Register for free to
view the full innovation profile.
Unlike current techniques, such as the nasogastric tube insertion or gastric emptying drugs,the Esophocclude is easy swallowed, painless and does not cause nausea or vomiting.
About
Value Proposition: An unfortunate reality is that sudden illness or injury can occur at any time. When such realities require emergency tracheal intubation (placement of a breathing tube), the Esophocclude can be used to prevent pulmonary aspiration, protecting the lungs from harmful stomach contents. Pulmonary aspiration is a potentially fatal complication when undertaking tracheal intubation procedure. Unlike current techniques to protect against aspiration such as the nasogastric tube insertion or gastric emptying drugs,the Esophocclude device is easy swallowed, painless and does not cause nausea or vomiting. Market Opportunity: Emergency intubation is performed on 1.5 million patients annually in the US. The target patient population includes those requiring emergent intubation and are conscious enough to assist in their care. Complications of the intubation procedure are common. In a trial series of over 3400 emergent intubations, the incidence of difficult intubation was 10 percent. Over forty percent of which included aspiration complications. Additionally, initial customer discovery interviews discovered an additional potential market segment related to the percentage of patients scheduled for the11. 5 million annual US elective surgeries who fail to fast prior to surgery. Currently, this patient noncompliance causes costly Operating Room cancellations and delays to the tune of $62 per minute. Competitive Landscape: Rapid Sequence Induction is the standard procedure used in emergency rooms in the US and Europe, however it does not reduce the risk of aspiration. Other techniques include nasogastric tube insertion and the use of gastric emptying drugs. This procedure is extremely uncomfortable to the patient and can cause coughing and vomiting. Technology: The Esophocclude is an encapsulated self-expanding stent that resembles a pill attached to a nitinol guide wire intended to be swallowed by patients before intubation, at which point the stent would expand and prevent inadvertent flow of gastric acids into the lungs.