Cricoid pressure or Sellick Maneuver is a vital skill that should be performed during resuscitation emergency tracheal intubation. Approximately 30 Newton has to be applied on the cricoid cartilage in order to successfully occlude the esophagus for intubation. Failing to do so or applying pressure incorrectly, may lead to intubation complications and side effects. Currently, there is no effective method of instructing medical trainees to apply 30 Newton. Medical instructors use ambiguous instructions such as “apply medium pressure”, and trainees are unable evaluate their performance on the spot.
This project focused on developing a Cricoid pressure simulator to provide measurable and instant feedback to enhance medical training for both trainees and instructors. To achieve this, a tangible prototype was developed using Labview, load cells and an anatomy model of the Cricoid area. The software written in LabView provide real-time feedback of the amount pressure that is applied and translates that to a visual feedback system through graphs, color and video.
ClientUniversity of PittsburghOrganizationSimulation & Medical Technology R&D CenterAssignmentInternshipSkillsPhysical ComputingYear2013