Low Pulse Rate?

[Jersey Girl]

Dear Friends,

Thanks to some dear friends on the forum I was able to download my pulse oximeter data for the first time. Everything looked normal to me - 96.6 Basal Sp02%, 94.1 Avg. Low SPO2%. I was surprised to see the Low pulse Rate of 54 bpm. Is 54 bpm too low? (My avg was 70.4). What low number would be of concern?

Jersey Girl

[torontoCPAPguy]

I run about 58/59 during the night unless I have had a meal before retiring and the MD's seem quite happy with that. It is my Sp02 that they whine about but my lungs are only back to about 70% capacity and will only ever reach perhaps 90% or so due to having smoked in my young and foolish years. Still, after a month on life support with a machine doing the work they are quite surprised that I am even breathing on my own at all these days; in fact the respirologist (a Prof at U of T medical school) looked at my pictures and was amazed that I was even around.... he apologized and blurted out that the only time he ever saw xrays that bad was during post mortems. So you can be assured that your Sp02 is okay at mid nineties while asleep, especially if it rises when you walk or move about. And your pulse rate is not at all unusual from what I gather but given that each person is different and they have a magic number in mind for YOU I would share the information with your GP at least.

[Madalot]

Dear Friends,

Thanks to some dear friends on the forum I was able to download my pulse oximeter data for the first time. Everything looked normal to me - 96.6 Basal Sp02%, 94.1 Avg. Low SPO2%. I was surprised to see the Low pulse Rate of 54 bpm. Is 54 bpm too low? (My avg was 70.4). What low number would be of concern?

Jersey Girl

Hi Jersey Girl --

I am not expert, but I know that almost every pulse ox test I've had done has shown a low pulse rate in the low 40's every time. The pulse ox monitor my DME uses blinks with a pulse below 60 and my waking pulse rate is ALWAYS below 60, usually in the upper 50's. My RT and doctor didn't seem all that concerned.

[snnnark]

54 is only 6 under the bradycardia definition. And if it's during sleep I have not found any texts where pulse in the 50's is a concern. Where it may be an issue is if it is associated with an apnea and desaturation. If it is, then it can be followed by a Tachycardia as you respond to the event. Did you notice any "pulse events" on your oximetry reports?

[Jersey Girl]

Toronto Cpapguy - So glad that you are still with us! It really sounds from what I've read as though you have had to fight your way back to life and I'm so glad you did. I hope that your health continues to improve each and every day.

Madalot - Thank you for responding to my post. I saw that you were looking into pulse oximeters also, but because I know so little about them I did not reply to your post. Now that I have at least used my CMS 50D+ for one night, I can tell you that the pulse oximeter was fine to wear on my finger, did not fall off, and with some help from my friends on the forum, I was able to download my data. It's a cheap model - takes 2 AAA batteries, but gives a nicely detailed report with the SPO2 software. Again, I'm no expert on this stuff but for the $100 dollars I spent, I feel like I got my money's worth.

Snnark - Here is my "Event Data":

SPO2 Pulse
Total Events 10 132
Time in Events (min) 7.9 62.9
Avg. Event Dur. (sec) 47.5 28.6
Index (1/hr) 2.1 27.3
% Artifact 0.0 0.0
Adjusted Index 1/hr 2.1 27.3



Wishing you peaceful, restorative sleep,

Your friend,

Jersey Girl

[JohnBFisher]

Jersey Girl, glad you got the download working. I've had a few bad nights, so did not post much recently.

54 is not a problem. Remember that only during deep sleep does your heart get a chance to rest some. So, it's probably that. Unless you have VERY low heart rate (as snnnark seems to have), it's not a big issue.

In fact, it could indicate you are otherwise fairly healthy. A higher heart rate can indicate a good bit of hypertension.

[snnnark]

___________________SPO2_________Pulse
Total Events............ 10..............132
Time in Events (min)..7.9..............62.9
Avg. Event Dur. (sec) 47.5.............28.6
Index (1/hr)............2.1..............27.3
% Artifact...............0.0.............. 0.0
Adjusted Index 1/hr...2.1.............27.3

Can you relate the 10 sp02 events to apneas/hypopneas?

I'm assuming you have left the standard definitions of events in the SPO2 software as the defaults i.e 4% drop in Spo2 for 10 secs and 6bpm rate change for 8 secs.

[brain_cloud]

Dear Friends,

Thanks to some dear friends on the forum I was able to download my pulse oximeter data for the first time. Everything looked normal to me - 96.6 Basal Sp02%, 94.1 Avg. Low SPO2%. I was surprised to see the Low pulse Rate of 54 bpm. Is 54 bpm too low? (My avg was 70.4).

There is considerable gender difference for pulse rate. Below is some data i got when several co-workers wanted to get in on overnight oximetry testing using my oximeter. Everyone did one all-night session. Three 40-something healthy men, myself (Paul), and three 40-something ladies. None besides myself has OSA. Anyway, I was surprised at the separation between the genders (it would look better if I wasn't in there right in the middle).

[Jersey Girl]

Snnnark - My AHI was only 1.3 last night: 1.2 HI, .1 AI (One 11 second apnea). And yes, I left the standard definitions as they were.

Brain Cloud -Thanks for sharing your data. Looks like I may just be in good company.

John - Thanks so much for your input. It is very appreciated.

Warmly,

Jersey Girl

[kevincoop]

Hi,
Everyone is right that that rate is not bad. Most peoples rate slows during sleep of course. When you have apnea events (hopefully you arent having many with your CPAP) your heart rate will speed up but just until your airway opens, so the majority of the night your heart rate will be lower.
The pressure inflating your lungs with CPAP will push pressure against your heart and decrease your blood pressure. When your bp is lower your brain sends a signal to speed up heart rate to push what little oxygen through your bloodstream. If your brain got the signal that your were not getting enough oxygen, it would simply speed up your heartrate (unless there is some underlying condition). It also depends on what kind of shape you are in. Runners have resting heart rates in the 40's and lower in their sleep.
I don't think that it is anything to worry about unless you have other symptoms related to bradycardia like:
■Near-fainting or fainting (syncope)
■Dizziness
■Weakness
■Fatigue
■Shortness of breath
■Chest pains
■Disturbed sleep
■Confusion or memory impairment
■Easily tiring during physical activity

Kevin

[Jersey Girl]

Dear Kevin,

Thanks for clarifying symptoms to look for. Got concerned about the memory loss part, but I had a sinus infection and felt very foggy for about a week at work, but now that I am on antibiotic, I am feeling much better and feel more like myself. Good to know that it's ok for our bpm to drop low during the night. My average was 70.4, but I was a little suprised when I saw that my low bpm was 54. Now, thanks to you and a few of my other friends on the forum, I realize that this is just fine!

Thanks so much,

Jersey Girl