i seen this in another forum i thought it would be of interest.====om Pyng medical [PYT VSE]
In any emergency situation the emergency caregiver may be faced with a patient who needs Intravenous fluids [iv] fast but is unable to start an IV. This can be the result of shock, where the veins collapse and you can't find them, or due to external physical factors such as a heavily bleeding car accident victim in the dark. Pyng Medical in cooperation with the U.S. army developed the fast 1 as a solution.
The marrow of a bone is actually a very large blood filled space connected like a vein to the rest of the veins of the body. The breastbone or sternum has only a very thin layer of skin over top of it and is easily found through touch alone. The fast 1 device literally pushes a needle into the marrow of the breastbone to establishes an IV line. If you think this is painful, you are correct You can freeze the area first if you have time. A second concern is penetrating too far in and puncturing the heart The fast1 has a safety stop that prevents this.
Why use this system instead of some of the other traditional methods?
IVs are not easy to start. They take practice to learn and ideal situations to work. My guess is, on average, with the best light etc most doctors or nurses would take three to four minutes to start an IV and tape it properly so it doesn't fall out when you move the patient. Even with experience you miss about one out of ten times, and that gets worse under pressure. [It is impossible in a moving ambulance. I have always had to stop the ambulance to start an iv.]The fast 1 is faster. It is almost a sure bet you can get it in the first time. The fast1 can have fluids running in 90 seconds from the time you start to insert the device. The bone marrow is much larger than a vein so you can push fluids in a lot faster by this route.
It is simple to learn and probably takes a tenth the time it takes to learn to use an iv. Iv's also need constant practice to stay proficient.
Youb must be able to see the vein to start an iv. You cannot start one in the dark or where the veins are hidden by blood or dirt. The fast 1 can be inserted by feel alone. You feel for the breast bone and push it in. It is unnecessary to see.
Cut downs and CV lines are even more technical to learn, more time consuming to use and more fraught with complications [such as puncturing the lung].
So if the fast 1 is so great when would you use it?
Consider a battlefield at night. You have wounded lying in shock with bullets flying overhead. You can't wait. The soldier needs fluids now. Start an IV? Turn on a flashlight? It increases your aim as well as theirs. Feel for the breastbone, push in the needle, connect the line. The fast 1 could have fluids running in 90 seconds. Guess why the army helped develop this device?
Remember M.A.S.H. When multiple wounded come in you need to hussle. This is ideal. It is fast, and a sure success the first attempt.
Consider a car accident. The victim is trapped inside bleeding to death, while you await the Jaws of Life to get him out. His veins are flat due to shock. There is blood and dirt covering the veins so you can't see them. It doesn't really matter anyways since you haven't put an IV in since your days as a medical student. Thank god you remember where the breastbone is. You reach inside, feel the breast bone, apologize for the pain, push the needle in, attach the fluid line, start the fluids, then wait to get him out of the car.
Consider a heart attack situation. It would be nice to get those drugs into him NOW!
I believe this will become the Standard of Care for emergency situations where an iv is not fesible. This device will save lives.
By the way, If you can find the breastbone, you too can learn to insert one of these devices and save lives. It is that simple.
So how big is the market and why do they need to buy this device?
I believe every ambulance, emergency, crash cart on every hospital floor will have to have one of these as standard equipment What would happen if one person bleeds to death because you weren't fast enough inserting an iv and getting fluids going? Canada is not litigious but the US sure is.
The US army co developed this device. Nato has gotten a stocking number. Basicly every army that cares about it's wounded surviving will need to develop their own device or buy this one. How many that would be I don't know.
I believe it costs $16 to produce and would sell for maybe $80 or more.
The Ference Weicker marketing study1996 suggested to suppy the 15,000,000 word armies with one medic per 40 troops and 6 per medic would give a market of 2.3 million units without any restocking due to conflict depletion.
There are 40,000 ambulances in the us and 3,600 in canada. At the moment most canadian amb personal are not allowed to start iv's.
There are 6,360 emergency rooms in North America and 70,000 crash carts [those red crart that sit in hospital corridors for emergencies]
I don't know about you but considering there are 8millon shares out there, the earnings on a first round stocking of hospitals [remember my comment about the litiginous situation in the states and Standard of Care. You never know when the first law suit will occur cause John might have been saved if they got fluids in fast enough] and military make a potential earnings/share pretty exciting.
good luck to all of us |
