New technologies for respiratory care are centered on providing more complex and advanced technologies. The direction that new technologies are moving in are aimed to:
· Directly measure the patient’s health with the use of more complex and subtle instruments.
· Use of more user-friendly equipment designed to reduce the amount of time and effort taken and reduce the measurement errors. The ultimate aim is to allow patients and families or care givers to be able to use the instruments themselves.
· Automation of networks allowing different instruments and therapies to align and work together, thus minimizing the role of the therapist.
Some of the new technologies introduced by Vital signs Inc are described below:
Ventilation System
The Engestrom carestation from GE is a complete ventilation system that offers integrated care from integration to monitoring respiratory care.
Vaporizer
PARI Innovative Manufacturer’s capillary force vaporizer uses heat and capillary action to change the state of liquid into vapor. This device has no moving parts so the mechanism of vaporization is less complicated to manage and more efficient than the previous devices available. The size, efficiency, and time taken for this device to produce vapor far exceeds the efficiency of other vaporizers in the market.
Portable Oxygen Tank
New portable oxygen tanks are oxygen-conserving devices and a more cost-effective way of providing oxygen therapy for patients at home.
Sleep Apnea Solutions
The CPAP or continuous positive air pressure machine is one of the solutions for sleep apnea, which is caused due to drop in oxygen levels while the person is sleeping. The CPAP is a mask that attaches with the face and air is blown into your airways, preventing it from being restricted.
Bronchial Thermplasty
This technique has been developed to treated patients suffering from certain degrees of asthma. During bronchial thermoplasty, a catheter is inserted into the airways in the lungs. Thermal energy is pulsed through the tube for a few seconds that heats and reduces the smooth muscles surrounding the airways, thus decreasing the pressure on the airways. Though this procedure is associated with some side effects, such as bleeding from lungs, temporary failure in case of asthma, it has shown to decrease the frequency of asthma attacks and visits to the emergency departments.
Relief for Patients Suffering From COPD
New Acoustic therapy is designed to bring relief to patients suffering from chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPD) by using low frequency sound waves to mobilize secretion blocking the ducts in the lungs. The mobile mucous can then be dislodged by the patients by coughing. In this process, the patient blows into a 2-foot-long instrument 10-15 times to oscillate the reed inside. This then vibrates the airways and cilia at a frequency of 16-25 H to mobilize the mucus.
Acoustic Vocalization Analysis Software
This software is designed to enable physicians differentiate between different types of cough. Those with respiratory illness are required to cough into a device; the sound is then transmitted into a central location to be analyzed by the software, thus helping physicians decide the necessary level of treatment or antibiotic to be given.
Respiratory therapy is a health care specialty that focuses on prevention, diagnosis, treatment, management and rehabilitation of patients with breathing or other cardiopulmonary disorders. Respiratory therapists provide treatment that can range from giving emergency relief to patients with asthma to long-term care for chronic conditions such as emphysema.
For more information about a career in respiratory therapy visit http://www.pmi.edu.