Adherence to long-term oxygen therapy in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

Long-term oxygen therapy (LTOT) has beneficial effects on survival in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and severe hypoxemia at rest. Two landmark trials suggested that these benefits depend on the time of exposure to oxygen. Patients are usually prescribed LTOT for at least 15–18 hours/day. The primary objective of this study was to determine the average daily exposure to supplemental oxygen in patients with severely hypoxemic COPD who were newly prescribed LTOT and the proportion of patients who were adherent to their prescription. The secondary objective was to identify predictors of compliance to LTOT. We performed a retrospective observational study of patients newly registered in a regional home oxygen program in Quebec, Canada, between July 1, 2013, and December 31, 2014. Daily exposure to oxygen was objectively measured from the concentrator’s counter clock. From 196 patients registered in the program during the study period, 115 contributed to the analysis. Most patients (n = 84; 73%) were prescribed oxygen for ≥18 hours/day. Overall, the 115 patients were exposed to home oxygen for 17.8 hours/day; 60% of the patients were compliant according to our definition. Increasing age and ambulatory oxygen utilization predicted adherence to oxygen therapy. Adherence to home oxygen therapy is suboptimal. Behavioral and psychological interventions to improve compliance to LTOT should be investigated.