Enteric Respiration Replacement Life Support (ERRLS)

The Department of Defense is solicitating an alternative to extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) that is minimally invasive and can be implemented in austere conditions to treat acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). Service members that are deployed and suffer from significant damage may need respiratory and circulatory supplementation until they can be transported to a facility with a higher level of care. The risk of infection from penetrating the body’s natural barriers, as well as limits to the training of medical personnel in the field setting, both provide a significant basis for a safer, less invasive, temporary, and life-saving approach. The traditional non-invasive medical treatment for insufficient blood oxygenation is mechanical ventilation. This is often combined with steroid administration to control inflammation. Unfortunately, in the case of ARDS, specifically lung damage, mechanical ventilation causes additional damage to the lungs and has a significant impact on patient recovery. The current highest level of care available for ARDS is ECMO. ECMO requires direct penetration into the circulatory system. ECMO typically uses x-ray guided insertion by a sub-specialist, neither of which will be available in the described setting. ECMO cannulation will likely compromise one of the patient’s main venous access points and a torn femoral or jugular vein can quickly lead to the patient bleeding out. Lynntech’s solution avoids all of these pitfalls and provides a lower skill level alternative to ECMO that can provide temporary supplemental gas exchange to the patient until a higher level of care can be established.