I use supplemental oxygen (all the time now).
I would like an oxygen machine that has a built-in oximeter which it would use to determine whether to increase or decrease the oxygen output, or to just leave it where it is, in order to maintain an approximately constant blood oxygen level.
I've heard that an acceptable range is 92-100%, but according to Wikipedia, the acceptable range is 95-100%. Either way, I would like the desired acceptable range of the machine to be adjustable. It could be done a few different ways, let’s say that you input the desired level of 95% + or - 1%. Or you could select a minimum level of say 94% and a maximum level of 99%. Whatever the means of inputting the levels, it should keep your levels fairly constant.
Approximately once every 30 seconds it would check the blood oxygen level, and if needed, it would automatically adjust the output level. I think that is about as often as it would need to check while the user is sleeping. If it checks and tries to adjust too often, I think the machine might go crazy.
This would be better for people, because it would keep their blood oxygen at a healthy level.
This would not require adjustment when you change altitudes (like when you go on vacation).
I'm thinking of this idea as a home unit, but I know that portable oxygen concentrators exist which this idea would be very good for. I have never used a portable oxygen concentrator, so I don't know how well they work.
This idea would be especially good for use in hospitals (trust me, I know).-- BJS, Sep 21 2007 Pulse oximeter http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oximeter [BJS, Sep 21 2007] Oxygen concentrator http://en.wikipedia...Oxygen_concentrator [BJS, Sep 21 2007] Carbon dioxide retention precipitated by excess oxygen. http://espace.libra...ew.php?pid=UQ:10167 [bungston, Sep 21 2007] I don't sleep very well at night, and I wake up many times during the night, this is caused by at least a few differed things. I think one of the reasons might be that my blood oxygen level is not constant, this idea would theoretically fix that problem.-- BJS, Sep 21 2007 Why the maximum?-- GutPunchLullabies, Sep 21 2007 Just as background, answer or not as you wish: Are you long-term ill, perhaps asthmatic or something, or are oxygen concentrators everyday items where you are? I don't mean to cause offence, I'm just curious.-- david_scothern, Sep 21 2007 This is a doable deal. It would be especially good during exercise. It might not be that good for some folks with low oxygen. Some folks with chronic lung disease retain CO2 if they get too much O2, which that machine might give them while sleeping. Then it could be hard for them to wake up. I have linked an abstract with some info on this phenomenon. This is more of a COPD/ashtma thing than a CF thing, and for CF I think the proposed idea would be good. In the hospital maybe it is better to have someone actually adjusting the oxygen and noting the increased need.-- bungston, Sep 21 2007 GutPunchLullabies, there should be a maximum for reasons that bungston mentioned. Too much of a good thing is a bad thing.
david_scothern, I have Cystic Fibrosis (and at least a couple of other things).
bungton, I do agree that this would be excellent for exercise, but with a home type unit, you would have to stay in the same relative area as the machine which is fine if you use a treadmill or do other stationary exercises. And a portable unit would be just that, but would have to be carried around.
For hospital use, maybe the machine could keep a record of the blood O2 and the outputted LPMs, which could be printed out and examined by the doctor approximately daily.-- BJS, Sep 21 2007 With wireless and mobile phone technology I don't see why even a portable unit could not maintain a regular log and send it to the doctor. It could even be linked to EMS. If your blood oxygen gets low and is not responding to supplemental, it could have the paramedics on the way before you even realized you were collapsing.-- Galbinus_Caeli, Sep 24 2007 random, halfbakery