The Department of Anesthesia is working assiduously with others throughout University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics and other institutions to find creative solutions to shortages of personal protective equipment (PPE) in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic. As we are able, we will post the results of our experiments and investigations on this site.

Adapting an “aerosol box” for use at Iowa

David Kaczka, MD, PhD, and CRNA Mark Gallion are spearheading an effort to adapt an “aerosol box” developed by Lai Hsien-Yung, an anesthesiologist in Taiwan, for use at University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics and other hospitals. The box is made of clear acrylic and aims to reduce the aerosolized particles escaping into the environment when intubating patients with COVID-19. Kaczka says he expects the boxes to be used in intensive care units, operating rooms, and the Emergency Department.  Robert Miller, Director of Engineering Services at University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics, is assisting in the prototype build.

Hsien-Yung posted the specifications, including measurements, for his aerosol box online, but those measurements have to be adapted to fit the patient population here, Kaczka says. The challenge is figuring out how to make the box fit both patients and the beds in the hospital.