Dec
24 2008 by Robin
Turner, Western Mail
A NEW revolutionary device
developed in
Expected to save thousands of
lives across the globe, the artificial lung is also on track to save the NHS
millions of pounds.
The portable respiratory aid is
the size of a glasses case. And it mimics the function of healthy lungs so it
can treat people outside expensive intensive care units, freeing space for
others.
Designed by hi-tech medical
innovations firm Haemair, it can “breathe” for people
with a range of life-threatening conditions such as infections or chronic
bronchitis and emphysema, which both come under the umbrella term chronic
obstructive pulmonary disorder (COPD).
Dr Steve Brown, senior engineer
at Haemair, said yesterday: “There is urgent need for
a device that will support life while patients recover from acute infections.
If respiration could be supported without the lungs for just a few weeks, many
infections would recover. Thus, people who currently die could go on to lead
healthy lives.”
The company, which is based at
Haemair is now working with
It will begin clinical use next
year and is eventually hoped to be a viable alternative to lung transplants.
Other applications could include treatment of soldiers exposed to chemical and
biological weapons making the military and defence
sectors potential customers.
The artificial lung works by
taking blood from the body then passing it through a mass exchange device
consisting of thousands of hollow fibre membranes.
Air is then passed through the tiny tubes and oxygen feeds into the patient’s
blood stream while carbon dioxide is taken out of the blood.
The blood and air flows are
controlled by a complex computer programme.
The 200g device has already
notched up two national awards – the 2007 MediWales
Award for Partnership with the NHS and the 2007 Technium
Award for Most Innovative Company
A&E consultant Dr Adrian
Evans heads the clinical haemorheology research
laboratory at
He said: “This expertise is
essential in developing devices that are in contact with blood without causing
blood clotting. This is because any device that returns blood clots to the body
can lead to complications and endanger the life of a patient.”
Haemair will initially develop external aids that
support breathing while patients get better. Ultimately, the firm hopes to
develop full artificial lungs capable of replacing diseased lungs altogether.
Dr Brown said: “The devices are
aimed at both acute and chronic lung conditions. This is vital because although
people can recover from acute infections, the only treatment for chronic lung
failure is a transplant.
“Our treatment is based on a
simple principle of not forcing diseased lungs to work harder. We believe this
device will not only improve the quality of life for sufferers and avoid
long-term lung damage, but will save lives.
“What’s more, this should help
primary health providers save several thousand pounds per patient by taking
patients out of intensive care or high dependency units and into general
wards.”
Haemair researchers are also developing a second
device. This will place the mass exchanger inside the human body, therefore
eliminating the need for a blood pump and pump controller. In the longer term
the device offers an alternative to complex lung transplants. Dr Brown said : “Such ‘on demand’ transplant opens up new areas of
application, such as early treatment of lung cancer.”