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Mechanical ventilators deliver gas at a
pressure and flow which results in a change in patient lung volume.
Before waveform graphics became integral components of ventilator
systems, ventilator monitoring was restricted to reading the
ventilator's controls, digital monitors and mechanical gauges as well as
physical assessments. Detailed analysis of the patient/ventilator
interface was, therefore, impossible. Technological advances now permit
continuous Respiratory Mechanics monitoring, including graphic display
of gas flow, volume, and airway pressure. Output waveforms are useful
tools to study the characteristics of ventilator operation and provide a
graphic display of the various modes of ventilation. Waveform analysis
can be used to optimize mechanical ventilatory support and analyze
ventilator incidents and alarm conditions. Using this technology, it is
now possible to shape the form of ventilatory support to improve
patient-ventilator synchrony, reduce work of breathing, and calculate a
variety of physiologic parameters related to Respiratory Mechanics.1
We have developed several products to
assist the medical device manufacturer in adding Respiratory Mechanics
monitoring to ventilators or standalone monitors.
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