Hydrogen-Oxygen Therapy for Acute COPD Exacerbation
Hydrogen/oxygen therapy for the treatment of an acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: results of a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, parallel-group controlled trial
Research hubs: Respiratory System
- Evidence type
- Randomized controlled trial · Human study
- Authors
- Ze-Guang Zheng, Wu-Zhuang Sun, Jie-Ying Hu, Zhi-Jun Jie, Jin-Fu Xu, Jie Cao, Yuan-Lin Song, Chang-Hui Wang, Jing Wang, Hui Zhao, Zhong-Liang Guo, Nan-Shan Zhong
- Journal
- Respiratory Research
- Year
- 2021
- PMID
- 33985501
- Study Type
- Human
- Participants
- 107
- Delivery
- Gas
- Dose
- hydrogen/oxygen mixture therapy (specific concentration not stated)
- H₂ concentration
- 2:1 hydrogen/oxygen volume ratio
- Duration
- 1 weeks
- Funding
- No external funding declared
- Outcome
- Positive
- Peer Reviewed
- Yes
- Cited by
- 64 (OpenAlex, as of November 2026)
- Country
- China
TL;DR
A study found that a mix of hydrogen and oxygen gases helped improve symptoms better than oxygen alone in patients with severe lung flare-ups due to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
Key Finding
Patients with acute COPD exacerbation who received hydrogen/oxygen mixture therapy showed significantly greater improvement in breathing symptoms, cough, and sputum production compared to those receiving oxygen alone, with fewer adverse events reported.
Summary
This study tested whether breathing a mixture of hydrogen and oxygen worked better than oxygen alone for patients experiencing a sudden worsening of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD—a lung disease that makes breathing difficult). Over 100 patients at 10 hospitals were randomly assigned to receive either the hydrogen/oxygen mixture or standard oxygen therapy. Patients who received the hydrogen/oxygen mixture showed greater improvement in their breathing symptoms, cough, and mucus production by day 7 compared to those receiving oxygen alone, and they experienced fewer side effects overall.
Practical Takeaway
This controlled trial suggests that hydrogen/oxygen gas therapy may offer benefits over standard oxygen for acute COPD flare-ups, though this is a specialized medical treatment requiring hospital administration. The results are promising, but hydrogen/oxygen therapy is not yet standard care and would need to be discussed with a physician—this is not a home remedy or over-the-counter option.
Abstract (excerpt)
Abstract Background To investigate whether the administration of hydrogen/oxygen mixture was superior to oxygen in improving symptoms in patients with acute exacerbation of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (AECOPD). Methods This prospective, randomized, double-blind, controlled clinical trial…