Perfect Breathing

We're continually fascinated by the emergence of new devices that are related to breath and breathing. One that just crossed our path was developed in Europe by a company called Anaxsys Technolgoy, and claims to detect a heart attack up to 45 minutes before it occurs in a hospital patient. It's based on on the simple principle of measuring water in a patient's breath. What caught our eye was this quote from company founder and CEO Deryk Williams, who said: ”Respiratory rates are considered to be one of the most important ways to measure a patient’s overall condition and yet they are currently one of the least monitored – mainly due to the lack of products available in the market.”
 
The Cambridge Network offers that the new device, called respiR8™, could totally transform the way that patients are monitored after an anaesthetic by alerting healthcare professionals to respiratory depression – which can occur following surgery, and rapid breathing above 27 breaths per minute which is a sign that can occur up to 45 minutes before cardiac arrest. The new device consists of a moisture sensor that is fitted inside an oxygen mask during post operation recovery to give an accurate respiratory counter for consultants, anaesthetists and nurses. Moisture from a patient’s breath condenses on to the sensor which produces a signal that is relayed to an electronic monitor which then displays the current respiratory rate as well as a graph of its movement in the past hour."
 
The company is working on developing a more robust and portable version of the product – one that can be strapped around a patients’ wrist or ankle, and would be invaluable as one more monitoring device for ambulances and EMTs.
 
We've said it before and we'll say it again -- the breath is among the best ways to determine, monitor and improve your health. It pays to pay attention to it.