Viewing a single comment thread. View all comments

Gemmabeta t1_iubmq3h wrote

Reply to comment by [deleted] in TIL This palliative care paper determined that a stream of air from a bedside fan relieves dying patients of dyspnoea (breathlessness/ shortness of breath) as equally as supplemental O2. by No_Cauliflower_5489

Dyspnea, like pain, is one of those conditions with a massive psychiatric component.

I've had patients who had a blood oxygen level of 97% who never the less needed to be put on a morphine and midazolam drip to keep the dyspnea at bay, and I've also had patients who are down to 80% and feels perfectly fine on room air.

45

centrifuge_destroyer t1_iubq4y5 wrote

Maybe that's also a reason why people with respatory illnesses where often send to places with fresh air and wind and reported feeling somewhat better, although this didn't treat the illness at all.

32

Killer-Barbie t1_iubtfkm wrote

I think it's mostly that air in those place typically have lower levels of particulates in the air.

9

cutelyaware t1_iubwfo0 wrote

Perhaps, but it could also simply be that without a fresh breeze, the oxygen in the room might be depleted enough from rebreathing to matter. Or perhaps more likely, the raised C2O causes problems with blood ph.

−23

Gemmabeta t1_iubxbr0 wrote

> the oxygen in the room might be depleted enough from rebreathing to matter.

You have to be sucking air down at a truly prodigious rate to noticeably deplete the oxygen levels of a modern mechanically ventilated room

19

cardboardunderwear t1_iudy4q9 wrote

You’re being downvoted but you may not be wrong. The paper in OP’s link seems to be essentially talking about a placebo effect that makes patients feel better.

Furthermore. CO2 buildup in indoor spaces (or more generally poor indoor air quality) has been identified as a problem in many building and in fact building codes are changing to require measurement and corrective actions (if required).

All of this contributes to how patients do and feel.

−2

[deleted] t1_iucv4a4 wrote

[deleted]

3

halt-l-am-reptar t1_iue17u1 wrote

So are you actually short of breath or is it all psychiatric? I sometimes feel short of breath by my o2 levels are normal. I think it’s probably due to anxiety.

2