Approximately 2 million hospital patients placed on mechanical ventilators each year are expected to develop ventilator acquired pneumonia (VAP), which has a mortality rate of up to 13% in the US. Respiratory tubing is prone to building up condensate and creating a risk of microaspiration. Bacteria-filled microdroplets can be re-aspirated back into the lungs and increase the patient’s likelihood of developing VAP – a risk ¬that increases the longer someone needs to be intubated and undergo continuous mechanical ventilation.
Ventilators are often designed with moisture condensation traps that help prevent fluid from building up. However, in addition to creating more work for nurses and clinicians, opening a breathing circuit to drain this trap also increases the risk of bacteria-laden fluid that collects above the endotracheal tube (ET) leaking past the cuff and entering the lungs. Polyolefin materials, which are most commonly used to manufacture respiratory tubing, don’t allow condensate to escape. Ventilator tubing developers stand to gain a competitive advantage by leveraging a copolyester elastomer material capable of transporting moisture out through the tube wall to the ambient environment. This approach to mitigating rainout can significantly minimize condensation and may eliminate the need for a moisture trap altogether – lowering the risk of VAP, simplifying breathing circuit designs and driving cost savings.
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