ABSTRACT
Thirteen commercially available ventilator monitoring alarms supplied by the distributors were evaluated. It was decided that devices with no power failure precautions or unprotected variable controls could not be recommended for general use. By these criteria only two devices could be recommended for general use as ventilator alarms and a further three as disconnect alarms; in each instance these recommendations are subject to certain reservations and suggested modifications. A ventilator alarm should be regularly serviced and checked before use and should be not used by anyone unfamiliar with the applications or limitations of that particular device.
Subject(s)
Equipment Design , Monitoring, Physiologic/instrumentation , Ventilators, Mechanical , Equipment Safety , Evaluation Studies as Topic , HumansABSTRACT
Reports of two hypoxic episodes which occurred during the use of the East Radcliffe PNA 1 ventilator in the 'complete rebreathing' mode led to the study of the efficiency of the emergency air entrainment system. The inability of this system to maintain adequate oxygen concentrations during interruption of the fresh gas supply results in the development of a hypoxic gas mixture despite patency of the entrainment valve. The reasons for this, and their clinical implications during intermittent positive pressure ventilation in the 'complete rebreathing' mode, are discussed.
