Trends

The aging population and an increased evidence of COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) is boosting interest in oxygen therapy.

There has been a medical movement to push for physician awareness of COPD and for earlier diagnosis. Currently, only 50 percent of the cases are diagnosed, often at later stages of the disease. Oxygen therapy is also known to delay the onset of more severe symptoms and is being encouraged for earlier use in stage two COPD.

As awareness of this disease increases, funding and diagnoses are expected to follow. Earlier diagnosis and awareness of COPD are also expected to increase the number of patients on oxygen therapy and the demand for the devices.
— Frost & Sullivan, “U.S. Oxygen Therapy Devices Markets”

COPD is a serious lung disease that, over time, makes it hard to breathe. You may have heard COPD called other names, like emphysema or chronic bronchitis. In people who have COPD, the airways — tubes that carry air in and out of the lungs — are partly blocked, making it hard to get air in and out.

COPD is the fourth leading cause of death in the United States and causes serious, long-term disability.

The National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute has launched a public education campaign — called “Learn More, Breathe Better” — to increase awareness of the disease and its risk factors and to encourage better diagnosis and early treatment.

For information, visit www.LearnAboutCOPD.org.