Oxygen Concentrators for COPD

COPD is a rising global concern today, being a major cause of illness in most countries across the world. Ample oxygen is known to provide relief to its patients and an unlimited supply of the same can be made available through oxygen concentrators.

What is COPD?
COPD stands for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disorder. As the name implies, CPOD refers to a host of diseases such as non-reversible/refractory asthma, chronic bronchitis, emphysema and certain types of bronchiectasis. All these diseases are associated with the lungs and have one thing in common: breathing problems. What’s worse is that all these diseases are progressive in nature, meaning that they tend to get worse with time.

COPD can be caused by a number of reasons but the primary reason for it is believed to be smoking or a passive exposure to smoke. Data on the COPD Foundation’s website indicates that 90% of all COPD patients have other reasons include exposure to harmful pollutants and impure air, fumes, particles, and dust. A small percentage of people that have never smoked or have been exposed to the polluted environment may also be at risk because of a rare genetic condition that goes by the name alpha-1 antitrypsin (AAT) deficiency.

COPD starts early and there are high chances that people ignore it because they attribute its symptoms to signs of aging and tiredness. People with CPOD experience bouts of tiredness and lack of energy. They are likely to experience a shortness of breath during vigorous physical activities such as climbing the stairs and running. They experience wheezing and chest tightness. Excessive coughing can be accompanied by a white, green or yellow colored sputum. It is also possible that sputum may not be produced at all. Chronic and frequent lung infections are yet another prevalent sign of COPD. Apart from the above symptoms, the patient may also experience visible symptoms such as swelling of the limbs and a steady weight loss.

All these symptoms are caused either by a blockage of airways due to thickening of the walls and excessive production of mucus or due to a loss of elasticity of the tiny air sacs in the lungs that hold the air that is breathed in and out.

Why is COPD Alarming?
COPD is a serious global matter. Data on the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute has COPD as one of the prime causes of disability in the aged. The psychological impact caused by the inability to cope with the disease contributes to mental stress. About 65 million people are battling moderate to severe levels of COPD, as per the WHO data. COPD is the third leading cause of death in the USA and in 2005, about 3 million people had succumbed to COPD globally. This number is more alarming if you know that it makes up 5% of the global annual death figures.

Oxygen Concentrators Extend a Helping Hand
A patient of COPD is asked to immediately stop smoking as nothing can be more damaging and accelerating to worsen his/her condition. No definite cure has been discovered for COPD yet but people can be helped to bring the damage under control and be made to feel more comfortable with the help of breathing exercises and medical devices such as inhalers, medications and oxygen concentrators.

In fact, oxygen and oxygen therapies hare a true ray of hope to COPD patients. According to a study by Christine F. McDonald, patients with hypoxemia and COPD received considerable relief when treated with a supply of oxygen for a prolonged period of time. In fact, the group which received a continuous supply was found to have a significant survival advantage over the other group which received oxygen nocturnally only. Another similar study by Stoller et al analyzed some randomized control trials and established that supplemental oxygen is indeed therapeutic for people suffering from COPD and severe resting hypoxemia. In fact, oxygen therapy was one of the first treatments of its kind to show the difference in mortality rates of COPD patients with and without oxygen therapies and the internet is full of many such articles that show the positive impact of oxygen on COPD patients.

An oxygen concentrator will draw in as much fresh air as it can from its surroundings and will compress the air as well as segregate Nitrogen from it. Thus, the output from it is purified oxygen of the highest degree that can be delivered straight to the beneficiary through a nasal cannula. We have been taught from the early days of our science lessons that oxygen is the lifeline of the human body. Major body organs such as the brain, the heart, and the lungs need large quantities of oxygen in order to perform well. Oxygen acts like a fuel to our body. Since the airways and air sacs become weak in a COPD patient, the oxygen concentrators ensure a continuous and ample supply of oxygen at all times. Thus, the large demand of oxygen for a CPOD patients’ lungs are met with by oxygen concentrators.

Many day-to-day functions like traveling, sleeping and physical activities receive a boost with portable oxygen concentrators. Most trains and airlines will allow the patient to carry a portable oxygen concentrator with them during their journey. The extra oxygen used up the body is replenished within moments by an oxygen concentrator. Also, patients can sleep peacefully throughout the night knowing that their oxygen concentrator will be taking care of their complete supply of oxygen while they enjoy sweet dreams.

Oxygen Concentrators V/S Oxygen Tanks: The Benefits
Oxygen concentrators pose certain benefits over the regular oxygen tanks. You only pay once for an oxygen concentrator and it bestows you with an unlimited supply of oxygen, whereas you have to pay for individual oxygen tanks whenever you buy one after the previous one runs out. The advanced technology in a concentrator has eliminated the danger of flammability due to leaks.

Conclusion
Patients of CPOD need to be provided with as much support and relief as possible. Nurturing them in an environment of unadulterated and continuous oxygen has proven benefits and an oxygen concentrator is an affordable one-of-its-kind device for the same.



Resources:
https://www.copdfoundation.org/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4255164/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2897694/