Role of oxygen concentrators in covid pandemic

Abstract

The need for oxygen, as well as the scarcity caused by the second wave of the Corona epidemic, has caused everyone to reconsider the sustainability and self-sufficiency of oxygen. Medical oxygen therapy is a standard treatment for patients with severe Covid manifestations. Ensuring a consistent supply of oxygen to meet the rising demand for oxygen must be planned at the national, state, and institutional levels. In this article we would like to emphasise the importance of oxygen adequacy. This narrative review covers the methods of estimating oxygen requirements of a hospital, and the alternate oxygen sources available, highlighting the role of oxygen concentrators in a low resource settings. Oxygen concentrators specially as pressure swing adsorption plants can be used by hospitals as a main source of oxygen being both economical, as well as reducing the dependency on refilling and transport. Planning the oxygen resources for a hospital should include primary, secondary and reserve sources, among all these the oxygen concentrator plays a vital role both being economical in the long run as well as making the hospital largely independent of logistic issues.