Amid O2 crisis, concentrators best bet for moderate Covid cases: Expert
New Delhi: As hospital beds with oxygen facilities and oxygen cylinders continue to be scarcely available as COVID-19 cases skyrocket in the city, citizen support groups have now turned towards oxygen concentrators for cases of moderate COVID-19.
COVID-19 is a pulmonary disease which inflames and affects the lungs such that a patient is not able to get sufficient oxygen from atmospheric air. An oxygen concentrator makes this easier by filtering room air and purifying it to extract nearly 100 per cent pure oxygen which is then supplied to the patient's body, Pulmonary expert Dr Piyush Goel from Columbia Asia hospital explains. However, unlike oxygen cylinders which need to be refilled regularly, oxygen concentrators just need constant electrical supply (since they depend on freely available ambient air).
"Oxygen concentrators can supply between five to 10 litres of oxygen per minute, depending upon the patient's requirements. If a patient is able to maintain 93 or 94 per cent oxygen saturation level, they don't need oxygen therapy. However, if the SPO2 levels fall below 93, then the patient should be given oxygen support, which is a mainstay of COVID-19 treatment. While cylinders and concentrators are both very difficult to procure at the moment and I am unable to do so for my own patients, concentrators are a steadier option because they don't need to be refilled and can maintain constant supply", Dr Goel says.
Rather, Dr Goel is of the opinion that every hospital in the Delhi-NCR region should have at least five to 10 oxygen concentrators so that patients do not lose their lives due to erratic supply of liquid medical oxygen. "For patients who need 10 or less than 10 litres of oxygen supply to maintain stable SPO2 levels, oxygen concentrators are the most reliable bet and also ensure that hospitals do not use up their daily oxygen quota so quickly. I think the Government should prioritise the procurement of concentrators for all hospitals. Not only will it reduce dependency on liquid oxygen and free up more beds, but it is also the best bet in situations where hospitals run out of oxygen before refilling/supply is ensured. Even 2,000 or 3,000 oxygen concentrators are enough to triage the situation in hospitals across Delhi-NCR or else the mortality figures in the next 10 days are likely to be higher than anyone could have imagined".
Dr Goel also sets the record straight on various claims making the rounds on social media regarding steam inhalation. "I've heard people say that steam inhalation helps to kill the virus because it cannot survive in such high temperatures which is totally false. Newer studies show that nebulisation with steroids might be much more effective".
"I am not very fond of steam inhalation for COVID-19 patients because it leads to aerosol formation which promotes the spread of communicable diseases, especially if the person is not isolated properly, and complete isolation is quite unrealistic in Indian households. Steam inhalation can easily lead to irritation of nasal mucosa which in turn causes excessive sneezing and coughing. It is only helpful for those patients who have nasal blockage because it has a soothing effect on the nose and threat and helps to clear nasal passage because thickened mucosa gets liquified with humidified air (steam)", he adds.
