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It's not clear to me why it would be a fool's errand to make it more portable, cheaper, etc. Was the iron lung[0] only useful as a bridge? Was there no reason
by fiter 7y ago
It's not clear to me why it would be a fool's errand to make it more portable, cheaper, etc.
Was the iron lung[0] only useful as a bridge?
Was there no reason to invent implantable pacemakers?
If you can enable a person to live a normal enough life outside of a hospital, I think this is a worthwhile goal. There are disabilities that make life more difficult to live than needing to carry around your heart/lungs outside of your body.
[0] https://amhistory.si.edu/polio/howpolio/ironlung.htm https://amhistory.si.edu/polio/howpolio/ironlung.htm
- petschge 7y agoECMO is not sustainable for long. The extra mechanical stress on the platelets and all the precautions you have to take against blood clots forming on any off the artificial surfaces are rather damaging. And since it is an expensive, short-term-only intervention there is no need for it to be particularly mobile. For the few days to weeks you are on ECMO while quite seriously ill, the ICU is the best place for you. Ventilation on the other hand doesn't interact with your blood, but only has to handle air, which doesn't get damaged by the vent. So it is not impossible to be on a vent for decades. Being locked in the ICU for decades would not be good and luckily is not necessary.
- fiter 7y agoAre you saying those details cannot be resolved or are you just talking about ECMO as it exists today?
- petschge 7y agoMost of those problems have been considered unsolvable for a long time. Recent advanced in artificial hearts and heart assist devices (LVADs) have shown that at least a small fraction of the problems can be solved. For the rest? I'm not even sure if we know if they are solvable or not.