A pilot study of improvised CPAP (iCPAP) via face mask for the treatment of adult respiratory distress in low-resource settings

摘要

BackgroundContinuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) is a mode of non-invasive ventilation used to treat a variety of respiratory conditions in the emergency department and intensive care unit. In low-resource settings where ventilators are not available, the ability to improvise a CPAP system from locally available equipment would provide a previously unavailable means of respiratory support for patients in respiratory distress. This manuscript details the design of such a system and its performance in healthy volunteers.