Second wave of covid-19

The number of active cases of COVID-19 has been steadily reducing since late September 2020 and it was then that most public places, schools, colleges, and offices began opening their doors for regular operation.

Despite this, COVID protocols were being maintained with the utmost scrutiny in all such public places. As of February 2021, more than half of all the Indian states reported that there was not a single death due to COVID-19 and this ushered in some much-needed hope.

However, recent studies conducted by scientists at Delhi, using a mathematical model have examined that cases will be at a peak around 20th April 2021.

Reason for the Second Wave

Leading Indian scientists from the most renowned institutes and research centres have suggested that 2 distinctive factors can be used to trace this sudden and sharp rise of active cases in India.

Opening of Schools and Colleges – Although such institutions are following all the COVID protocols reiterated by the government, there has been little control over public transit and the people, many of whom have not been following the necessary COVID protocols. This has led to several asymptomatic carriers transmitting the virus.
A New Mutant Strain – The double mutant variant of the virus has caused a significant rise in the number of infected cases. Scientists believe that this strain is about 70 times more contagious than the previous one.

Which States are Likely to be Affected?

With such a sharp rise in new cases of COVID-19, the states of Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Delhi, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh have been touted to be high-risk states that are already experiencing the effects of the Second Wave.

Despite the rapid testing and the extensive vaccination drives undertaken by the government, the daily caseload of infected people is averaging at around 55,000 as opposed to the few couple thousands last year.

What is the Expected Duration of the Second Wave?

Many states like Gujarat, Maharashtra, Haryana and Punjab have been counting the number of cases peaking either equal to or more than their earlier records from the previous year. Although states like West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh are likely to be still in the infant stages of the Second Wave, state governments have ramped up their testings and inoculation drives. Scientists expect this Second Wave to last more than 2 or 3 months, given the progress of vaccinations of a population that is 1.3 billion strong.

The Silver Lining

Manindra Agarwal of IIT Kharagpur who is famous for pioneering the ‘Super Model’ initiative of the spread of the virus has stated that this Second Wave is most likely to see a sharp fall following April. Nevertheless, taking comfort in the low death rates is not the way to go and we should all follow the stipulated COVID protocols whenever venturing out.

Disclaimer: The information included at this site is for educational purposes only and is not intended to be a substitute for medical treatment by a healthcare professional. Because of unique individual needs, the reader should consult their physician to determine the appropriateness of the information for the reader’s situation.

Oxygen Concentrators – How Are They Helping The COVID-19 Patients?

As India is grappling with the Coronavirus pandemic, people are running from pillar to post to arrange hospital and ICU beds, life-saving medications, ventilators and most importantly ‘oxygen’, to save their loved ones.

Arranging these basic necessities is so tough today because the availability of all these things is way less than what the country actually requires to win this battle.

In these testing times, Oxygen Concentrators have turned out to be a “saviour” for the people who are mildly affected with COVID-19 and are trying to recover in home isolation, owing to the shortage of hospital beds.

What is an oxygen concentrator?

An oxygen concentrator is a medical device that is generally bigger in size than a computer monitor. It works by concentrating oxygen from the ambient air and aiding the patient in breathing easily.

How does it work?

In today’s polluted world, atmospheric air contains about 78 percent nitrogen and 21 percent oxygen. The last one percent consists of various other gases.

An oxygen concentrator sucks this air, filters it through a sieve/filter, and releases the nitrogen back into the atmosphere. The filtered oxygen is given to the patient through a cannula.

The studies have shown that these concentrators produce 90-95 percent pure oxygen. The World Health Organisation (WHO) in 2015 stated, “Concentrators can operate and produce oxygen 24 hours a day continuously, and may last up to five years.”

When does a patient need concentrators?

As most of the states in India are facing scarcity of oxygen right now, people should start taking the help of concentrators when their oxygen saturation level drops below 94 percent. Notably, oxygen saturation level between 94-100 percent is considered safe and healthy.

These concentrators are effective on patients whose saturation level doesn’t drop below 90 percent, but they can be of help even for those with oxygen saturation dropping as low as 85 percent. Patients, whose oxygen level drops below this point, will require a better flow of oxygen than these concentrators can offer.

How good are these concentrators?

The experts claim that oxygen concentrators are not as good as Liquid Medical Oxygen (LMO), which are 99 percent pure and are a good option for mild to moderate COVID-19 patients, whose oxygen saturation level is at 90 percent or above.

The experts say that these are not appropriate for ICU patients.

What are the types of oxygen concentrators?

Basically, there are two types of concentrators – continuous flow and pulse dose.

Continuous flow concentrators keep supplying the same flow of oxygen every minute if it is not turned off. The pulse dose concentrators are a little smarter and read the breathing pattern of the patient and release O2 on detecting inhalation. In the second type, the per-minute oxygen dispensation will vary.

How are these different from oxygen cylinders and LMO?

These are the best alternatives of the cylinders and LMO, which are very tough to be transported and stored. Moreover, cylinders require to be refilled but concentrators can keep producing oxygen for up to five years or more, using just the ambient air and a power source.

The only drawback with the concentrators is that they can only supply 5-10 litres of oxygen per minute, while the critical patients may require 40-45 litres per minute.

How much do they cost?

The cost of these concentrators varies depending upon how much oxygen they produce per minute. Their cost may vary between Rs. 40,000 and Rs. 90,000 in different markets.

What to check while renting or buying oxygen concentrators?

As per the experts, if a patient is given one-litre oxygen through a concentrator, the oxygen percentage in the lungs shoots up to 24 percent, while with two litres, it reaches 28 percent, and with 10 litres, it rises up to 60 percent. The oxygen per minute has to be regulated as per the requirement.

The patient must consult a physician to know how many litres per minute of oxygen is needed, and a pulse oximeter is also necessary to monitor the oxygen saturation.

The quality of oxygen produced depends upon the number of sieves/filters used in the concentrator, and their quality is not measured by their weight but by litre per minute output. The ideal weight of these concentrators is less than 27 kgs.

If the concentrator gets heated while working, the quality of oxygen produced may deplete. Hence, it should be used only when required.

Takeaway

The coronavirus pandemic has given a huge boost to the oxygen concentrator sales in India, as their demand has shot up shockingly. Earlier, where the demand was 40,000 concentrators annually, now it has gone up to 30,000-40,000 a month.

Well, oxygen concentrators have been an essential part of every home in China where there are people over 65 years of age. With COVID-19 infecting about 4 lakh people on a daily basis, these concentrators can really help the Indian healthcare system from collapsing.

Search This Blog

Bhumika