[VENT-L] Oxygen

Valerie Brew-Parrish (brew-parrish(AT)juno.com)
Fri, 10 Jul 1998 11:24:28 -0500

Dan & others who asked: The reason oxygen should "not" be given to polio
survivors who were in the iron-lung and thus have respiratory problems is
this: Dan, you & I and many other polio survivors use non-invasive
ventilation. Some of our residual breathing muscles are still working. My
intercostal muscles are almost all gone but they do still work somewhat.
The oxygen tells that part of our brains that control respiration to shut
off. It sort of says, "Ah, the oxygen makes it so easy why bother working
tired muscles?" Thus, we become dependent on oxygen. I traveled
extensively for my job in the late 1970's. On July 11, 1980, I was in a
small, hot plane. I nearly died. None of the doctors knew what to do for
me except give me oxygen. I called Gini. She told me I was
underventilated. She said oxygen was bad for polio's. Gini knew more than
any doctor alive. She got me in touch with Allen Goldberg who gave me my
first vent. My airplane accident was the impetus for the first GINI
Conference held in Chgo in 1981. I related my incident at the conference.
I met polio survivors who had gone into respiratory failure and were
placed on oxygen. They were hooked up to oxygen tanks and all were
trached. Their doctors just didn't know that oxygen would shut off their
remaining functioning muscles. Gini wrote an excellent book along with
some physicians called something like: Handbook for Polio Patients &
their Physicians. It's excellent. I have given away many copies to
various doctors. It talks about not giving oxygen & the need for
antibiotics. Basically, that docs should be aggressive with our
illnesses. Roberta Simon, RN & polio survivor wrote an excellent article
about oxygen in the IVUN News a few yrs. back. I am sure Joan Headley
would mail you back issues if you called and asked. Ask for the Handbook
also. Gini Laurie was a saint. The conferece on non-invasive ventilation
in March in Orlando probably will address this issue much clearer than I
am. Hope this helps.
Val

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