Patients suffering from shock can experience a number of dangerous conditions, including heart attack, internal bleeding and sepsis. In these instances, patients don't get enough oxygen into their bodies, which can cause organ failure. A new device that records oxygen consumption in real time and can fit inside a standard ventilation tube could drastically improve care for intensive care patients battling shock.
"This is the culmination of many years of development and it has finally come to fruition," Peter Robbins, professor at the University of Oxford in the U.K. and lead researcher, said in a statement. "It is exciting for us to be able to offer something to doctors that has the potential to improve significantly the care of very sick patients."
Physicians don't currently have a precise way to determine how much oxygen the body is using when in a state of shock, which can make it difficult to determine the best treatment for a patient. The oxygen consumption device is currently in use in a handful of ICUs across hospitals in the U.K.