Characterization of a Novel Emergency Suction Device for Combat Medics

Abstract

Airway clearance is a foremost priority for combat medics dealing with battlefield trauma. This life saving intervention starts with inspection, clearing any obstructions from the airway, and if necessary, placement of an endotracheal tube to secure the airway. For inspecting and clearing the airway under complicated battlefield conditions, combat medics require a portable suction device that is compact, lightweight, rugged, and capable of rapidly evacuating a mix of liquid and solid particles, which may include bone fragments or broken teeth. While several portable suction devices are available on the market, none were developed specifically for the combat environment. Interviews with combat medics and other relevant personnel revealed that currently available systems are limited in utility to the point of often being intentionally omitted from their kits. In addition, these discussions identified several design specifications for a desired system, such as size (30 × 10 × 10 cm), weight (≤1 kg), fluid flowrate (1 L/min), and canister size (0.5–1 L), among others. This research focused on developing and characterizing a functional prototype within the specified design criteria. After designing and fabricating the device, evacuation of water, blood mimicking solution, and simulated vomitus solution were assessed. In addition, a comparative analysis was carried out between the five different commercially available suction catheters by assessing fluid flow rate and obstruction resistance. The results demonstrate the first proof-of-concept characterization for a novel combat-oriented suction system and provide a basis for comparing the performance of suction systems and catheters used in airway management.

Airway Clearance Using Suction Devices in Prehospital Combat Casualty Care: A Systematic Review

“…37 Based on these specifications, a group led by Akhter, et al is currently developing an improved suction device for prehospital combat casualty care situations that will be lightweight and portable, among other things. 39 Limitations Despite the criticality and importance of airway management, there is a paucity of high-quality evidence on the techniques of suction. A 2009 Cochrane (London, UK) review on suctioning of patients revealed limited scope of data that applied almost exclusively to tracheal suction of intubated patients in the intensive care unit.…”

The Use of Portable Oxygen Concentrators in Low-Resource Settings: A Systematic Review

“…Such technology, if ruggedized and miniaturized, could transform oxygen delivery in austere environments and even be incorporated into alternative technologies such as supraglottic and endotracheal devices, portable suction units, and extracorporeal tissue preservation. [60][61][62][63] The ideal POC is one that can be carried by one individual, provide moderate to high flows of oxygen, has a battery backup, is low cost, and can refill oxygen cylinders, if required.…”

Special Issue: Medical Devices for Economically Disadvantaged People and Populations: Perspective Problems and Prospective Solutions

“…Furthermore, the explosion of paper-based microfluidic platforms also holds great promise for ESDPs [49][50][51][52]. Other highly relevant advances are being made in point-of-care diagnostics, emergency trauma interventions, and personalized medicine [53][54][55][56]. Some fields that have great potential for impacting ESDP medical care in the longer term are deep learning and artificial intelligence, where groups are already developing algorithms for diagnosis and the provision of medicine at lower costs [57][58][59][60][61].…”