Inhalation of low levels of nitric oxide can rapidly and safely decrease pulmonary hypertension in mammals. A nitric oxide delivery system that converts nitrogen dioxide to nitric oxide employs a surface-active material, such as silica gel, coated with an aqueous solution of antioxidant, such as ascorbic acid.

A nitric oxide administration device 14 includes a second flow path 201 including an intake port 201a and an NO supply port 201b, a discharge unit 205 which is arranged in the second flow path 201 and which generates NO from air introduced via the intake port 201a, generated NO being supplied via the NO supply port 201b, an NO.sub.2 adsorption unit 206 which is arranged downstream of the discharge unit 205 and removes NO.sub.2, a bypass flow path 217 for reflux from downstream of the NO.sub.2 adsorption unit 206 to upstream of the NO.sub.2 adsorption unit 206, and a three-way valve 216 for switching the opening and closing of a flow path from downstream of the NO.sub.2 adsorption unit 206 to the NO supply port 201b.

A relay administration device 50 for use in connection to a nitric oxide administration device 20 which supplies NO generated from air, includes an NO densitometer 506, a flowmeter 507 or pressure gauge 504, a control unit 600 which calculates a dosage of NO to be administered to a patient based on an NO concentration measured by the NO densitometer 506 and a value of the flowmeter 507 or the pressure gauge 504, and a two-way valve 505 which is configured to increase a flow rate when the calculated dosage is less than a predetermined value and to decrease the flow rate when the calculated dosage is greater than a predetermined value.

An example of a nitric oxide (NO) generating system includes an NO generating formulation, having: a stable NO donor/adduct; a hydrophilic binder; and an additive. The additive is to control a rate of release of NO from the stable NO donor/adduct after the formulation is exposed to an effective amount of water, water vapor, or blue or ultraviolet (UV) light. This example NO generating system further includes an inhalation device in operative contact with the NO generating formulation.

A sensing arrangement for a medical device includes a housing having a rigid portion and a flexible portion, a collar of the flexible portion attached to an exterior of the rigid portion such that a stem of the rigid portion extends into an interior of the flexible portion. A sensing element is positioned at least partially within a passageway of the rigid portion, with at least one wire extending from the sensing element through the passageway and into the interior of the flexible portion. Front and rear flanges protrude from the flexible portion and are adapted to allow the sensing arrangement to be attached into an aperture in a wall of the medical device. The stem of the rigid portion may be positioned between the collar and front flanges of the flexible portion, such that the stem does not extend through the aperture of the wall of the medical device. There are also provided a seal, a removable component, a medical device and a system.

A method for controlling gas composition in a surgical cavity during an endoscopic surgical procedure includes monitoring for a plurality of gas species in a gas flow from a surgical cavity of a patient. The method includes measuring the plurality of gas species in the gas flow from the surgical cavity and determining if the gas species measured in the gas flow from the surgical cavity are each present and/or within a respective desired range. The method includes adding gas into the surgical cavity if one or more gas species in the plurality of gas species is outside of the respective desired range so as to bring a composition of gas species in the surgical cavity within the respective desired range.

Therapy gas delivery systems that provide run-time-to-empty information to a user of the system and methods for administering therapeutic gas to a patient. The therapeutic gas delivery system may include a gas pressure sensor attachable to a therapeutic gas source that communicates therapeutic gas pressure data to a therapeutic gas delivery system controller, a gas temperature sensor positioned to measure gas temperature in the therapeutic gas source that communicates therapeutic gas temperature data to the therapeutic gas delivery system controller, at least one flow controller that communicates therapeutic gas flow rate data to the therapeutic gas delivery system controller, at least one flow sensor that communicates flow rate data to the therapeutic gas delivery system controller, and at least one display that communicates run-time-to-empty to a user of the therapeutic gas delivery system. The therapeutic gas delivery system controller of the system includes a processor that executes an algorithm to calculate the run-time-to-empty from the data received from the gas pressure sensor, temperature sensor, flow controller and flow sensor, and directs the result to the display.

A respiratory apparatus (100), comprising: a first gas inlet (202) for supplying a first gas to the respiratory apparatus (100); a second gas inlet (206) connectable to a pressurized gas source to supply a pressurized gas; a mixing chamber (204) for mixing the first gas and the pressurized gas; and a noise-damping member (216) disposed downstream of the mixing chamber (204).

A device, a process and a computer program influence the breathing of a person. The device (10) for influencing the inspiratory muscles of a person (20) includes a detection device (12) for detecting an electromyographic signal of the person; a breathing influencing device (14) and a control device (16) for controlling the detection device (12) and the breathing influencing device (14). The control device (16) is configured to determine information on a muscle state of an inspiratory muscle of the person (20) on the basis of the electromyographic signal. The control device (16) is further configured to operate the breathing influencing device (14) as a function of the information on the muscle state in a training mode, which is limited in time, with a training intensity.

Systems and methods for generating nitric oxide are disclosed. A nitic oxide (NO) generation system includes at least one pair of electrodes configured to generate a product gas containing NO from a flow of a reactant gas; and a controller configured to regulate the amount of nitric oxide in the product gas produced by the at least one pair of electrodes by utilizing duty cycle values of plasma pulses selected from a plurality of discrete duty cycles to produce a target rate of NO production based on an average of discrete production rates associated with each of the plurality of discrete duty cycles.