My mother is late 60s. She is always coughing. Its not a new cough. It's not a continuous cough. It's about once every half and hour or so, she's let's out a cough. Seems as if it's coming from the back of her throat. She says she is clearing her throat.
The family is keeping contacts low. Movements out into public is limited except for exercise outside. No one in our circle is sick or positive.
My mother got bored with lockdown and went to the city on the bus. It gives me and my siblings a concern. She is not completely 100% into comprehending the public health guidelines and advice and rules. She is someone who wears a mask under her nose. She makes excuses against using hand sanitisers.
She is coughing. It is concerning because how do you tell the difference between an irritation in the throat and a covid cough. She doesn't understand incubation phase of virus and viral load and she generally refuses to cough into her elbow. She doesn't want to phone the doctor and she doesn't want me to phone and she doesnt want to test for covid. Hell will freeze over before she will isolate to protect anyone else.
I bought an oximeter last year in the hope of catching a virus early before showing symptoms.
It took me a few minutes to get a reading from her finger. Her hand was clean with no nail polish. It took me over 5 minutes to get a reading. The oxygen reading read from 96 to 98. I understand these figures to be a good reading. It did go down to 94 and 95 but it never stayed there and it came back up.
The heart rate ranged from the 60s to 70s. It never went beyond the high 70s. She was reasonably relaxed.
If there was a covid infection brewing would it show on the oximeter? I would imagine the resting or relaxed heartrate would be sky high. Maybe the oxygen would read a middle 90s number and stay in the middle range. I don't know.
Would an oxygen meter show something? If the oximeter stayed around 94 or went lower I would ignore her request of not contacting doctor.