Capnography Monitoring Significantly Improves Patient Safety during Procedural Sedation in the Emergency Department

Jerusalem, Israel and Needham, MA, Nov 05, 2009 (PRWeb.com via COMTEX) -- ORDNF | Quote | Chart | News | PowerRating -- Oridion Systems Ltd. (SIX Swiss Exchange: ORIDN) A recent clinical study, "Does End Tidal CO2 Monitoring during Emergency Department Procedural Sedation and Analgesia with Propofol Decrease the Incidence of Hypoxic Events? A Randomized, Controlled Trial", in the U.S. demonstrates that the use of continuous capnography monitoring improves patient safety during procedural sedation by serving as an early warning system for respiratory depression.

Conducted in the Emergency Department at Albert Einstein Medical Center in Philadelphia from November 2006 to February 2008, the study found that in 132 patients receiving propofol sedation, the addition of capnography to standard monitoring reduced hypoxia by 17%, increased interventions to improve respiratory status by 18%, and identified in advance all occurrences of hypoxia. Hypoxia is the loss of adequate oxygen supply to the body.

The study concluded that "the addition of capnography to standard monitoring reduced hypoxia and provided advance warning for all hypoxic events".

Capnography, the continuous monitoring of exhaled carbon dioxide (etCO2), can detect changes in ventilation, alerting clinicians to potential breathing problems that can lead to respiratory distress or failure. In this study, a Capnostream(TM)20 bedside monitor (Microstream(R) technology) was used to monitor capnography for the blinded group.

The study was conducted by Kenneth Deitch, DO, Jim Miner, MD, Carl R. Chudnofsky, MD, Paul Dominici, MD, and Daniel Latta, BS. It was published by the Annals of Emergency Medicine in September 2009.

According to the investigators of this research, earlier studies demonstrated that capnography identifies respiratory depression during procedural sedation before clinical examination (through measurement of respiratory rate) and before oxygen desaturation (through pulse oximetry). The intent of this study was to determine whether the early capnography detection of respiratory depression improved safety for sedated patients.

Based on the results, the authors concluded that the use of capnography improves patient safety: "Using capnography in this study, emergency physicians improved patient safety by decreasing the rate of hypoxic events associated with procedural sedation and analgesia."

Dr. David Lain, Chief Clinical Officer for Oridion Capnography comments: "The compelling results of this study put the medical community one step closer to establishing ventilation monitoring with Capnography as the standard of care in the Emergency Department during procedural sedation."

Recognition is growing that capnography is the safest, most effective method to monitor ventilation. Capnography is the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) standard of care for patients under sedation in the operating room, and the ASA's most recent guidelines recommend that all sedated patients--both in and out of the OR--be monitored for depth of respiration, not only pulse oximetry and respiratory rate.

According to the American College of Medical Toxicology, "The major danger with many drugs, including propofol, is that people vary in their response to a given dose, and this sensitivity is unpredictable. A dose that causes a "high" in one person may be the same dose that causes respiratory depression leading to death in another person. And with propofol in particular, the window between safe and potentially deadly in an unmonitored patient is very small."

Gerry Feldman, President of Oridion Capnography, commented that "The earliest possible warning of potential respiratory distress is key in sedated patients, and Microstream(R) provides the earliest indicator of ventilatory status. Clinical studies such as Dr. Deitch's have shown that Oridion Microstream(R) Capnography provides the most accurate monitoring of ventilation and improves patient safety."

For further Oridion information please contact Alan Adler, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Walter Tabachnik, Chief Financial Officer Elena Gerberg, Investor Relations

e-mail: investor (at) oridion (dot) com website: www.oridion.com phone: +972 2 589 9159 address: Oridion Systems Ltd., P.O. Box 45025, 91450 Jerusalem, Israel

About Oridion Oridion Systems Ltd. (www.oridion.com) is a global medical device company specializing in patient safety monitoring. The Company operates through wholly owned subsidiaries in the United States, Europe, and Israel.

Oridion develops proprietary medical devices and patient interfaces, based on its patented Microstream(R) technologies, for the enhancement of patient safety through the monitoring of the carbon dioxide (CO2) in a patient's breath. These products provide effective, proven airway management and are used in various clinical environments, including procedural sedation, pain management, operating rooms, critical care units, post-anesthesia care units, emergency medical services, transport, alternate care and other settings where patients' ventilation may be compromised and at risk.

Certain statements made herein that are not historical are forward-looking. The words "estimate" "project" "intend" "expect" "believe" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Many factors could cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements that may be expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, including, among others, our ability to maintain profits, the market demands for our Capnography products, our ability to focus our team on the Capnography business, changes in general economic and business conditions, inability to maintain market acceptance to the Company's products, inability to timely develop and introduce new technologies, products and applications, rapid changes in the market for the Company's products, loss of market share and pressure on prices resulting from competition, introduction of competing products by other companies, inability to manage growth and expansion, loss of key OEM partners, inability to attract and retain qualified personnel, inability to protect the Company's proprietary technology.

The Company does not assure any obligation to update the forward looking information contained in this press release.

###

Read the full story at http://www.prweb.com/releases/2009/11/prweb3153374.htm.

PRWeb.com

More News:   Market Updates | Stock Alerts | All Trading News | Stock Index