Improving the efficacy of pressurized metered dose inhaler spacers

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Pressurized Metered Dose Inhalers (pMDIs) are devices used to deliver a specific amount of medication to the lungs but require perfect timing of activation and inhalation for the best efficacy. A spacer is a medical device which sits between pMDI canister and the oral cavity and allows longer drug suspension and more time for patients to slowly and deeply inhale the medication. The goal of this NSERC CRD proposal is to design the next generation of inhaler spacers to improve efficacy of drug delivery (less deposition on the spacers) and patients' convenience (extended inhalation time). The project will focus on the development of two innovative actuated pMDI spacers, the Vibrochamber and Turbochamber. First, an accurate finite element model of the drug delivery process in spacers will be developed and experimentally verified. This model will then be used for numerical simulations and optimization of the actuated spacers. Finally, prototypes of the spacers will be fabricated and tested in a standard experimental setup.