Mom has had shortness of breath recently. She has Copd and is a lung cancer survivor. I suspect she has sleep apnea she snores and her sleep quality is awful.
She went to the ER a few weeks ago for shortness of breath and her sodium was low. That was stabilized. EKG done, Heart monitor normal, tests for reactive proteins, oxymeter levels 98 etc. They stopped her water pill, (blood pressure stated normal) and advised us not to over hydrate her via her feeding tube.
Now shortness of breath has returned. She is experiencing as I've mentioned behavior changes, anxiety, headaches, fatigue, her tremor is worse. I think I need to take her back to the hospital. I'm afraid she has excess Co2 in her, I think breathing out is the problem.
I'm so scared I don't think she can tolerate another hospitalization. She's seeing her doctor on Monday. He's not much help he can't even draw blood in his office which means she has to go somewhere else, all very distressing to her. Urgent care won't handle breathing issues.
I know this isn't a medical forum. I know Dr. Google isn't helpful at this hour. I've been at a loss, she tried Brextri inhaler she couldn't tolerate it. Her DNR says no intubation. She would agree to a breathing treatment tho. She's just so fragile right now, she'll be 80 in a few weeks. She would never do an overnight sleep study or I think wear a cpap mask.
I know all problems can't be solved I feel like we are keeping her together with duct tape!! Hate this for her....she's supposed to have another swallow study Monday, she's got to get to the Dr. instead and she won't be able to handle both on the same day. She can't get up early (worked 2nd shift her whole life) , so everything is delayed. 🥺
It was once step below being intubated .
He was a DNR and no intubation .
All it did was put a bandaid on the problem that lasted 8 weeks and then it would happen again ( the CO2 would build up again ) as he would not wear a BiPAP or CPAP machine at his facility at night as suggested . It all was just prolonging the inevitable anyway . And he would get sent to rehab afterwards which he hated . But it was the only way to get him to walk enough again to go back to assisted living . He was adamant not to go to SNF nursing home . He was slowly declining anyway , and each episode of hypercapnia made him take a significant step down which he never fully bounced back from which he was angry and miserable about .
IMHO it’s time to call hospice in .
The doctor’s office as you said is a waste of time and too distressing on your Mom.
It seems counterintuitive but oxygen saturation can be normal with hypercapnia. It's the build up of Co2 that's dangerous and they can occur simultaneously. There are charts out there that show how ox and Co2 move thru the blood and to organs like the brain.
From what I am reading when a person with hyoocapnia is given oxygen the sat rate goal is actually lower than "normal". Seems a very complicated balancing act 🥺
I'm assuming only a pulmonologist would really know if there's any alternative way to determine this and if they prescribe cpap or bipap without that test based on symptoms.
Waytomisery, would you happen to know?