An assessment of the efficiency of the Glostavent ventilator

In parts of the world where supplies of oxygen and electricity are erratic, ventilating patients' lungs can be problematic. Should the electricity supply fail, gas driven ventilators have an advantage as they can continue functioning. However, many are extravagant in their requirement for the driving gas. The Glostavent ventilator was designed to minimise these requirements. We measured the duration of ventilation achieved by the Glostavent ventilator using an E-size oxygen cylinder at a range of minute volumes, and the inspired oxygen concentration achieved by recycling the driving gas. The period of mechanical ventilation from a single E-size cylinder ranged from 11 h 8 min (SD 4 min) with a minute volume of 7 l min(-1) to 18 h 15 min (SD 7 min) with a minute volume of 3 l min(-1). The mean fractional inspired oxygen concentration achieved by recycling the driving gas without further inspired oxygen supplementation was 0.33. We conclude that the Glostavent ventilator performs as efficiently and cost effectively as predicted.