Mitigating exhalation puffs during oxygen therapy for respiratory disease

We investigate the dispersal of exhalations corresponding to a patient experiencing shortness of breath while being treated for a respiratory disease with oxygen therapy. Respiration through a nasal cannula and a simple O2 mask is studied using a supine manikin equipped with a controllable mechanical lung by measuring aerosol density and flow with direct imaging. Exhalation puffs are observed to travel 0.35 ± 0.02 m upward while wearing a nasal...