If your O2 sats are at 94 when you're up and walking and really exerting yourself, your pulmo is right; you don't need supplemental O2. The six minute was is designed to get you moving for at least six minutes to see how or if you desaturate. If you've had the test and those are the results, he's right. However, if he stuck an oximeter on your finger after you've sat in the consulting room for 20 minutes waiting for him, then call back and ask for the six minute walk test.
Trelegy is a perfectly good medication. It's a three-in-one: it has a LAMA, a LABA and and ICS in one and you only have to take it once a day. Many people do just fine on it. If you don't, let him know and ask for another set of meds. If he wants you to have all three, ask him to prescribe individual inhalers for each one. That way if something doesn't work, you'll know what it is.
@A MyCOPDTeam Member, I have no idea where you got the idea that using supplementary O2 can cause hardening of the lungs, but as far as I know that's simply not true. People who have any of the variations of pulmonary fibrosis do develop damage in the lungs that is sometimes referred to as "hardening of the lungs", but it's caused by the disease, not O2 usage. Fibrosis often accompanies COPD. You're right that breathing techniques and interventions such as daily formal exercise programs can reduce the need for O2 and, in people whose O2 saturations are above 88 -90, improve breathing enough during exercise and exertion to negate the need for supplementary O2 during those times.
If you have a source for the statement regarding O2 causing "hardening of the lungs". I'd like to know it. I don't think I'm wrong, but if I am, I'd like to see some evidence. Thanks!
@A MyCOPDTeam Member, I noted that one must ABUSE their oxygen to cause hardening of the lungs. This was instruction they provided at our Better Breathers Club as support to emphasize the importance of having an RX before beginning use, and to not mess with the recommended usage setting before clearing it with one’s respiratory consultant or pulmonologist.
I’m surrounded by entrepreneurs and engineers who live to challenge the status quo, so a good deal of our Better Breathers Club meetings were spent discussing alternate therapy choices, risks, benefits, etc. Many folks bought their own oxygen concentrators off the used equipment market and were self-prescribing supplemental oxygen, leading to complications.
While I don’t have that meeting recorded for reference, here’s two studies which highlight some of the risks of improperly provided or used oxygen:
REF:
https://www.ems1.com/ems-products/cpr-resuscita...
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK430743/
As I have said frequently, I am not a doctor and I don’t give medical advice. I provide information I’ve been given, and hope that folks will continue to do their own research and check in with their own doctors.
The pulmonologist is right, @A MyCOPDTeam Member. Generally (and I’m not a doc; this is not medical advice), they don’t want you on oxygen unless your saturation rates are consistently under 92, and usually don’t insist on it until you’re around 88 as most insurance companies fight paying for it.
If you can stand any side effects or health risks from the medication your doc prescribes, you’re better trying the new med first, before going on oxygen.
Please be aware that supplemental oxygen can be abused, causing hardening of your lungs, so it’s normally not the first choice unless your saturation rates are so low as to risk organ damage due to oxygen deprivation.
Ideally, if you’re finding it hard to breathe, and your saturation rates are in the normal range, they recommend you practice deep breathing techniques such as pursed lip breathing to help you feel better, too. Good luck.
Trelegy works well for me