Evidence Links Prehospital Use of BVMs to Negative Patient Outcomes

“The SAVe was originally designed for the Army Special Forces, and therefore is highly portable and extremely easy to use.  The rugged, hand-sized device uses a single on/off switch to activate a rechargeable battery-driven pump that delivers air to a patient for 5+ hours on a single charge. If desired supplemental oxygen can be titrated to the patient,” said AutoMedx co-founder Dr. William Wiesmann, Col, MC (ret).

Minimally trained individuals can effectively use simplified automated ventilators.  More than 4,000 of the units have been sent to Iraq and Afghanistan where they have been credited with helping to save a number of lives. 

“Emergency Medical directors are concerned with BLS providers using emergency transport ventilators (ETV) because they do not want first responders making decisions about tidal volume or respiratory rate, yet that’s what they are doing with every squeeze of the bag.  Simplified Automated Ventilators elevate the standard of care by removing the guesswork and operator error associated with bagging.  Moreover, they improve triage capabilities by freeing up the responder to perform chest compressions, start fluids, administer drugs or treat other life threatening injuries,” stated AutoMedx President & CEO James Evans.

“Yes, BVMs have been around for a long time. Yes, they are inexpensive. But is that sufficient? Does that alone make them the right choice?  I would argue no.  A growing body of evidence has linked BVM use in the prehospital arena to hyperventilation and gastric insufflation, both which have been associated to negative patient outcomes.”

The SAVe elevates the standard of care and mitigates the potential for injury, reduces operator error, complies with guidelines, and improves the medical responder’s ability to perform other critical tasks.

For more details on the dangers of manually resuscitating patients using a BVM visit http://automedx.biz/products/dangers-of-bagging/.