Environmental Testing of a Blood Gas/pH and Electrolyte Analyzer for Field Hospital Use

Abstract : Arterial blood gas analysis is an important tool for making diagnoses and therapeutic decisions regarding trauma patients. The U.S. Army has a requirement for an automated blood gas/pH analyzer in corps-level hospitals, area medical laboratory detachments, and communications zone hospitals, but available models are not sufficiently small, simple to use, durable, and reliable for harsh field conditions. Conventional blood gas analyzers weigh 50 to 100 pounds and have external volumes ranging from 2.3 to 6.4 cubic feet. It is not feasible to package these delicate instruments in standard medical chests such that they can withstand field transit shock and vibration. Also, despite considerable improvements in electrode design and maintenance procedures over the last several years, present analyzers are still considered impractical for combat zone laboratories.