Various chronic respiratory conditions could require someone to need extra help breathing. Asthma is an unfortunately common condition that makes airways inflame, lung passages narrow, and oxygen struggles to circulate in the body. Doctors help asthma patients get the extra breathing help they need by prescribing oxygen therapy. However, many asthma patients wonder how effective this therapy is, how frequently they would have to use it, and what the side effects are. We provide answers to those questions below.
How Effective Is Oxygen Therapy?
Getting extra oxygen in your lungs with oxygen therapy is an effective way to treat asthma, especially when you’re having a severe asthma attack. While some people with mild forms of asthma only need an inhaler or nebulizer to treat asthma attacks, severe attacks are life-threatening, as they cut off your oxygen supply. Oxygen therapy immediately delivers the oxygen your body needs to function while you get help or wait for the attack to subside.
How Frequently Would You Need Oxygen Therapy?
We mentioned above that oxygen therapy is effective during a severe asthma attack. Depending on what triggers your asthma, you may only need to reach for oxygen therapy during an attack. Your doctor may also prescribe therapy to prevent your asthma triggers from causing an attack. For example, if exercise often triggers an asthma attack, your doctor may prescribe you to use oxygen therapy only while exercising or during an attack. Otherwise, you may not need to use it.
If you constantly struggle with shortness of breath and low oxygen levels, you may need to use oxygen therapy more frequently. Your doctor will prescribe a portable or home oxygen concentrator if they expect you to need oxygen therapy consistently throughout the day in order to treat your asthma effectively.
What Are the Side Effects of Oxygen Therapy?
Thankfully, the side effects of oxygen therapy aren’t severe. Whether you use this therapy during an attack or throughout your day, you should only experience a few mild side effects. The most common ones are a dry or bloody nose, fatigue, and headaches, especially in the morning.
Humidifier bottles can address the dry or bloody nose problem since they’re often caused by dry oxygen. You can discuss the fatigue and morning headaches with your doctor if you experience them. If your doctor can’t help you stop these side effects, try to stay positive and consider how much oxygen therapy is helping you.
Oxygen therapy is effective for asthma through daily use or during an attack. Supplemental oxygen can help you breathe and live better. If you need a cheap oxygen concentrator to unlock those breathing and living benefits, Bridge to Care is happy to help you find the right one. Our concentrators are high-quality, reliable, and affordable.