PEPaid®
PEPaid is a new aid which can be used during respiratory training.
PEP stands for Positive Expiratory Pressure.
PEP is a method used to increase pressure in the lungs which prevents the lungs collapsing. Increased pressure also helps with the transport of secretions out via the bronchi. The aim for this kind of training is to increase Functional Residual Capacity (FRC).
PEP can also can also achieve a reduced amount of air in the lungs, depending on the instructions that the patient has received and the aim of the treatment (in this case lowering the FRC).
In both cases breathing becomes calmer and more effective.
PEPaid has four different mouthpieces, each with its own level of resistance.
There are many areas in which PEPaid may be used:
- Respiration training before and after operation
- Patients with COPD or Asthma
- Patients that are inactive over a long period of time due-to illness, old age or handicap
- In the case of chronical hyperventilation syndrome
We cannot live without the ability to breathe. A decrease in this ability effects our quality of life negatively. One can achieve an improvement in the quality of breathing by using various respiratory aids and techniques. Many of the respiratory aids bought by healthcare, chemists and private individuals are hard to use and difficult to clean.
PEPaid has been created by Ingrid Loved, a registered physiotherapist working at North Älvsborgs’s regional hospital. PEPaid is both simple to use and to clean, making it easier for those dependant on respiratory aid and hopefully resulting in reduced need of hospital care.
PEPaid is a result of cooperation between Chalmers design engineers and clinical tests done by Asthma nurses and physiotherapists with positive results.
The advantages of PEPaid in comparison to other respiratory aids are that it is:
- Easy to try out
- Easy to understand how to use it
- Easy to transport (in your pocket or handbag)
- Easy to use
- Easy to clean
- Just one part
- Discreet
- easy for staff to explain how to use
