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A unique way to deliver oxygen Rectly – One of the Winners of the 2024 “Ig Nobel” Satire Science Prize – Could One Day Really Help lung disease patientsAfter achieving a significant step forward in clinical trials.
This technology was first demonstrated in 2021 by Japanese researchers, who experimentally showed pig model So that oxygen can be delivered to the body in the form of gas through the rectum.
Childbirth occurs through an enema-like process super-oxygenated liquid In the large intestine where life-giving gases are absorbed into the bloodstream.
Although this method of saving people with blocked airways earned the research team a parody award, it may not be a joke after all.
A study published in the journal with The report provides encouraging data from the first human clinical trial to evaluate the potential benefits of this “enteral ventilation” technology.
“This is the first human data, and the results are limited to demonstrating only the safety of the procedure, not its effectiveness,” said study author Takanori Takebe of Osaka University. “Now that we have established tolerance, the next step will be to evaluate how effective the process is at delivering oxygen into the bloodstream.”
If the low-tech experimental technique proves successful in ongoing human trials, it could allow doctors to save people with blocked airways from injury or inflammation or severely limited lung function from infectious diseases, the researchers said.
Japanese scientists were inspired by the technology from observations of loaches, a bottom-feeding fish known for swallowing air from the surface and absorbing oxygen through its gut, supplementing intake through gills to survive in low-oxygen conditions.
They were also inspired by the invention of the chemical perfluorocarbon liquid, or oxysite, which was developed as a possible form of artificial blood.
The latest study evaluated data from 27 healthy men in Japan who were asked to keep varying amounts of perfluorocarbon liquid – Without oxygenation – up to 60 minutes.
“This study evaluated the safety of this method in humans for the first time using a special liquid called perfluorodecalin with extraordinary oxygen carrying capacity,” the study authors said.
At least 20 of them retained the liquid for an entire hour, including amounts up to 1,500 milliliters.
However, at the highest doses, participants experienced abdominal bloating and discomfort, but no serious adverse events.
“In a trial with 27 healthy male volunteers, the authors found that administering this liquid rectally was safe and well tolerated,” the authors said.
They were hoping to repeat the experiment using liquid containing oxygen to measure how much of it was needed to improve oxygen levels in the blood and for how long.
“This important safety milestone,” they concluded, “paves the way for future studies to see whether this technology can help patients with respiratory failure.”