What are the Medical Side Effects of Home Oxygen?

Oxygen therapy patients use portable oxygen tanks or concentrators to provide the extra oxygen that their bodies need for proper functioning. Patients use this therapy in their homes and they may experience some related side effects.

Nasal Side Effects

• According to the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute, patients who use a face mask or cannula in their nostrils to deliver oxygen may experience irritated skin where the equipment touches the face. Oxygen therapy may also cause dryness in the inside of the nose and nosebleeds.

Tracheostomy

• Doctors may perform a tracheostomy that creates a hole in the front of the neck that is connected to the windpipe. This allows for transtracheal oxygen therapy, in which oxygen from a portable tank or concentrator is transported through a breathing tube that is inserted into the hole.

Transtracheal Side Effects

• Transtracheal oxygen therapy patients may develop balls of mucus inside the windpipe, infections from the tracheostomy or injured tissue in the lining of the windpipe.

Other Side Effects

• Oxygen therapy patients may also experience morning headaches or unusual fatigue.

Other Risks

• Oxygen therapy can increase the risk of fire in the home because oxygen can increase the intensity of a fire and compressed oxygen can explode if it is exposed to heat. Oxygen cylinders should be stored in a room with adequate ventilation.