TY - JOUR
T1 - Design and proof of principle of a novel drip chamber
AU - De Ridder, Else F.
AU - Hoeboer, Max D.B.
AU - Van Dam, Anne F.D.M.
AU - Van Den Bosch, Job
PY - 2020
Y1 - 2020
N2 - More than a million times every year, an ambulance is deployed in the Netherlands. Of these instances, 87% of the patients will be administered intravenous (IV) fluids. In the current situation, the IV bag always needs to be held above the patient to function properly. This action requires an extra pair of hands, which is very inefficient and can result in the loss of precious time that could otherwise be directed at the patient. Besides needing an extra pair of hands, there is also a chance of air bubbles entering the patient through the drip feed. The novel drip chamber design proposed in this paper aims to solve these problems, as it enables the IV bag to be placed in any orientation and in any manner relative to the patient with a negligible number of air bubbles entering the drip feed. This novel drip chamber was tested in an experimental setting in different orientations and at different flowrates. From the test results, it can be concluded that at a clinical relevant flowrate, a negligible number of air bubbles were present within the IV system. Because of the ease of use of the novel drip chamber and the fact that it is fool-proof, cost-efficient, and shows promising test results, future research on several aspects could make this product a promising addition to health care.
AB - More than a million times every year, an ambulance is deployed in the Netherlands. Of these instances, 87% of the patients will be administered intravenous (IV) fluids. In the current situation, the IV bag always needs to be held above the patient to function properly. This action requires an extra pair of hands, which is very inefficient and can result in the loss of precious time that could otherwise be directed at the patient. Besides needing an extra pair of hands, there is also a chance of air bubbles entering the patient through the drip feed. The novel drip chamber design proposed in this paper aims to solve these problems, as it enables the IV bag to be placed in any orientation and in any manner relative to the patient with a negligible number of air bubbles entering the drip feed. This novel drip chamber was tested in an experimental setting in different orientations and at different flowrates. From the test results, it can be concluded that at a clinical relevant flowrate, a negligible number of air bubbles were present within the IV system. Because of the ease of use of the novel drip chamber and the fact that it is fool-proof, cost-efficient, and shows promising test results, future research on several aspects could make this product a promising addition to health care.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85088229962&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1115/1.4045690
DO - 10.1115/1.4045690
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85088229962
SN - 1932-6181
VL - 14
JO - Journal of Medical Devices, Transactions of the ASME
JF - Journal of Medical Devices, Transactions of the ASME
IS - 2
M1 - 025004
ER -