88 results about "Chronic occlusion" patented technology

Devices, systems and methods are disclosed for treating bronchial constriction related to asthma, anaphylaxis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), exercise-induced bronchospasm and post-operative bronchospasm. The treatment comprises transmitting impulses of energy non-invasively to selected nerve fibers that activate neural pathways to reduce the release of acetycholine from airway-related vagal preganglionic neurons within the brain of the patient. The transmitted energy impulses, comprising magnetic and / or electrical energy, stimulate the selected nerve fibers to produce the bronchodilation.

A long term oxygen therapy system having an oxygen supply directly linked with a patient's lung or lungs may be utilized to more efficiently treat hypoxia caused by chronic obstructive pulmonary disease such as emphysema and chronic bronchitis. The system includes an oxygen source, one or more valves and fluid carrying conduits. The fluid carrying conduits link the oxygen source to diseased sites within the patient's lungs. A collateral ventilation bypass trap system directly linked with a patient's lung or lungs may be utilized to increase the expiratory flow from the diseased lung or lungs, thereby treating another aspect of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. The system includes a trap, a filter / one-way valve and an air carrying conduit. In various embodiments, the system may be intrathoracic, extrathoracic or a combination thereof. In order for the system to be effective, an airtight seal between the parietal and visceral pleurae is required. Chemical pleurodesis is utilized for creating the seal.

Particular aspects provide a garment for simulating chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), comprising a particularly efficacious combination of a thorax-constricting garment portion, and a diaphragm-impeding garment portion, along with an optional restrictive airway mask. The thorax-constricting portion has a frontal abdominal-thoracic plate member and tensioning means extendible around a wearer's thoracic circumference to provide for constrictive thoracic-abdominal tensioning. The diaphragm-impeding portion has a projection (e.g., weighted projection or pouch) projecting away from the wearer-proximal surface of the frontal plate member, which is operative with the thorax-constricting portion to simultaneously constrict thorax expansion while impeding diaphragm contraction and downward movement. Additional aspects provide a method for simulating COPD, comprising tensioning a thoracic-abdominal constricting garment, having diaphragm-impeding means and optional restrictive airway mask, around a wearer's thoracic-abdominal area at a tension, and for a time period sufficient to simulate at least one symptom or effect of COPD.