Portable Oxygen Concentrators - A STRAIGHTFORWARD Guide
Portable oxygen machines and specially portable oxygen concentrator s have changed just how many people, who must have continuous or semi continuous oxygen therapy , are actually living.
It used to be that mobility for COPD patients was severely restricted. This meant being house bound or overly dependent on a hospital or clinic.
With the advent of much more practical and better quality portable machines, patients mobility has increased dramatically and you may now find people on supplemental oxygen doing a lot of things they wouldn't have imagined only a few years ago.
This has happened as a result of new portable tanks, because of more complex conserving devices (that regulate the delivery rates) and, possibly the most important reason of all - the introduction of portable oxygen concentrators.
An oxygen concentrator is a machine that extracts oxygen from the encompassing air, it concentrates it and then delivers it - directly to the patient (in a house concentrator machine it can also be used to refill an oxygen cylinder). At sea level and when air pollution isn't an issue, ambient air comprises approximately 21% oxygen, 88% nitrogen and a reduced amount of various gases. The oxygen concentrator extracts oxygen, concentrates it and delivers it to the patient.
Things You HAVE TO KNOW:
You need a power source to use, that can be both with rechargeable batteries and a plug in option (including for vehicle).
You will find a continuous rumble from the concentrators motor.
It is possible to adjust the flow level in accordance with your prescription.
There are different models with different weights the give allow for your mobility.
Check your battery durability and as a safety precaution you should have a spare and charged battery.
Portable oxygen concentrators arrived on the scene around 2002 and since then have had an excellent impact in the portable oxygen delivery area.
The major difference between an oxygen concentrator and an oxygen cylinder or tank, is that the concentrator isn't a storage device but a supplier of oxygen. This means that so long as the energy source is uninterrupted, oxygen will still be delivered for as long as needed. In a tank there will be the limitation in line with the amount of oxygen that's stored, whether liquid or gas.
The new designs have both a primary plug in option (so that you can plug them in cars, for example) along with being battery operated. They are smaller, lighter and for that reason easier to carry and also have a direct and positive influence on peoples mobility.
It seems as if each new model is smaller and has more durable rechargeable batteries.
An important benefit is they have increased the possibility of travel for patients on extra oxygen, and actually one of the most important aspects of that is that by May, 2009, the FAA authorized the application of some portable oxygen concentrators up to speed airlines that cross US airspace (this means all arriving and departing flights). This change is of great consequence as flights was a problem. It is still, however, a good idea to consult with your airline before a flight.
Although living and having to be determined by supplemental oxygen is not something anyone would willingly elect to do, POC's (portable oxygen concentrators) have really changed people's lives. The much greater range of activities that may now be practiced, together with increased mobility in general, have had an extremely positive impact on longterm oxygen therapy patients.