Inflight Patient Monitoring/Blood Pressure Measurement Device.

摘要

The blood pressure measurement device was designed to meet an urgent operational requirement for a method of monitoring vital signs of acutely ill patients while in flight. The high noise and vibration levels of most aircraft make the indirect measurement of blood pressure extremely difficult using the conventional approach. The Military Airlift Command (MAC) requested development of a device which would overcome these constraints. A method using an ultrasonic monitoring device, that employs the Doppler shift principle to detect blood flow and arterial wall motion, was developed by USAFSAM. The inflight blood pressure measurement device consists of a commercial ultrasonic Doppler shift monitor and a standard sphygmomanometer which has been modified by placing a transducer mount through the cuff and bladder. The device is employed similarly to an acoustic stethoscope and sphygmomanometer.