5 Benefits of Oxygen Therapy & Its Side Effects

 

Oxygen therapy in California has gained prominence over the years. It is a treatment that delivers extra oxygen to breathe in. Also known as supplemental oxygen, it is exclusively available through a prescription from your health care provider. You can avail of it from the hospital or another medical setting.  

 

Believe it or not, oxygen therapy at home is feasible too. Few people just require it for a brief period. Others may require long-term oxygen therapy. 

 

Different kinds of devices can supply you with oxygen. Few apply tanks of liquid or gas oxygen. Others utilize an oxygen concentrator, which pulls oxygen out of the air. You can receive the oxygen through a nose tube (cannula), a mask, or a tent. The additional oxygen is breathed in with normal air. 

 

There are movable versions of the tanks and oxygen concentrators. They can make it convenient for you to be mobile, using your therapy. 

Oxygen therapy has the potential to improve a lot of health conditions. As a medical procedure, it is accompanied by some risks, and should only be administered by a trained medical professional. We will discuss the risks later on. 

Benefits of Oxygen Therapy are Immense as it is Possibly Effective for the Following Ailments- 

 

1) Acute Lung Failure 

 

Acute lung failure can be caused due to a choppy or labored inhaling, leading to low blood oxygen levels. A meta-analysis comprising of 703 patients concluded that emergency normobaric oxygen therapy has led to an increase in the number of patients recuperating from life-threatening acute lung failure. 

A multicenter analysis of patients suffering from lung failure established that normobaric oxygen therapy cleared the upper airways, enhanced lung function, and minimized pressure on the lungs. 

 

2) COPD 

 

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (aka COPD), is a group of accelerating lung diseases. The commonest are emphysema and chronic bronchitis. Breathing pollutants, Smoking, and deficit of a specific protein, alpha-1-antitrypsin, leads to COPD. Many long-term clinical pieces of research of hundreds of patients with COPD employing supplemental normobaric oxygen therapy established: 

• Reduction of anxiety  

• Benefit from exercise and activity 

• Prolonged lifespan  

• Better quality of life 

• Better sleep quality 

Experimental analysis with 195 COPD patients for 6 months proved that normobaric oxygen therapy enhanced the quality of life of patients with emphysema. 

Among 86 elderly patients with COPD, normobaric oxygen therapy minimized pressure on the heart blood vessels and improved sleep. 

 

3) Cystic Fibrosis 

 

Cystic fibrosis is a genetic disease caused due to the deficit of the CFTR gene. People with cystic fibrosis face breathing problems. 

An assessment of 11 clinical trials (RCT) with 172 participants discovered that supplemental normobaric oxygen therapy develops sleep patterns and quality of life. 

In another meta-analysis of 149 people with cystic fibrosis (RCT), normobaric oxygen therapy ameliorates exercise duration, sleep, and blood oxygen levels. 

 

4) Asthma 

 

Asthma acts as an obstacle for the airways in the lungs and can lead to low blood oxygen (hypoxemia) causing acute health complications. Amongst 106 patients with serious asthma, normobaric oxygen therapy for 2 years improved the survival rate of the patients and decreased symptoms. 

 

5) Stroke 

 

Ischemic stroke takes place due to a clot in the blood vessels that reduces blood flow to the brain and causes cell death. 

There is little evidence in humans suggesting that normobaric oxygen therapy could be advantageous for stroke patients. Oxygen therapy was most effective if applied within the first few hours of suffering from a stroke. 

The significance of prompt treatment has been highlighted during a clinical trial wherein deferred normobaric oxygen therapy of 40 patients did not improve the results of these patients. 

Many experiments with rats and mice established that extra normobaric oxygen therapy decreased blood pressure, brain swelling, brain damage, and death. 

 

Risks or Side Effects 

 

Oxygen therapy is usually safe, but it can cause side effects. That could be a dry or bloody nose, tiredness, and morning headaches. 

Oxygen may result in fire risk, so you should never smoke or apply flammable materials while using oxygen. If you employ oxygen tanks, please ensure that your tank is protected and stays upright. If it drops down and cracks or the top smashes off, the tank can fly like a missile, you see in a Hollywood action movie. 

Most of the centers offering skincare treatment in California endorse oxygen therapy as it has proved its effectiveness over the last few years and is a time-tested method of getting cured of the diseases mentioned above.