There are three ways to dispense oxygen in the home. Compressed oxygen gas and liquid oxygen are two ways to have oxygen delivered to the home. Oxygen gas can be compressed and stored in tanks or cylinders of steel or aluminum. These tanks come in many sizes; larger ones are usually left in the bedroom, and smaller ones are used for leaving the house. Liquid oxygen is made by cooling the oxygen gas, which changes it to a liquid form. It is often used by people who are more active because larger amounts of oxygen can be stored in smaller, more convenient containers than compressed oxygen. The disadvantage is that it cannot be kept for a long time because it will evaporate.

In addition, oxygen concentrators are available to deliver higher concentrations in the home. An oxygen concentrator is an electric device about the size of an end table. It produces oxygen by concentrating the oxygen that is already in the air and eliminating other gases. This method is less expensive, easier to maintain, and doesn’t require refilling, but it is not portable. Some oxygen concentrators, however, give off heat and are noisy. Back-up methods are necessary in case of a power failure, and the electric bill may rise. For some patients, oxygen concentrators may not deliver adequate oxygen.

For people who do not get enough oxygen naturally, supplements of oxygen can have several benefits. Supplemental oxygen can improve their sleep and mood, increase their mental alertness and stamina, and allow their bodies to carry out normal functions. It also prevents heart failure in people with severe lung disease. Oxygen at very high levels over a long period of time can be toxic and very harmful to one’s health; therefore, a doctor’s prescription is required.

Oxygen is also being dispensed for recreational purposes at oxygen bars to patrons who believe that inhaling the pure oxygen will cause their bodies to function even better than normal. Inhaling oxygen recreationally is unlikely to have a beneficial physiological effect. Oxygen at high levels can be toxic; however, there is no evidence that oxygen at the low flow levels used in bars can be dangerous to a normal person’s health.

In the summer of 2006, Ardath and I continued our transcontinental odyssey. I bicycled from Times Square to Cape Spear, Newfoundland –– the furthest point east on the North American continent. Last summer we followed U.S. Highway 101 along the northwest coastline from San Francisco to Vancouver, British Columbia. The total distance traveled in the bicycle tour so far is approximately 6,500 miles –– more than one-quarter of the circumference of the planet.

On July 24, 2008 I am continuing my ride around the world with the Eclipse 2 with AutoSAT Technology, Personal Ambulatory Oxygen System by SeQual Technologies Inc. The ride starts in San Francisco to San Diego, CA. Thus, we will have taken the oxygen tour from coast-to-coast and border-to-border. Already the bicycle tour has made history. No one has done what my wife and I have done with the support of corporate businesses. Now we have before us a wonderful opportunity to accomplish an impressive, around-the-world, oxygen-powered, bicycle tour. We stand ready to represent SeQual Technologies in this venturesome and far-ranging opportunity. For more information on the Sequal Eclipse Concentrator

Thank you.

Mark Junge

Not long ago, saying goodnight to his mom and dad was nearly impossible for 3-year-old Rhett Lamb. In a case that baffled doctors, Rhett was awake nearly 24 hours a day.

“His body would give out but his mind wouldn’t; he’d still be awake,” said Rhett’s mom, Shannon Lamb. “He’d still be alert. It was extremely scary.”

One of the side effects of Rhett’s lack of sleep was bad behavior.

“He was in a bad mood all the time,” Lamb said. “He couldn’t play, he didn’t interact with other children. His frustration level was so high, and it just kept getting worse and worse and worse. He couldn’t communicate with anyone. It was heartbreaking.”

Rhett’s temper got so bad he would hit his mother, even giving her black eyes.

“He would hit you, he would bite you, he would head butt you and anything else around him, and you didn’t know from one minute to the next what was going to happen,” she said.

Rhett’s dad David Lamb said, “It was like he was losing his mind and there was nothing we could do to help him.”

The Lambs, who live in St. Petersburg, Fla., arranged opposite work shifts so one of them could stay home and take care of Rhett.

“You get to the point where you can’t function anymore and you can’t think straight, and you get up in the morning and you take a shower to go to work and you drive to work and you’re a robot,” Shannon Lamb said. “You are an absolute robot. And then you dread coming home ’cause you know it’s the same thing.”

Finally, a Diagnosis
After dozens of doctors’ visits and years of conflicting opinions, Rhett was finally diagnosed with a rare brain condition called chiari malformation.

Chiari malformation is a neurological disorder in which the bottom part of the brain, the cerebellum, descends out of the skull and crowds the spinal cord, putting pressure on both the brain and spine, causing a number of symptoms, including sleeplessness.
Once diagnosed, doctors were able to perform a risky surgery that offered a 50-50 chance Rhett would be able to sleep normally for the first time

Rhett Up to Speed
Dr. Gerald Tuite, a pediatric neurosurgeon at All Children’s Hospital in St. Petersberg, made an incision from the base of Rhett’s skull to the top of his neck to remove bone around the brain stem and around the spinal cord, producing more space and reducing the pressure.

The surgery was a success. Rhett was finally able to sleep through the night, and his behavior improved dramatically.