Who Needs to Monitor Oxygen Levels at Home in Daily Life

Who Needs to Monitor Oxygen Levels at Home in Daily Life

by | Oct 20, 2021 | Respiratory

SpO2
Normally, oxygen saturation (SpO2) means how much oxygen the hemoglobin in your blood is carrying.

Normal blood oxygen saturation in a healthy person is approximately 95-100%. If oxygen levels fall below this level, lung disease may be present. A level below 92% (in the case of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease — COPD, 88%) indicates a serious condition that may require supplemental oxygen or hospital monitoring.

The higher the oxygen saturation in the blood, the better the metabolism of the body. However, it does not mean that the higher is better. Too high will cause cell aging; too low will cause insufficient oxygen supply to the body, accompanied by dizziness, sleepiness, irritability, and other symptoms.

So who will need to monitor this indicator in daily life? Should you really monitor your blood oxygen levels at home? Wellue teams have made the following summary.

1. Patients with COVID-19 including those who have confirmed or suspected COVID-19

A drop in blood oxygen saturation is one of several typical symptoms of coronavirus and a valid indication to distinguish coronavirus from the common cold. Patients with lung infections tend to have decreased blood oxygen saturation, and this also applies to COVID-19. The epidemic is still spreading but the medical system’s support has collapsed, leaving many patients in home isolation. Controlling the infection is a key to prevention and control this epidemic. The epidemic should continue to exist this year, while local outbreaks are likely to occur. Then once you find your blood oxygen saturation suddenly low in daily life, you need to pay enough attention and seek timely medical attention.

Wellue hands over its remote solution. Its Oxylink Remote Oxygen Monitor proves its value in telemedicine.

Remote management of COVID-19, see Wellue’s solution.

Oxylink remote health management of COVID 19
Oxylink™ Remote can track a wearer’s SpO2 and HR, and stream the vital signs data to his/her family members or doctors via Remote Linker, creating a reliable telemetry system.

2. Patients with chronic diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, respiratory disease, sleep apnea etc.

Patients with chronic diseases such as diabetes, heart disease and respiratory diseases, especially the elderly, are characterized by low cure rates, high incidence of complications, and high death rates. They may require long-term care and need to keep good habits to slow down the development and deterioration of the disease. Thus daily monitoring of physical signs and symptoms is particularly important.

In addition to some common self-monitoring indicators such as heart rate, blood pressure and body temperature, with more and more smart wearable devices adding the function of blood oxygen monitoring, blood oxygen monitoring has also become popular. And for patients with chronic diseases, the continuous monitoring of this indicator has become easier. Just using a pulse oximeter to take an instant check is not so helpful. Wellue creates its oxygen monitors for long-term tracking of your SpO2 and pulse rate, such as O2Ring continuous oxygen monitor, Checkme O2 Max Wrist oxygen monitor. By recording these indicators continuously, not only can you better manage your health data outside of the hospital, but you can also go to the hospital for timely follow-up examinations based on the deterioration of the indicators. At the same time, the trend changes of these data are also very important for doctors to diagnose and adjust the treatment plan.

checkme O2 Max oxygen monitor
With extra-long battery run-time of 72 hours (more than 7 full nights) per charge, Checkme™ O2 Max Wrist Oxygen Monitor may well be the ultimate solution for continuous O2 saturation monitoring during sleep. Moreover, it has alarm reminders including audio notifications on the free APP and silent vibration on the device, which means you will get an alert if the too low oxygen level is detected.

3. Exercise enthusiasts

Like chronic disease patients, it is also very necessary to monitor exercisers’ vital signs to adjust the intensity and frequency of exercise. Especially when doing high-intensity exercise, they are easy to have an insufficient oxygen supply. In serious cases, acute ischemia, cardiac arrest, and interruption of cerebral blood flow may be led, which can cause sudden cardiac death and sudden death, as evidenced by the fact that there have been a number of reports of sudden death in sports this year. So it is very important to reasonably grasp the intensity of exercise.

Be Aware of Warning Signs of Winter Heart Disease

Be Aware of Warning Signs of Winter Heart Disease

by | Oct 13, 2021 | Cardiovascular

WINTER-HEART-ATTACK-WARNING

Does cold weather affect your heart?

Yes, the risk of cardiovascular diseases will rise in Fall and Winter.

As the weather gets colder in Fall and Winter, the stimulation of cold often causes blood vessels to constrict and heartbeat to speed up, making it easier for heart attacks, heart failure and other heart diseases to occur.

Attention: In addition to keeping warm and adjusting medication to keep blood pressure stable, you must pay attention to the following heart disease warning signs.

chest pain in winter

1. Chest pain

Chest pain is the most common symptom of a heart attack, typically make you feel like a stone pressing against the chest. Moreover, the pain may also appear in the left shoulder, jaw, and possibly in the stomach.

Heart attack is a disease that can kill you at any time! If you experience chest pain, go to the hospital promptly so that your doctor can determine if it is a heart attack.

If you go to the hospital because of stomach pain or shoulder pain, your doctor recommends checking the EKG (electrocardiogram).

Of course you can test EKG in you home by yourself with a portable EKG monitor (click here to know more, see pics as following).

Wellue portable EKG monitor with touch screen--1
Wellue portable EKG monitor with touch screen--3
Wellue portable EKG monitor with touch screen--2
Wellue portable EKG monitor with touch screen--4

2. Palpitations

Palpitations are a common symptom of cardiac arrhythmia. Some people may feel that their heart has missed a beat, while others may suddenly feel a series of rapid, irregular heartbeats.

If you feel palpitations occasionally, it is usually not a big problem, mostly related to exertion and mental state; but if palpitations occur frequently, it may be a manifestation of disease, like some arrhythmias, hyperthyroidism, etc.

In the absence of hunger, exertion, etc., the presence of palpitations, along with dizziness, is likely to be signs of the more dangerous ventricular arrhythmia, which should not be taken lightly but to be treated immediately in the hospital.

3. Syncope (Fainting)

Syncope is a sudden, transient loss of consciousness that can recover on its own. The occurrence of syncope means that there is a transient abnormality in the blood supply to the brain.

Among patients with hypertension, this condition is likely to be a transient ischemic attack, implying an increased risk of stroke. And measures of prevention must be actively taken to minimize the risk of stroke.

4. Fatigue

Patients with hypertension who often feel tired and fatigued for no apparent reason may have an abnormally functioning heart. It is recommended that heart health lab tests be performed as soon as possible.

5. Breathing difficulties

Whether it is heart disease, or lung disease, it can cause shortness of breath and dyspnea.

For patients with hypertension, it is more important to be alert to shortness of breath and dyspnea that occurs at night, especially if you are woken up in your sleep and must sit up to breathe normally, which is likely to be a sign of heart failure. Once it occurs, go to the hospital in time to check the heart function and adjust the medication to avoid deterioration of the condition.

How to take care of your heart?

In addition to paying attention to the symptoms mentioned above, it is even more important to take care of your heart in general.

  • Control blood pressure and blood sugar well.
  • Refuse to smoke or to breathe second-hand smoke.
  • Develop a good habit of regular exercise.
  • Keep adopting a healthy diet.
  • Have regular medical checkups to know your heart health.
  • Monitor your heart every day with a 24-hour holter monitor. Know and record your heart condition analyzed by Wellue AI algorithm. Share your AI ECG report with your family doctor.
wellue holter monitor

How to Choose the Right Oxygen Monitor for Home Use?

How to Choose the Right Oxygen Monitor for Home Use?

by | Sep 27, 2021 | Respiratory

A pulse oximeter is commonly known as a device that can measure SpO2 (oxygen saturation of hemoglobin in a patient’s arterial blood) in a non-invasive way. Now the technological advancements have made it possible to either provide continuous monitoring or spot-checking.

Real-time monitoring of blood oxygen levels now allows clinicians and patients to actually diagnose illnesses such as hypoxemia and sleep apnea at an early stage. Thus continuous monitoring of blood oxygen saturation has become vital in personal health management as it presents an indication of whether the lungs are functioning properly.

People who want to monitor their oxygen levels at home may wonder know how to choose the right oxygen monitor. Here are some tips collected by Wellue.

How to Choose the Right Pulse Oximeter

When you are going to choose the suitable home-use continuous oxygen monitor, better to refer to choosing tips as following.

1. Certification check & Review reference

Before paying for your order, you have to remember that accuracy is the most important factor to decide whether to buy medical equipment. The best way to make sure of the accuracy before you actually use the monitor is to check for the certifications and refer to the customer reviews. Someone who has bought and used the product will have their sounds online to phrase or make complaints, which sometimes can help you judge the quality.

Some reliable certifications are provided by a few organizations, such as the FDA and CE. Those organizations will review the quality and standards to assure the accuracy of the medical device.

2. Oxygen monitor type selection

In terms of design, if you do not consider other factors, just choose your favorite type, ring, or wrist, whatever is okay. But if you want to monitor the SpO2 for the whole night, we will strongly recommend you to choose the continuous overnight oxygen monitor rather than the fingertip pulse oximeter. As you know, the fingertip pulse oximeter uses the spot-checking approaches. If you do not have the need to monitor the oxygen saturation for several hours, the cheap fingertip pulse oximeter is more suitable.

3. Price & Features comparison

The price of oxygen monitors ranges from 10USD to 200USD. The general fingertip pulse oximeter is much cheaper and you can find one in pharmacies or online stores. As for the continuous overnight oxygen monitor, the price is slightly higher, as its function is improved well.

In terms of features, you can make your decision about what you need. Some have a bright and clear display; some are water-resistant; some can achieve remote monitoring. Also remember to consider if it is light to carry, comfortable to wear, easy to use, durable and portable.

Recommending the Right Pulse Oximeter – Wellue Continuous Oxygen Monitors

Wellue o2ring pulse oximeter

Some Benefits of Wellue Continuous Overnight Blood Oxygen Saturation Monitor

Continuous oxygen monitoring is a better way to prescribe long-term oxygen therapy.

First, it can monitor one’s oxygen saturation over time, providing more utility for trends over time instead of absolute thresholds.

Second, if your oxygen levels are dangerously low or your abnormal heart rates are detected, it can alert with vibration or audio alarm on the free APP ViHealth, such as O2Ring continuous oxygen monitor and SleepU oxygen monitor, which is particularly helpful for patients with obstructive sleep apnea.

Third, using this product to monitor the blood oxygen saturation actually could offer peace of mind to people with obstructive sleep apnea, chronic respiratory or cardiovascular conditions, or people under anesthesia.

Fourth, it can also help assess the need for supplemental oxygen. For instance, when this is done overnight, a continuous measurement can be graphed and stored on your phone. The graph helps the doctor see if you have enough oxygen in your body when you sleep and ensure the amount of supplemental oxygen.

Fifth, the continuously monitored blood oxygen saturation level will indicate dangerous side effects in people taking drugs that affect breathing or oxygen saturation.

What are cardiac tests? What are the differences between them?

What are cardiac tests? What are the differences between them?

by | Dec 10, 2020 | Respiratory

What are cardiac tests? Which kinds of tests currently exist and what are the differences between them?

In terms of cardiac testing, hospitals now usually use three types of tests: cardiac color doppler ultrasounds, electrocardiogram tests, and coronary angiographies. These three tests are responsible for examining the structure of the heart, understanding the rhythm of the heart, and showing the condition of the blood vessels, respectively.

PART 1:

If one day, you ever feel that your heart is uncomfortable and have to go to the hospital for an examination, the doctor will ask you to lie on the bed, stretch your legs, and untie your shirt. A light blue, sticky, and gelatinous liquid will be applied to your chest, and a thick-headed pillar will be pulled out.

The colloidal liquid is called a “medical ultrasonic couplant,” and the thick-headed column is an ultrasound probe. The human heart can be seen as comprising of four “rooms” (right and left atria and ventricles) separated by walls (myocardium) and doors (valves) that allow blood to pass through the rooms. There is a normal range of door size and wall thickness for all people. And if something goes wrong, it means the heart is “sick”.

For example:

  • Some people have defects in the “walls” of the heart as soon as they are born, which is often referred to as congenital heart disease.
  •  For some people, long term high blood pressure causes the heart muscle to become fat and the “walls” to become thicker, which is called hypertensive heart disease.
  • For some people, due to infections, the “valves” are narrowed or not closed properly, which prevents the “doors” from opening and closing smoothly and affects the blood flow. That is called valvular heart disease.

The cardiac color ultrasound, also known as cardiac color Doppler, is responsible for observing these “door-wall” structures. The cardiac color Doppler ultrasound is one kind of ultrasound examination, but compared with the ordinary B-ultrasound, it is clearer and finer, and it can better avoid the interference of obesity and other conditions.

It clearly identifies structural abnormalities in the heart, such as the size of the chambers, the thickness of the interstitial wall, and the presence of valves that are not closing properly, narrowing, or prolapsing, as well as the heart’s ability to pump blood.

It is precisely because it is a type of ultrasound that cardiac ultrasound is a very safe way to examine the heart.

(Heart color Doppler ultrasound : this is what the doctor sees when you are lying on the bed, and he/she is scanning your chest with the thick-headed pillar.)

PART 2

If one day you go to the hospital for a checkup and the doctor makes you lie on the bed with your legs stretched out, unbutton your shirt, and then stick a bunch of patches with random wires attached to them on your chest, it might make you feel like an internet or video game addict,  who needs to be sent to an internet addiction treatment facility to receive electric shocks.

The human heart beats, and in addition to the number of beats having a normal range, the rhythm of the beat is also important.

A normal person’s heartbeat is as accurate as clockwork, and if it is occasionally fast or slow, it is an arrhythmia, which may affect the heart’s ability to supply blood. For example, the most common clinical arrhythmia, called atrial fibrillation, brings about a feeling of panic and palpitations, shortness of breath, fatigue, and even dizziness and fainting.

This is where the electrocardiogram (ECG) comes into play. It is made to understand the rhythm of the heart.

A routine electrocardiogram (ECG) is performed by placing electrode pads (which seems like an electrocution) and a hand and foot electrical lead system on the skin for a few minutes, which depicts the electrical activity of the heart on a curve. An experienced doctor can use these curves to know if the heart is beating rhythmically.

In addition to the conventional ECG, there is a “dynamic ECG” that compensates for a routine ECG by detecting the heartbeat 24 hours a day. In clinical practice, the ECG, combined with troponin and cardiac enzymes, is often used to detect myocardial infarction.

By the way, the technology used in lie detectors that we often see in movies is also used in ECGs, and by finding the slightest “unintentional twitch” in your wonderful little heart, your “inconsistencies” will be uncovered.

PART 3

If one day you go to the hospital for a checkup and the doctor pushes you into a strange kind of big room, makes you lie down on a bed, has you spreading your legs, and you then feel like you are paralyzed, and you see several doctors in lab blouses, masks and hair covers, all wrapped up tightly, slowly pushing some kind of strange looking liquid towards your body,…

A coronary angiography is a relatively low-risk, relatively safe, surgery performed under local anesthesia. It is mainly used to visualize the blood vessels in the heart through X-rays, while the “contrast agent” is pushed towards the body in order to enhance the visualization.

As stated above, the human heart is like a house, and the coronary arteries are the tubes that supply water and oxygen to the house. The coronary arteries are located outside the heart and provide a steady flow of oxygen and nutrients to the heart. Diabetes, high blood pressure, dyslipidemia, smoking, etc., can cause impurities in the blood vessels to increase and the water flow to become less and less smooth.

To understand the condition of these coronary arteries, a “coronary angiogram” is used, through a contrast agent, that allows the physician to clearly visualize the thickness of the coronary arteries under X-rays to determine a subsequent treatment.

Because if these pipes are severely blocked, various clinical symptoms (with chest pain as the main syndrome) may appear, that is, “coronary heart disease”, which is why coronary angiography is the “gold standard” for the diagnosis of coronary heart disease.

Through local anesthesia, the femoral artery is punctured, the arterial sheath is implanted, the angiography catheter is sent into the left and right coronary orifices, the contrast agent is injected at multiple projection angles, and then the condition of the coronary artery is displayed on the monitor screen to determine the degree of coronary artery disease.

But don’t be afraid to look. A coronary angiography is generally used for coronary heart disease, not for ordinary cardiac examinations.

In conclusion, the three most common types of heart tests are cardiac ultrasounds, electrocardiograms (EKG), and coronary angiograms. Doctors will use one or more of these tests to help determine what is wrong with the heart by understanding its structure, rhythm, and blood vessels.

In addition, cardiac tests also include cardiac MRIs (magnetic resonance imaging), etc. As for the choice of which test to do, you should go to the hospital and listen to your doctor’s advice based on your symptoms.