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Abstract:
This report is an Update Evaluation of oxygen concentrators. Since the publication of the original study in Health Devices, 22(1), January 1993, we have become increasingly concerned about the potential for oxygen concentrators to produce less-than-therapeutic levels of oxygen without an indication. Because of this concern, we have revised our oxygen concentration status indicator (OCSI) criteria. In this report, we describe our rationale for updating the criteria, list the new criteria, and present revised ratings of the previously evaluated units. As a result, only two of the previously evaluated units are now rated Acceptable; the other eight units are now rated Conditionally Acceptable. We also evaluated another oxygen concentrator, the Foothills EconoMate, using the criteria and test methods described in the previous study and the revised criteria for the OCSI test provided in this issue. We describe the Foothills unit and present the results of our testing; information about the previously evaluated units is included for comparison. We rate this unit Acceptable and rank it below the two previously evaluated Acceptable units. Our ratings and rankings of oxygen concentrators, in both the current and previous study, are based primarily on the availability of an OCSI that meets our criteria, as well as on electrical safety and maintenance issues. Readers are cautioned not to base purchasing decisions on our ratings alone, but on a thorough understanding of all issues surrounding the use of oxygen concentrators, which can be gained only by reading the original Evaluation and this Update in their entirety. In the original Evaluation issue, clinical and technical issues are discussed in detail in the Clinical and Technical Overview, and important factors to consider, such as required flow, OCSIs, high-temperature performance, electrical safety, noise, maintenance, and cost, are covered in the Discussion section, "Issues in Selecting, Purchasing, and Using Oxygen Concentrators." Also see "Add-on Oxygen Concentration Status Indicators" in this issue.