Aerosp Med Hum Perform
February 2016
Background: Patients with respiratory disease are at risk of excessive hypoxemia in the hypobaric commercial aircraft cabin environment, and the consensus is that this is easily corrected with supplementary oxygen. However, despite the risks of hypercapnia with increasing inspired oxygen in some patients being well established, this issue is not currently addressed in medical guidelines for air travel.
Case Report: A 76-yr-old woman with chronic type 2 respiratory failure underwent hypoxic challenge testing (HCT) to assess in-flight oxygen requirements.