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You are likely not doing yourself any good by getting a low priced one, as they are in many instances inaccurate.
Thus you might feel the need to go to the ER based on this interesting article unnecessarily.
Get one that is of medical grade quality, preferably with a FDA or higher certification.
As to most made in China, considering how we have allowed all sorts of things to be farmed to China, this might be a good time to find one made in America instead.
There needs to be an concerted effort for Americans to buy American, otherwise we will find similar situations like you are describing, needing to wait months for something that you might need right away.
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I'm not getting one for Covid. I had been planning to get one for other reasons, and when I saw how people were trying to help the world by spreading the news far and wide about this, I knew it would be the next toilet paper and I better get one before the panicked pandemic purchasers had them backordered till fall. Then I saw they were already out of stock many places. I was able to order one, but I have not received any shipment info yet, so it remains to be seen whether I succeeded. For my purposes, I think a cheap one (I paid 35) will be fine as long it works. My life doesn't depend on it.
Okay on the "home" page, on the top is your total number of steps so far today.
Under where you put your weight and what not - is Heart rate..and under that is "Stress." You want to measure Stress.
When you do that, you'll get 2 numbers: BPM and O2 saturation rate. The SR will be in percentage form. If you're under 95%, try a second time, after relaxing and taking in a few deep breaths. If you're suffering from allergies or getting over a cold, it might be lower than 95% but a "normal" range would be 95% and up.
If yours is at, or near 80%, then there is something about your health that's causing an abnormal rate and it would be worth checking out as soon as you can get an appointment. If it's under 80% then something is definitely wrong, and you are probably experiencing SOME kinds of symptoms - maybe without even realizing it (such as getting wheezy if you try climbing steps or feeling dizzy if you bend over and try to touch your toes/tie your shoes). That's when you call the doctor and ask if he needs you to come in right away.
Thanks, excellent directions! I found it, says 96%. I'll have to see if there's one on my Samsung tablet too.
I'm not getting one for Covid. I had been planning to get one for other reasons, and when I saw how people were trying to help the world by spreading the news far and wide about this, I knew it would be the next toilet paper and I better get one before the panicked pandemic purchasers had them backordered till fall. Then I saw they were already out of stock many places. I was able to order one, but I have not received any shipment info yet, so it remains to be seen whether I succeeded. For my purposes, I think a cheap one (I paid 35) will be fine as long it works. My life doesn't depend on it.
To each their own, but why not have a better one for an extra $15 or so?
Keep in mind that you might not need it today for anything, but down the road you or someone important to you might.
Regardless, it is like buying a cheap home auto BP cuff.
You ask any MD and they will tell you that the cheap ones are a waste of money. They cost you more money because they cause people to make unnecessary MD and/or ER visits, because they can give wildly inaccurate readings to make people think something is seriously wrong.
In any event I think this observational article by the ER MD is likely valid and worth people considering getting a home version.
When someone is triaged in an ER, most will do a oxygen level check anyway.
Which makes you wonder why the hospital in NY was not doing it as standard triage for the stab wound and other patients.
It has become as standard as taking a BP, temp, heart/breathing rate, etc.
Because that is what is important. Glad we don't have to address any of that medical stuff. Phew.
Anyways....
This is why I got the pulse oximeter. In the beginning it seemed like knowing the blood oxygen saturation level was a very good indicator of when you need to go to the hospital. I don't like things being subjective when you can have something concrete, like a reading. I feel "hot" a lot of the time, but feeling hot, and running a temperature are two different things.
The device is easy to get and inexpensive. Just looked, they have gone up in price.
Of course they have, since the publicity feeds the demand.
We've had a pulse ox for years. It's been useful for family members with asthma, in particular my husband.
Thanks for this thread. God, it's like trying to cram for a test the night before. I've been neglectful of medical knowledge, but I thought I should post this:
I got one, after trying online to no avail. I also called 2 pharmacies to ask if they had it in the store, and both (pharmacists) said they would go check the aisle. Both said they were out.
However, I emailed my son asking if he could find one as an early mother's day present. He went to one of the stores I had called the night before and there it was. I doubt they got a shipment this morning. For whatever reason, they didn't tell me the truth on the phone, or perhaps it was in the stock room and not yet out...I don't know.
So, if you can, or someone you know can, get out to a CVS, Walgreens, etc, you might have luck; but calling might not help.
Now I'm trying to teach myself what it is and how to use it.
If you have a newer-model (post-2016) Samsung smart phone you don't have to buy a pulse oximeter device. It's built into your phone, in "Samsung Health" app. You just cover the flash next to your phone's camera on the back with the pad of your finger, and sit still. I check my pulse/heart rate and oxygen level every week.
I've heard that O2 pulse ox apps and cell phone measuring are less than accurate. I found an FDA approved pulse oximeter online for $72 shipped (in 24 hours).
With so much enthusiasm on this thread, I hate to burst everyone's bubble, BUT- there are several medical/physiological inaccuracies stated in that article, something I'd expect from an ER doc whose experience includes mostly acute cases with little exposure to the pre-emergent period or follow-up period thereafter.
I appreciate your insight. But--salient points from the article: people don't realize their O2 levels are dropping and they start breathing faster and deeper to compensate, without knowing they're doing it. He said that's what damages lungs faster. The implication was that if you had other COVID19 symptoms, and noticed a decline in O2 levels (using the pulse oximeter), that's when you should go to the hospital, and be put on supp. O2 (and whatever else they do to help avoid putting somebody on the ventilator) to help prevent the inevitable decline we see in severe COVID19 patients.
I appreciate your insight. But--salient points from the article: people don't realize their O2 levels are dropping and they start breathing faster and deeper to compensate, without knowing they're doing it. He said that's what damages lungs faster. The implication was that if you had other COVID19 symptoms, and noticed a decline in O2 levels (using the pulse oximeter), that's when you should go to the hospital, and be put on supp. O2 (and whatever else they do to help avoid putting somebody on the ventilator) to help prevent the inevitable decline we see in severe COVID19 patients.
--
Right or wrong, that is also what I took from the article.
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But I am wondering what they can do for someone who comes in earlier than they otherwise would have because they found low O2 levels at home. I do want to know what my numbers are, but what can they do, for instance, to keep you off ventilation (since the current best guess is that 80% of patients on vents, in NYC anyway, die) if you come in earlier than those who showed up unable to breathe?
Simply put: Does it matter to know your level? Is there reason to hope for a better outcome?
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