Hi, been a while since I have asked any questions but in the meantime I have been doing a lot of reading. The wife and I have been planning on an RV trip, since December, out west taking our Granddaughter who is 14.She is excited about going and I don’t want to disappoint her. But 2 weeks ago I found out I have to be on 2L continuous O2 while sleeping and a week ago, after doing a 6 min walk, they now want me on 3L when sleeping and exerting, otherwise no O2. At this point I don’t have a portable unit, but I am working with my pulmonologist in getting one. The unit I have at home is strictly 120 AC, which I will not always have in the RV. The portable unit I am looking at (Inogen) will run on AC, DC(12v Car/RV supply) or battery. I have several questions:
- My home unit is up to 5l continuous. The Inogen will go to 6l pulse. From my reading I should be okay with the pulse during the day but not sure about at night time. My understanding is with the pulse when you sleep you might not create enough volume of air flow to turn it on thus the reason to use continuous flow. Anyone have any experience with this or recommendations on another unit.
- The next question is….where I current live I am at about 1200 feet in elevation, where we will be traveling to will vary but looks like max will be 8000 feet. I know elevation has an effect on O2 intake and my liters would have to be adjusted for the altitude difference. What is the best way to determine amount of increase I need and how much so I would know if the until can supply what is required. I know probably the best way is by measuring with a pulse ox monitor. The one I have from CVS does not agree with the ones that were used doing the various tests, so I don’t want to rely on it. Again, looking for suggestions.