The Institute - September 2020 - TI10

tech takes on COVID-19

resuscitators are widely available, and
most hospitals have them in stock. The
bags are also compatible with a variety
of equipment such as masks, valves,

simplifying the rest of the design.
One drawback of using BVMs to meet
COVID-19 needs is the risk of aerosolizing the virus, because exhaled air is
not collected.
EVs must receive regulatory
approval from agencies such as
the U.S. Food and Drug Administration before they c an be
deployed. But once approved,
they could potentially be used
beyond just mitigating the current COVID-related supply shortage. EVs could ultimately become
household medical devices, like
pulse oximeters. With training from a medical professional,
patients with asthma could use
small, portable ventilators for
breathing treatments to open up
blockages in small air passages.
EVs also offer an attractive and
affordable alternative in many
resource-poor settings. In lowand middle-income countries
that lack costly mechanical ventilators, an EV might be a patient's
only option. Therefore, basic EVs
can make a huge difference in people's lives.

intubation equipment, filters, and
oxygen supply.
Some BVMs come with safety features, such as pop-off valves, thereby

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SEP 2020

AND ANDREW HART

Ravinder Dahiya is an IEEE Fellow

THE INSTITUTE

and a professor of electronics and
nano engineering with the Bendable
Electronics and Sensing Technologies
group at the University of Glasgow's
School of Engineering. Dahiya is also
the president-elect for the IEEE Sensors Council. Andrew Hart is a hand and
plastic surgeon at the Glasgow Royal Infirmary, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde.
19-FA-032 01/20

TI-10

-RAVINDER DAHIYA

This article originally appeared
online as "DIY Ventilators for
COVID-19 Could Be a Vital Stopgap."

https://spectrum.ieee.org/news-from-around-ieee/the-institute/ieee-member-news/takuo-aoyagi-inventor-of-the-pulse-oximeter-dies-at-age-84 http://www.ieee.org/discounts https://www.ieee-sensors.org/ https://www.ieee-sensors.org/ https://www.nhsggc.org.uk/ https://www.nhsggc.org.uk/

The Institute - September 2020

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