all it IS a requirement of most living things on the planet. Without enough oxygen all these living things soon change to become something less than they were. Don't let that be you.