Journal of pain and symptom management
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Dec 2006
Randomized Controlled Trial Controlled Clinical TrialA randomized, double-blind, crossover trial of the effect of oxygen on dyspnea in patients with advanced cancer.
Dyspnea is a common symptom in palliative care. Despite this, there is uncertainty regarding the role of oxygen to treat the symptom in patients with advanced illness. This randomized, double-blind, crossover trial examined the effect of oxygen versus air on the relief of dyspnea in patients with advanced cancer. ⋯ Hypoxia was corrected in 13 of 17 patients using the treatment dose of 4 L/min of oxygen. The experience of dyspnea is a complex, multifactorial phenomenon, with oxygen tension not correlating with the subjective experience. The administration of either air or oxygen via nasal prongs on average confers improvement of the symptom.