Analysis of New Cases of Home-Oxygen Therapy from July 1998 to June 1999 at Japanese National Hospitals

Reports of new cases of home-oxygen therapy from July 1998 to June 1999 were requested to the chronic respiratory failure study group of the national hospitals in Japan. Four hundred and thirty-nine cases were enrolled from 29 hospitals. The cases of sequela of pulmonary tuberculosis were 123 cases (28%) and chronic pulmonary emphysema were 122 cases (28%). There were still comparable cases of chronic respiratory failure due to sequela of pulmonary tuberculosis as chronic pulmonary emphysema among national hospitals in Japan. The ratio of sequela of pulmonary tuberculosis is decreasing compared to the previous report. The data of arterial blood gas analysis and spirometry showed less impaired compared to the report in 1994. It is suggested that home-oxygen therapy is introduced to the patients at less severe and early stage of the disease. The continued collective analysis of patients with home-oxygen therapy is requisite from socio-medical standpoint. It will give source data for evaluation of the high-priced treatment. As “HOSPnet” was installed as a wide area network among national hospitals in Japan, this study group had a web page on it. Some data collection was possible via the intranet.