If you suffer from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or another form of lung disease, it is very likely that your doctor has prescribed oxygen therapy to treat your condition and supply you with the necessary amount of oxygen that your body requires. If you are on supplemental oxygen, you may be wondering how do oxygen concentrators work? Over the past fifteen years, these small and lightweight devices have evolved and replaced the once cumbersome task of relying on oxygen tanks for a patient that requires supplemental O2.
Today’s models of portable oxygen concentrators weigh as little as 2kg and can easily be transported onto commercial flights, cars, and trains, and have opened a whole new mobile world and opportunity to patients who suffer from COPD and rely on oxygen therapy. Oxygen Always breaks down the process of how a portable oxygen concentrator gained such importance.
Inogen is a major competitor on the portable oxygen concentrator market, and in the new millennium, began to release portable oxygen concentrators. These new devices were powered by batteries and they were lightweight enough so that they could be carried easily by a patient that required oxygen therapy. Today, these devices are affordable, innovative, portable and reliable.
While it might sound technical, a portable oxygen concentrator is a relatively simple device that operates on the principle of ‘rapid pressure swing absorption’ of atmospheric nitrogen onto a palate of specific minerals that attract Nitrogen, which then vent the Nitrogen out of the machine. The oxygen that we naturally breathe consists of 77% Nitrogen and 20% oxygen. The overall process separates Nitrogen out of the regulator, condenses, and pumps the remaining oxygen mixture of gas to the user. This mixture is primarily oxygen, but also contains other gasses such as argon and CO2.
It is unpredictable what the future holds for oxygen therapy, but it is a practice that holds an extremely exciting and promising future. The next decade promises to be an exciting period for oxygen therapy. We can expect to reap the benefits of technological advancements in relation to the size and portability of oxygen concentrators, as well as see a decrease in the cost of such devices. As new battery technologies are adopted, it has already become a reality that you will be able to travel on commercial airlines with FAA approved oxygen concentrators, and for longer periods of time.
Above all, Oxygen Always believes in prevention above treatment, as most cases of COPD are environmental or life style factors that should be identified and addressed as a priority for those who are at a high risk of developing COPD or other lung diseases.
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