I-Corps: A more efficient, more effective, portable oxygen concentrator

I-Corps项目更广泛的影响/商业潜力是通过改进氧气技术，改善慢性肺病患者长期吸氧治疗（LTOT）的生活质量。超过100万美国人需要LTOT来治疗由慢性肺部疾病引起的低氧血症和呼吸短促症状。尽管存在便携式供氧设备，如氧气罐或便携式氧气浓缩器（POCs），但许多患者都面临着设备的局限性（供氧时间、设备的尺寸和重量、供氧量）。超过四分之一的氧气使用者经历过这样的挑战，严重影响了行动、工作和旅行的能力，并最终影响了生活质量。改进的便携式氧气设备技术可以极大地改善患者的日常生活，有机会重新思考管理氧气输送的现行标准，改善患者的护理和生活质量。这个I-Corps项目提出了新的氧气输送和管理技术，以提高现有POC技术的效率和功效。该系统采用了一种混合高流量空气与氧气的新输送方式，以增加氧气流速的可治疗范围，同时提供额外的呼吸困难缓解。该系统还可以根据患者需求（SpO2）自动滴定氧气输送，以限制氧气浪费并提高当前POCs的效率。目前的研究正在通过多项人体研究来调查这种新型流动方式和自动滴定在患者中的安全性和有效性。初步结果表明，与标准LTOT相比，这种新型血流模式可能会增加运动能力，并减少呼吸短促。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this I-Corps project is to improve the quality of life for patients on long term oxygen therapy (LTOT) as a result of chronic lung diseases through improved oxygen technology. Over 1 million Americans require LTOT to manage symptoms of hypoxemia and shortness of breath due to chronic lung disease. Although portable oxygen equipment exists, such as oxygen tanks or portable oxygen concentrators (POCs), many patients are faced with limitations with their equipment (oxygen duration, size and weight of devices, quantity of oxygen). More than a quarter of all oxygen users experience such challenges, severely affecting mobility, the ability to work and travel, and ultimately affecting quality of life. Improved technology in portable oxygen equipment can drastically improve the everyday lives of patients with the opportunity to rethink the current standards in managing oxygen delivery and improve patient care and quality of life.This I-Corps project proposes novel oxygen delivery and management technology to improve the efficiency and efficacy of current POC technology. The proposed system incorporates a new delivery modality of mixed high-flow air with oxygen to increase the treatable range of oxygen flow rates while providing additional dyspnea relief. The proposed system also automatically titrates oxygen delivery based on patient needs (SpO2) to limit oxygen waste and increase efficiency of current POCs. Current research is investigating the safety and efficacy of the novel flow modality and automatic titration in patients through multiple in-human studies. Preliminary results suggest a potential increase in exercise capacity over standard LTOT and a decrease in shortness of breath with the novel flow modality.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.