Feasibility and usability of a very low-cost bubble continuous positive airway pressure device including oxygen blenders in a Ugandan level two newborn unit.

Background: Preterm birth and resulting respiratory failure is a leading cause of newborn death- the majority of which occur in resource-constrained settings and could be prevented with bubble continuous positive airway pressure (bCPAP). Commercialized devices are expensive, however, and sites commonly use improvised devices utilizing 100% oxygen which can cause blindness. To address this, PATH and a multidisciplinary team developed a very low-cost bCPAP device including fixed-ratio oxygen blenders.

Nonclinical Bench Performance Testing of a Very Low-Cost Nonelectric Bubble Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (bCPAP) and Blenders Device Designed for Newborn Respiratory Support.

Purpose: Bubble continuous positive airway pressure (bCPAP) is often used to treat respiratory distress experienced by some 15 million preterm infants born globally every year. In low- and middle-income countries, improvised bCPAP devices are used, often without a blender that protects the infant from the sequelae of excessive oxygen exposure.

Materials And Methods: The aim of this bench testing was to assess the mechanical safety and performance of the PATH bCPAP and blenders device, which provides a stable and reliable source of pressurized blended gas without the requirement for a source of compressed medical air or electricity.

User-Centered Design: Developing the RELI Delivery System - a Low-Cost, Non-Electric, Pneumatic Infusion Pump.

Purpose: Infusion pumps are the preferred method for intravenous delivery of drugs and fluids, and an essential tool in health facilities. Their high cost, complexity and reliance on electricity pose serious challenges to wide-spread use, availability and access in low- and middle-income countries. PATH developed the RELI Delivery System (RELI), a low cost, non-electric infusion pump to address these challenges.

Darwin's "horrid" doubt, in context.

Proponents of Alvin Plantinga's evolutionary argument against Naturalism (EAAN) often quote Charles Darwin's 22 April 1881 letter to William Graham to imply Darwin worried that his theory of evolution committed its adherents to some sort of global skepticism. This niggling epistemic worry has, therefore, been dubbed 'Darwin's Doubt'. But this gets Darwin wrong.