Saving Oxygen in Peru: Comparative Analysis and Economic Impact of Masi Ventilator Oxygen Consumption with a Commercial Ventilator

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, affordable and sustainable access to oxygen has been a growing challenge in low and middle income countries. The COVID-19 oxygen emergency affected more than half a million people in these countries on a daily basis, and despite being an essential medicine for the effective treatment of hospitalized patients, the access to this resource is limited due to cost, infrastructure or logistical barriers. Since the start of the pandemic, daily oxygen consumption in Peru has gone from approximately 200,000 m \(^3\) to 1,300,000 m \(^3\) . Consequently, the present study was carried out through the analytical comparison of oxygen consumption between the Peruvian mechanical ventilator Masi and the Phillips Trilogy Evo commercial ventilator by means of tank weighing. Finally, with the resulting data, Masi showed a significantly lower oxygen consumption, reflected in an annual reduction of 25752.61 PEN (Peruvian Nuevo Sol currency) per ventilator in continuous use. In socioeconomic terms, these values are relevant to the healthcare system of Peru.