The unit costs about $100 on ...... yes.... EBAY, about $250 from CVS, Wallgreens, Walmart,.........
A Res-med recording 02 meter that plugs into my Resmed S9 cost vary from $900, to $1100.
Both the large sleep center in my area........ and the large Medical Supply house that sells all the CPAP equipment say they have never prescribed or issued a SP02 recording unit for a CPAP user.
I wonder if this is because it is not of importance ?........ or because no one else is as "obsessive" as I am about data ?, or is it a money issue? or is it simply because it is not what is "usual and customary?, or something else?
Moving along..........I have used the unit for 9 months now.
I am currious as to what others who use the device are finding for values, effectiveness, etc.
I have noticed that if the summary report gives the below readings, I am likely to feel wors and have less energy.
1. Sp02 "total"events" greater than 10 or 15,
2. Pulse "total events" greater than 80 or so.
3. a event(s) that drops lower than 87%
( I get upf first, eat breakfast, etc and note how I feel; I then fire up the computer to download the data ....so that I am not biased to the data)
The arlam is great; However it also disturbs my sleep; although it is meant to warn/wake you when your SP02 drops below the value you set it to. ( I figure it goes off about one in 3 nights....... and sometimes 3 to 5 times on a "bad" night)
So which is "worse" being woken up with the arlam several times in the night............and perhaps changing sleep position .................... or turn the alarm off and let your SP02 drop ?
It is interesting to note that a friend who has ongoing AHI 3 times my values....... has Basel Sp02 about 1.5% greater than me using my recording meter.
My old DME did not see the value of a recording 02 meter and dismissed it and simply said the "sharp peaks" on the graph for a entire shows that the unit is not correct and the graph must contain mostly "artifacts" ( ie unit not contacting finger, bad data, etc)
My % artifact per the report is usually less than .2% and historically if my 02 levels are high, I feel better..........
New DME seems to like the data...... but is new to a patient recording this kind of information ......
In conclusion I would like to see what others who use the device are getting for the various types of data.
I realize every body is different, and the data will vary; however I do not have a baseline to judge myself with.
So what is your ..........
Total Sp02 events
Total Pulse events
% artifact
Basal Sp02 %
Events below 88%
Do you use the alarm feature?
How low does your Sp02 go?
How well accepetd is your use of a recording Sp02 meter to your DME?
Thanks again,
Eric2