Death by cardiac arrest is a huge problem worldwide. Every year, around 6 million sudden cardiac deaths occur. This means that death from cardiac arrest claims more lives worldwide than colorectal cancer, breast cancer, prostate cancer, influenza, pneumonia, car accidents, HIV infections, firearm incidents and house fires combined. In the US, for example, more than 500,000 people suffer a sudden cardiac arrest every year. Less than 15 % of them survive.

Manual ventilation during cardiopulmonary resuscitation is very demanding

Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is an emergency procedure that is performed when a person’s heart has stopped beating and they are no longer breathing. CPR combines chest compressions and rescue breathing to manually pump blood and oxygen through the body. It is an important life- saving intervention that provides oxygen to the brain and heart until further medical help arrives.

Manual bag ventilation is very demanding. It is difficult to perform correctly in a hectic situation, even by medical professionals. This is because, compared to medical ventilators, conventional methods such as the manual ventilation bag lack feedback on the amount of airflow entering and exiting the patient as well as the pressure applied to the airway. This, too, often leads to complications such as hyperventilation, lung damage and barotrauma, and may result in the patient’s death.

Smart resuscitation: improving patient survival through sensor-based feedback

Without the feedback on flow and barometric pressure, it is almost impossible to improve ventilation. Another important parameter is the exhaled CO2 concentration, which can provide insight into the quality of the performed ventilation, the overall CPR maneuver, the position of the endotracheal tube (if intubated) and the timely recognition of the return of spontaneous circulation. Sensirion has been working with a pioneering customer in this space for more than five years. Relying only on our flow sensing technology, they have been able to advance manual ventilation and develop the monitoring part of so-called smart resuscitation devices. The customer uses our sensor today to measure flow-based feedback and recently received FDA certification for its device. In a study, they were able to show that their ventilation feedback device with our sensor improves the performance and quality of manual ventilation during cardiopulmonary resuscitation by over 70 % and reduces the risk of hyperventilation by a factor of 10.

We are now working on integrating additional parameters such as pressure and CO2 into a combo module, in close dialogue with key players in the market. The interest in such an innovative sensor module is high, as several international guidelines for manual emergency ventilation recognize the need for ventilation feedback and the monitoring of additional parameters like CO2. The aim is to provide reliable feedback for manual ventilation, thereby improving the quality of emergency ventilation and ultimately the survival rate of CPR.

Combo module with flow, pressure and CO2 sensors

Sensirion has been a leading manufacturer of flow measurements in medical technology for many years. However, the measurement of additional parameters is now crucial for our customers’ smart resuscitation devices. Thanks to Sensirion’s expertise in a broad range of sensing technologies, we are capable of developing a combined module that can measure flow, pressure and CO2, and will become the first of its kind worldwide.

The combo module is very compact, robust and fast. It comes fully calibrated and provides drift free and fast output. The module is therefore a ready-to-use solution in emergency situations, one that can be easily integrated into smart resuscitation devices and used by healthcare professionals. It enables sensor-based feedback to assess the quality of manual ventilation and will provide insights that will improve resuscitation and save lives in the future.

Understanding customer needs and translating them into innovative high-tech solutions

To make such innovations possible, it is essential to understand the market-specific challenges and needs and then do everything we can to develop innovative solutions.

In the medical sector, we have excellent knowledge in the field of flow measurement and have established our- selves as the number 1 supplier in the market over the last years. Now it’s time to go further – beyond flow. We want to expand our established flow sensor technology, combine our broad product portfolio with other parameters and be the first manufacturer to develop valuable combo modules for our customers.

Good cooperation across all internal departments, such as Sales, Product Management and R&D, results in these innovative high-tech solutions at Sensirion. Every single team member is motivated and keen to develop applications that save lives and have a positive impact on the further development of medical technology.