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[Effectiveness of the concentrator as a supply source in home oxygen therapy]
J Escarrabill1, E Giro, R Estopa
1Servicio de Neumología, Hospital de Bellvitge, Barcelona.
Insights
Many home oxygen concentrators fail to deliver adequate oxygen levels, impacting treatment effectiveness. Regular monitoring and warning devices are crucial for improving home oxygen therapy outcomes.
Area of Science:
- Medical Devices
- Respiratory Therapy
- Home Healthcare
Context:
- Home oxygen therapy (HO) relies on oxygen concentrators as a primary supply.
- Assessing the real-world effectiveness of these devices in patient homes is essential.
- Patient adherence and device performance under typical usage conditions are key factors.
Purpose:
- To evaluate the efficacy of oxygen concentrators used in home oxygen therapy.
- To identify factors contributing to suboptimal oxygen delivery in a home setting.
- To determine the actual effectiveness rate of home oxygen therapy with concentrators.
Summary:
- A study of 31 patients found only 41.9% of oxygen concentrators consistently supplied adequate oxygen (above 87% at 2 L/min).
- Adequate oxygen percentages were not supplied to 12 of 29 patients receiving HO, suggesting a low treatment effectiveness rate (28.6%).
- Sporadic or infrequent control measures were noted, with only 12.9% of patients performing monthly checks.
Impact:
- The study highlights a low efficiency of home oxygen therapy with concentrators in the studied environment.
- Recommendations include implementing regular concentrator controls and developing warning systems for oxygen level reduction.
- Improving device maintenance and patient monitoring can significantly enhance the effectiveness of home oxygen therapy.
Abstract:
The oxygen concentrator is an effective supply source in home oxygen-therapy (HO). In order to study the effectivity of the concentrator in HO, we visited at home 31 patients using the concentrator as the only oxygen supply source in the exit gas and counted the hours of concentrator usage. Only 13 concentrators (41.9%) supplied a percentage of oxygen higher than 87% at a flow of two liters per minute. In three cases (9.7%), sporadic control measures of the percentage of oxygen in the exit gas were being taken and only four patients (12.9%) said that these controls were made monthly. The concentrator did not supply the adequate percentage of oxygen in 12 out of the 29 patients correctly taking the HO, so the effectivity of the treatment can only be expected in 28.6% of studied cases. The concentrator operates well under ideal conditions, but potential breakdowns in standard conditions of use must be considered. The efficiency of the HO with concentrator in our environment is very low, but it can be improved with regular controls of the concentrators or the introduction of devices warning the patient when they detect a reduction of the percentage of oxygen in the exit gas.
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