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Portable oxygen concentrator

Posted by Stella Tucson @fraytv, Jun 5, 2023

I have bronchiectasis and I am looking for advice on portable oxygen concentrator’s. I am currently on 2L oxygen 24x7(since late Nov 2022) due to 2 separate stays in the hospital due to pneumonia/pseudomonas. At home I use a full size concentrator & when away from the house full size & portable tanks. It doesn’t look like I will be getting off the oxygen. I am thinking of purchasing a portable concentrator. I saw a person with a & portable continuous flow & it was very loud & they said it weighed 14 lbs. They got it from the local oxygen supplier going through insurance. I would like to get a lighter weight & quiet one. Here are my questions:

Any recommendations on brand/model & any to avoid?

If I purchase one do I need a prescription from a dr?

Should I get continuous flow or pulse? I use pulse on the portable ones.

The use of oxygen is new to me, learning everyday. Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thank you!

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chickytina | @chickytina | Jun 3 10:00am
In reply to @vic83 "QUESTION? How often do you change the cannula on your stationary and portable oxygen concentrators? How..." + (show)
@vic83

QUESTION?
How often do you change the cannula on your stationary and portable oxygen concentrators?
How do you clean them?

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I never cleaned mine other than wiping it. When I had my oxygen, I had enough tubes that when it started to smell I would change it. I have very sensitive sense of smell so I could tell the difference.

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rtmjohnson1 | @rtmjohnson1 | Jun 4 4:36pm
In reply to @vic83 "My doctor revised my prescription after the overnight oximetry came in...so he is prescribing O2 at..." + (show)
@vic83

My doctor revised my prescription after the overnight oximetry came in...so he is prescribing O2 at night and for activity - not for sitting in front of TV.
Surprise, my Medicare provider brought out a nice continuous flow concentrator for night and a Inogen One G5 for portable (pulse dose), but no extra batteries. So I am trying it out now to see if it keeps my O2 at 89 and above during exercise. I was given 2L/min prescription, and I don't think the 2 setting will do it and will try at 3 on the Inogen. But 4.7 lbs is heavier than one thinks!
I have an Inogen Rov 6 arriving next week. If I want to travel I need something with extended batteries - and they cost!

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The pulse machines may or may not be pumping 2 LPM. The Inogen rep told me it’s just a calculated guess because they have no way to measure the rate you demand the pulse.
Don’t get all confused about LPMs and lose track of your goal. Mine is keeping the O2 blood level over 90%.
Buy you one of the Fingertip Pulse Oximeter Blood Oxygen Saturation Monitors that’s on Amazon. Cheapest is around $14 and most expensive is $35. U took mine to my doctor’s office and compared it to theirs and it was very accurate.

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1 reply
vic83 | @vic83 | Jun 4 5:11pm
In reply to @rtmjohnson1 "The pulse machines may or may not be pumping 2 LPM. The Inogen rep told me..." + (show)
@rtmjohnson1

The pulse machines may or may not be pumping 2 LPM. The Inogen rep told me it’s just a calculated guess because they have no way to measure the rate you demand the pulse.
Don’t get all confused about LPMs and lose track of your goal. Mine is keeping the O2 blood level over 90%.
Buy you one of the Fingertip Pulse Oximeter Blood Oxygen Saturation Monitors that’s on Amazon. Cheapest is around $14 and most expensive is $35. U took mine to my doctor’s office and compared it to theirs and it was very accurate.

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Thanks for advice. Your Inogen rep honest. Mayo rehab person said the same thing - don't let perfect get in the way of good - and Inogen pulse dose not the same as continuous flow.
I had 3 oximeters, one stopped working. just ordered another. I tried out Inogen with oximeter test on the treadmill. I have prescription for 2L/min. If I just slow walking Inogen 2 fine, but if I want to get up to 3 METS (2.8 miles/min I think) then I put it on 3L and that seems to work. Uses up more battery but who cares.
I will blue tooth my new oximeter so I have report for Doc.

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1 reply
chickytina | @chickytina | Jun 6 12:52pm
In reply to @vic83 "Thanks for advice. Your Inogen rep honest. Mayo rehab person said the same thing - don't..." + (show)
@vic83

Thanks for advice. Your Inogen rep honest. Mayo rehab person said the same thing - don't let perfect get in the way of good - and Inogen pulse dose not the same as continuous flow.
I had 3 oximeters, one stopped working. just ordered another. I tried out Inogen with oximeter test on the treadmill. I have prescription for 2L/min. If I just slow walking Inogen 2 fine, but if I want to get up to 3 METS (2.8 miles/min I think) then I put it on 3L and that seems to work. Uses up more battery but who cares.
I will blue tooth my new oximeter so I have report for Doc.

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At least for mine, you could plug in and use at the same time. So you wouldn't have to worry about using the battery up.

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vic83 | @vic83 | Jun 17 6:29pm
In reply to @rtmjohnson1 "I have the Inogen G5 and very happy with it and the company. Their representatives have..." + (show)
@rtmjohnson1

I have the Inogen G5 and very happy with it and the company. Their representatives have been helpful and knowledgeable. It stopped working once and they replaced it with overnight air. I called Inogen direct for mine and once my pulmonologist provided the prescription they received approval from Medicare and my secondary insurer so I don’t pay anything. Had it 1 and 1/2 years.
Good luck.

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I got a surprise. My stationary oxygen concentrator provider also gave me a portable Inogen G5 through Medicare at no cost to me. They said they bill the same price to Medicare whether I keep the portable or not. I have no idea why. But I am beginning to think that Inogen is giving out these discontinued models to O2 providers, because patient needs batteries (like printer ink) and Inogen charges a lot for the battery! And Inogen has stated product has 8-year life. So that 8 years of needing to purchase battery is recurring revenue for them since impossible to use any other battery.

My provider gave me carrying case and extra tubing, and one standard battery, but said I would need to buy my next battery as they do not carry Inogen products. I called Inogen and they said Medicare does not cover replacement batteries after first one dies. Is that your experience? Standard battery is $400, good for 500 charges they say. But there is an upkeep cost to these things!

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1 reply
connibar | @connibar | Jun 18 8:14am
In reply to @vic83 "I got a surprise. My stationary oxygen concentrator provider also gave me a portable Inogen G5..." + (show)
@vic83

I got a surprise. My stationary oxygen concentrator provider also gave me a portable Inogen G5 through Medicare at no cost to me. They said they bill the same price to Medicare whether I keep the portable or not. I have no idea why. But I am beginning to think that Inogen is giving out these discontinued models to O2 providers, because patient needs batteries (like printer ink) and Inogen charges a lot for the battery! And Inogen has stated product has 8-year life. So that 8 years of needing to purchase battery is recurring revenue for them since impossible to use any other battery.

My provider gave me carrying case and extra tubing, and one standard battery, but said I would need to buy my next battery as they do not carry Inogen products. I called Inogen and they said Medicare does not cover replacement batteries after first one dies. Is that your experience? Standard battery is $400, good for 500 charges they say. But there is an upkeep cost to these things!

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@vic83, I found the batteries cheapest on Amazon. I purchased an extra one just to allow me to be out for a longer period of time.

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1 reply
samiam1949 | @samiam1949 | Jun 18 9:25am
In reply to @connibar "@vic83, I found the batteries cheapest on Amazon. I purchased an extra one just to allow..." + (show)
@connibar

@vic83, I found the batteries cheapest on Amazon. I purchased an extra one just to allow me to be out for a longer period of time.

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And, 2 batteries are required if you fly per airline requirements.

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vic83 | @vic83 | Oct 1 4:59pm
In reply to @coolbeans "I started using an Inogen One G5 about 3 months ago. I purchased the unit outright..." + (show)
@coolbeans

I started using an Inogen One G5 about 3 months ago. I purchased the unit outright from Inogen as since this is a long-term need, renting equipment made no sense financially. I purchased one single and two double batteries. The single is great for lighter activities as it weighs less. I got the two doubles to meet airline requirements for longer flights. Though please note that I just got back from England and the AA gate attendants at both O'Hare and Heathrow had no interest in checking my battery reserves.

Also.. you may want to check the 1-6 settings on this unit. My understanding from someone in the industry is that these are just machine settings, not liter settings. But I have not yet explored this further myself.

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Saw your comment just now so I am a little late. However continuous flow O2 and pulse flow are two very different things (as explained by Mayo Rehab).
My prescription is for 2 Liters continuous flow (Mayo does not give out pulse flow prescription). The Inogen G5 and Rov 6 portable concentratiors have settings up to 6 "Pulse Flow".
BUT 2 liters continuous flow is NOT THE SAME as the 2 pulse flow on the Inogen Portables.
While my home stable concetrator has continuous flow and I set it at 2L, I must set my portable Inogen to at least level 4 and when exercising even 6 to maintain my O2 above 90. That means it consumes the battery quickly.

I also now have an O2 ring from Lookee Tech. It captures O2 levels even when I am walking and moving which is what I needed to see if the portable was meeting my needs. It vibrates when I go below a certain O2 level so I know right away. It is bluetoothed to my phone and produces a report. Also I downloaded the report software to my laptop. I plug the ring into to my laptop and upload the data from the ring and then I can make up a nice report for my doctor. Nice little gadget. I have other fingertip oximeters but they do not work well when walking.

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