COPD Patients are using Pulse Oximeter Technology to monitor themselves at home
COPD or also known as chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder is one of the most difficult health conditions to live with. This condition typically affects the lungs and thus creates a situation where the lungs will not operate properly. When the lungs do not operate properly then the body may actually not get enough oxygen and thus other complications will occur. As oxygen is the most important and basic aspect to life it is of critical importance to ensure that a person’s oxygen levels are at optimal healthy levels. COPD patients are particularly at risk of not getting enough oxygen in their body due to their specific illness. As such, these individuals have always been necessary to be in the hospital setting or the physician’s office so that there would a device that would measure their oxygen levels in order to determine if their body is getting enough oxygen. Unfortunately, once these individuals with COPD went home they really had now way of monitoring themselves while at home. There really existed no device that was capable of not only being mobile so that the individual can take the device anywhere they desired to go to measure their oxygen levels, but also a device that was affordable and not something that just a hospital budget was able to purchase. The device that came along and has changed the entire medical field in particular in regard to the COPD field has been the pulse oximeter.
A pulse oximeter is a medical and health device that is used to measure pulse rate as well as blood oxygen saturation. The way that the device works is that it uses a completely safe infrared light that passes through a person’s skin. Typically since you place your index finger inside the device the light passes through your skin and as such has the ability to measure the percentage of oxygen in your hemoglobin or your blood. This measurement is then computed in a number that is read by the individual utilizing the device. A COPD patient has to simply insert their finger inside the portable pulse oximeter device and within seconds they get a reading of their pulse rate as well as oxygen levels in the blood. This is absolutely critical to their health as they are in constant need of monitoring their oxygen levels. Because the oximeter device is extremely portable COPD patients not only can take and use this device in their home, but they can also take it anywhere that they desire to go. So lets say for example a COPD patient needs to go on vacation. Although they are on vacation they still need to monitor their health and in particular their oxygen levels. Well with the new portable oximeter devices they no longer need to worry about not being able to monitor their health. They simply take the device with them and monitor their oxygen levels wherever they desire to go and never have to worry about the fact that they are far away from their health care professional as now they have the power of vital sign monitoring in their hands.
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