Oxygen is vital for the sustenance of life. The normal level of oxygen in the blood is a measure of the saturation of oxygen in the blood. RBCs contain hemoglobin which binds to atmospheric oxygen, and carries it to the various tissues of your body. Variation in the oxygen levels in the blood can lead to health complications.
The normal level of oxygen in the blood tends to hover around 95 – 100 %. A reading that is below 90 % is considered a huge cause for concern, and must be evaluated by your health care provider.
Oxygen levels in the body are measured by employing several methods. The most common method of establishing whether oxygen levels are healthy is with a blood test used to examine the arterial blood gas. Another suitable method is by using a pulse oximeter. The oximeter is a tiny gadget which measures oxygen levels in the blood by means of a light sensor.
What Causes High Oxygen Levels In Blood?
High levels of oxygen in the blood occur as a result of breathing in concentrated oxygen. It is considered a grave condition and can result in cell damage and cell death, chiefly in the eyes, central nervous system, and lungs.
Those who could develop this condition are – scuba divers, given that, they are subjected to high atmospheric pressure. Scuba divers use a breathing apparatus. They breathe a mixture of gasses which includes oxygen. A mixture known as nitox decreases the risk of decompression sickness by replacing oxygen for part of the nitrogen content. Nonetheless, breathing in nitrox can trigger hyperoxia because of the high partial pressure of oxygen if used for a protracted interval of time.
The rules for the safe and sound usage of oxygen partial pressure in diving are entrenched and followed meticulously by scuba divers as well as military combat divers. People sent on space missions make use of high levels of oxygen too; and people who are going through hyperbaric oxygen therapy. A major risk of hyperoxia is in hyperbaric oxygen therapy where there is huge likelihood of it happening as a side effect of the treatment such as – chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder.
How To Maintain Oxygen Level In Blood?
Symptoms include – breathing problems, disorientation, and impaired vision. In severe cases, there could occur extensive damage to the cells, deflation of alveoli in the lungs, detachment of the retina, and convulsions.
In order to avoid the incidence of these symptoms, those who need to breathe in concentrated levels of oxygen need to endure careful training vis-à-vis the use of oxygen cylinders as well as spacesuits under different atmospheric pressures.
Oxygen saturation level is a vital factor that is used to look for the existence of a lung disorder or anomalies in the level of hemoglobin in your blood. It is crucial to make sure that the level of oxygen in the blood ought to fall within the optimal range, since any kind of deviation from the normal, even for a little time interval, can set off irreparable damage to the organs in the body.
Supplementation of oxygen is a very common modus operandi of pre-hospital treatment. Guidelines emphasize about the usage of 28 % oxygen masks and ask you to be careful about hyperoxia. Long term usage of supplemental oxygen definitely increases the survival in patients having chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder, but can cause hyperoxia.