Oxygen treatment, home
How home oxygen treatment can help
If you have a health conditionthat causes low levels of oxygen in your blood (hypoxia), you may feel breathless and tired, particularly after walking or coughing. Fluid may also build up around your ankles ( oedema ) and you may have blue lips.
Breathing air with a higher concentration of oxygen than normal can increase the amount of oxygen in your blood. Thismakes it easier to carry out activities that might otherwise be more difficult, and it helps reduce the symptoms mentioned above.
Oxygen treatment can help people with a range of health conditions that affect breathing or blood circulation, including:
- chronic obstructive pulmonary disease(COPD) a long-term lung condition
- severe long-term asthma
- cystic fibrosis an inherited condition that causes the lungs to become clogged with thick, sticky mucus
- pulmonary hypertension high pressure inside the arteries to the lungs, which damages the right-hand side of the heart
- conditions that affect the nerves and muscles or ribcage
- heart failure when the heart fails to pump enough blood around the body at the right pressure
People who have oxygen treatment have different requirements. For example, you may only need oxygen treatment for short periodsduring the day when you're walking about(ambulatory oxygen), or you may need it for longer periods during the day and night.
Medically Reviewed by a doctor on 21 Dec 2018
Introduction
Find out what home oxygen treatment is, when it's needed and the different methods used to deliver it.
How oxygen treatment is given
Oxygen treatment can be given in a number of ways including through a: tube positioned under the nose (nasal cannula) face mask placed over the nose and mouth tube placed into the mouth and d
How home oxygen treatment can help
If you have a health conditionthat causes low levels of oxygen in your blood (hypoxia), you may feel breathless and tired, particularly after walking or coughing. Fluid may also build up around your a
Oxygen treatment assessment
If you have a long-term medical condition and your doctor thinks oxygen treatment might be helpful, you'll be asked to visit your nearest oxygen clinic for an assessment. During the assessment it's l
Oxygen cylinders
If you only needoxygen for short periods to relieve attacks of breathlessness after an illness, you'll probably be prescribed oxygen cylinders. However, this should be regularly reviewed so that the s
Oxygen concentrator machine
An oxygen concentrator machine is suitable if youwould benefit from having oxygen for many hours a day, including while you're asleep.It ensures you have a source of oxygen that never runs out. An ox
Portable (ambulatory) oxygen
Talk toyour specialist if youd like a small, portable cylinder so you can take oxygen outside your home. Youll need to be fully assessed to see whether portable oxygen (also known as ambulatory oxygen
Going on holiday
If you're going on holiday in England or Wales, talk to your supplier to see whether you can make arrangements to have home oxygen supplied to you at your destination. Try to give them as much notice
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