What exactly does it mean by 88-92 satuation

[peg]

Hi everyone , i am on oxygen as you all may know, and the last time i was in the hospital with an infection in chest, they said i was retaining carbon dioxide, and i was to purse lip breathing out, and keep my oxygen intake low.  I have a concentrator machine at home and have it set between .5 and 1 litre, that is as low as the machine will go and that shows on my finger meter 96-98%, and pulse varies.  To walk around the house etc, i have to use an oxygen tank around and put that on at least  2.  I had it on 1 at first but had to up it. So, what do they mean by 88-92 mean, is it to keep my oxygen above that, cause nurse said they like it to be at that, 88-92.  Also, having a chest infection at the time, they said i was retainig  carbon dioxide, could that be, because my lungs were full of infection and couldn't push out the bad air??  Any help would be greatly appreciated to straighten my concerns out.  Thank you

[gerald]

Peg, they usually prefer you keep your oxygen % between 88-92, less than 88 and you can put excessive strain on your organs and eventually it can lead to heart, liver or kidney failure.   It is okay if it dips below that periodically but it is best to stay above 88%.

Under the the "Pearls for Oxygen users" area there are a number of entries that might answer some of your questions. Here is one of the entries that might help a bit:

philns.proboards.com/thread/14493/oxygen-levels-supplemental


Some people have a tendency to retain too much Carbon Dioxide inthe lungs/blood etc. The more oxygen you take the higher that CO2 can go and that can become a problem in itself.

[peg]

Thanks gerald for the info. So your saying, when i use my finger oxometer, and it says my oxygen is say , 96-98, and my pulse is say, 95, that my oxygen of 96-98 is to high?  When i was in the hospital and in bed rest, they put the oxygen at 1/2 litre, at rest, but if i get up and move i drop in oxygen levels.

[gerald]

You would need to verify with a respiratory specialist to be sure.   I think 96-98% is about as high as you are going to get.  It is normal that your oxygen level would drop when you are doing something, it how low it gets and for how long it stays down is the issue.

When they did my initial 6 minute walking test (for oxygen use), they tried to set the oxygen level to where it would maintain greater than 88% while doing the walking test.  That was the barometer the respiratory technician used as the standard.   In my case they could not get the level to stay above 88%.

You might want to try that, try to set your level to  get you oxymeter stay about the 88% level, adjust accordingly. Based on what your test shows, take that an discuss it with your doctors / respiratory specialist.

When I am just sitting, I tend to turn the oxygen off unless I am feeling short of breath.

[peg]

Thank you gerald, i appreciate your advice.  I am going to call my therapist, to see when she comes to town, the office is a 2 hour drive from here. Ya, i live in the north, in ontario.  When i take my oxygen off when sitting, it drops, and i don't feel good, so i put oxygen back on.  Will have to get this all in order very soon.  Have a good day, and hope you and everyone is doing good.