Artificial lung joins Air Force med kits after doctor is reprimanded for use

Published on July 31st, 2006

Artificial lung technology can help all kinds of people, but I’m especially glad to see it being used to help those wounded troops. What bothers me is the action of the bureacrats. Sure, there is such a thing as due diligence, but it isn’t as if this technology was unproven or poorly implemented.

Sixteen months after Lance Cpl. Joshua Mishoe nearly drowned in his Humvee in a canal in Iraq, he’s finally starting to breathe better.

He can walk short distances around his Florida home without getting out of breath and no longer needs supplemental oxygen at night, his mother said.

To save his life, military doctors looked outside their normal arsenal of medical tools and found something that would not only keep Joshua Mishoe alive, but within two months would help revive three other servicemembers.

Called an interventional lung assist and made by a German company called Novalung, the device is now part of the inventory a special Air Force pulmonary emergency team takes to Iraq when critical lung patients need aid.

But using it also placed doctors in the cross hairs of an investigation by the Office of the Surgeon General of the Army because the Novalung machine hadn’t made its way through the lengthy American regulations process required to approve medical devices for use.

And it led to the Army medical agency reprimanding at least one of the doctors for his actions, even as the families of the injured praised the doctors for taking bold steps to save their sons.

Do you think the military was justified in its actions? Should advanced medical technology that may not be yet approved here in the USA be used to save soldiers’ lives?

Here is a link to Novalung’s English Website.

25 users responded in " Artificial lung joins Air Force med kits after doctor is reprimanded for use "

Subscribe to this post comment rss or trackback url

# 1 jason said, on July 31st, 2006 at 11:14 am

ABSOLUTELY they should have used this device!

There is NO reason – a battlefield Dr. should be limited by our bureaucratic – litigious systems here in the states.

This could lead to TREMENDOUS benefits in medicine.

I had no idea this technology existed. My daughter has Cystic Fibrosis – and I know several CF patients that have had lung transplants… who’s to say this experimental device might not lead to alternatives that help prolong the lives of needy civilians – here in the US – like my daughter.

I know if I was dying on the battlefield – I would want the medic to do everything he / she could to help get me home to my family – if it was FDA approved or not!

# 2 jason said, on July 31st, 2006 at 11:16 am

BTW – you can see our Cystic Fibrosis charity gala “An Evening of Miracles” at:

http:// http://www.eveningofmiracles.org

# 3 cheese said, on July 31st, 2006 at 11:34 am

Any chance of the FDA getting together with the EU to automatically cross-approve drugs and treatments so we don’t have to go through all this? If their standards are high, then why not?

# 4 Redattack34 said, on July 31st, 2006 at 11:36 am

I agree. There is absolutely no reason that medical personnel should be limited in any way by some testing process when there are lives to save. Are not the soldiers lives more important than the threat of litigation?

# 5 Curt Fields said, on July 31st, 2006 at 11:57 am

This is not about what’s the best thing to do. This is about who gets credit and who’s feelings are hurt because they were bypassed in the process. Those who did the repremending are the real culprits here and they should be fired. I’ve seen this all my life in all career diciplines.

# 6 Steven said, on July 31st, 2006 at 12:08 pm

Justified? That’s not what the military is all about. The military is not about doing what we consider to be compassionate or right. It’s about following orders and keeping the rules. You break the rules, you get reprimanded or worse. Frankly, does anyone expect a bureaucrat, whether civliain or military to do what’s right or do you expect them to behave as humans beings?

And yes, we are right to roll our eyes and be incredulous over the military for repremanding the doctor.

# 7 Sagrilarus said, on July 31st, 2006 at 12:15 pm

Not true — the Military is damned if they do, damned if they don’t on this kind of thing. If the device had failed or caused damage these guys would have been villified for not following the rules — potentially Court Martialed.

Granted, you want to save every life you can. But considering that more than a few drugs are being yanked off the market right now because they apparently kill people (oops), the Army like every other organization in the country needs to move with care to first ensure that they do no harm.

That said, the Army makes rules and it’s personnel bend them when appropriate. Business as usual.

# 8 Randy said, on July 31st, 2006 at 12:24 pm

I think anybody should have the option to use any medical treatment or device that they choose no matter who has approved it or not approved it. After all, if you can’t choose your own medical treatment, are you really free? Why should any government have the right to tell adults what is good or safe for them?

I think these soldiers did the right thing to find the right treatment. While I understand that medical procedures and treatments need to be tested, there should be independent, private, non-governmental agencies to handle that. Then, people should not be forced to use “approved” treatments. Nor should they be forced to not use unapproved treatments. Let the person and his doctor decide what is best for him. That is freedom. That is liberty.

# 9 Sagrilarus said, on July 31st, 2006 at 12:43 pm

“I think anybody should have the option to use any medical treatment or device that they choose no matter who has approved it or not approved it. After all, if you can’t choose your own medical treatment, are you really free? Why should any government have the right to tell adults what is good or safe for them?”

Things are a bit “less free” when you enlist in the Army.

# 10 BobH said, on July 31st, 2006 at 1:01 pm

I fail to see what everyone is so excited about… this is only a life and death matter.

# 11 lou said, on July 31st, 2006 at 2:33 pm

That’s the problem with you nanny state lovers, the line of regulation is ever changing in your minds, sometimes too much, sometimes too little. And if the outcome isn’t what you want, you should be able to sue.

I have complete empathy with a battlefield injury happening to our brave committed soldiers, I add that EVERYBODY should have the right to use any treatment without prior approval of the government. The army (and its personell) must trust its doctors to make the right decisions. Bad things can happen, but that is the world we live in.

I have no problem with the government regulating the INFORMATION about treatments to consumers, but the government should never have ANY SAY as to what I put into my mouth or veins.

# 12 Angel H. Wong said, on July 31st, 2006 at 2:52 pm

That’s because the Novalung was not made by any Multinational corporation with strong ties to Washington.

Otherwise it would have been already Approved by the FDA in it’s early patched-together-with-duct-tape version.

# 13 AB CD said, on July 31st, 2006 at 3:28 pm

How about we get rid of the FDA approval entirely?

# 14 Mr. H. Fusion said, on July 31st, 2006 at 3:44 pm

Well Sag got it right. Just check out the topic right above this one,
http://www.dvorak.org/blog/?p=6394#comments
Two people gave liposuction and the patient dies. Presumably the patient consented to the procedure and the two operators had some knowledge of what they were doing (even if they only stayed at a Holiday Inn Express).

I whole heartedly agree the procedure to approve drugs and implements already approved in comparable countries should be streamlined. Until that happens though, we will be forced to use what we already have approved. And if the law is an ass then change the law.

You want to right to use any procedure or implement you like? Try any third world country. I understand Mexico has many clinics where they will feed you bogus drugs for your cancer. But in America we insisted upon quality control of our drugs, hospitals, implements, and practitioners. Gone are the days when Snake Oil would cure hemorrhoids, arthritis, baldness, lumbago, ague, and neo-cons. We insisted the government make the peddlers prove the efficacy of their products, and for the most part they have delivered.

This isn’t some regulation designed to stop treatments. Its regulation to protect the health of the people from frauds. If you want to prove Darwin’s Theory, then go ahead and get your liposuction in some immigrants basement.

# 15 lou said, on July 31st, 2006 at 5:31 pm

#14: Sorry Mr. H. Fusion , let Darwin’s Theory live…

You, or the government, have no right to decide ANYTHING about how I live my life.

Be careful what you want/wish for. If the goverment decides that you must be born again with a particular religion, and if you don’t, your screwed, I don’t think you would be along the lines of “What the government thinks is right”.

Once again: The government should and can be able to provide information that they believe is helpful to their citizens. But the government should NEVER be able to decide what we should do as individuals. Never, Never, Never.

Mr Fusion: I will be willing to concede your point if you’ve NEVER broken the law, had sex outside of marriage, and never done an illegal drug or driven while intoxicated. Otherwise, stop being a hypocrite.

PS: There are NO EXCEPTIONS for the live and learn principal. NO EXCEPTIONS.

# 16 AB CD said, on July 31st, 2006 at 5:38 pm

Fusion, weren’t you complaining last week about Chicago’s regulations to protect the health of the people?

# 17 Smartalix said, on July 31st, 2006 at 6:45 pm

#11,

Do you support a woman’s right to purchase the morning-after pill over the counter?

# 18 Mr. H. Fusion said, on July 31st, 2006 at 7:19 pm

#15, lou, As long as you keep on your own little piece of land, what you do is your business, to a degree. But as soon as you set foot on a public road, then your actions become public concern. No, you can’t drive drunk, or drive recklessly, or drive a dangerous vehicle. If you don’t wear a seatbelt, it will be public rescuers that will free and haul your battered body to the hospital or morgue. At public expense.

If your thing is kidnapping women and killing them on your property, nope, I won’t accept you have the right to do that either. If you want to make bootleg whiskey for visitors, nope. If you want to run your coal fired generator without any pollution controls, nope again. Simply because all of these actions involve the public and not solely you.

I would be a fool to deny that I have ever broken the law. Geeze, one MPH over the set limit is illegal. But regardless, that does not give or deny me any right to speak on a subject. Breaking the law doesn’t necessarily make me a hypocrite. It would if I insisted people drive sober and ended up being caught DUI, or condemned Clinton for having an affair while I was poking my secretary or had a 21 yr old illegitimate child that grew up without a father figure.

Is sex outside of marriage illegal?

There is no excuse for the Live and Learn Principle. None. That is why parents are charged with teaching their children. That is why schools educate. That is why Government regulate activities. You must be one of the very few that would allow a child to feed a lion by hand to learn how easy it is to lose a hand.

# 19 Mr. H. Fusion said, on July 31st, 2006 at 7:29 pm

#16, AB CD, Why, did you find something?

…We want to be protected from those things that will harm us. We do not want to be intruded upon by that which would jeopardize our privacy and security. So yes I want pollution regulations, safety regulations, and zoning restrictions. We don’t need to be put on a list “just because”, stopped by the police because our skin is a little darker, or have to carry around government issued personal identity cards.
The Government is there because they are US. We elect them. If they act contrary to what you believe, then vote for someone else next time. Let the representative know how you feel. Get involved. Just quit complaining about how self serving and crooked they are when you haven’t voted in 12 years.
Comment by Mr. H. Fusion — 7/26/2006 @ 6:45 pm
http://www.dvorak.org/blog/?p=6309#comments

# 20 joshua said, on July 31st, 2006 at 8:58 pm

#3….there is so much compition between the E.U. and the U.S. I wouldn’t hold my breath if I was you waiting for an agereement such as you mentioned happening anytime soon.

I know that if I was dying and a Doctor said there was a treatment that might work but wasn’t tested yet….I would be the test case. Life is grand, I want to hold on to mine.

But anytime your dealing with the military, all the normal rules don’t apply.

# 21 ECA said, on July 31st, 2006 at 9:31 pm

Interesting to note:
that MORE medical advances happen during WAR TIME, then any other period of history.

# 22 AB CD said, on August 1st, 2006 at 6:26 am

You were complaining about laws regulating smoking and A proposal that would restrict fast-food chains from cooking with artery-clogging trans fat oils. They were restricting things in the name of individual safety.

# 23 Mr H. Fusion said, on August 1st, 2006 at 7:08 am

I know that if I was dying and a Doctor said there was a treatment that might work but wasn’t tested yet….I would be the test case. Life is grand, I want to hold on to mine.

Yes, and so would I. That is why the Government has stepped in to regulate medical practices and drugs. When we become desperate we make irrational decisions. It all becomes so easy to believe that snake oil medicine will cure us. Especially when the physician, who has spent most of his life studying, says your condition is terminal. Today there are hucksters lined up to take your money, all promising a miracle cure.

Again, having said that, if there is a medical procedure, device, or drug that was developed and accepted for use in most other countries, Germany, Britain, Canada, Australia, France, and other countries that adhere to similar quality control as here in the U.S., I would have little compunction about the procedure. Part of the high cost of drugs and medical devices is the verification for efficacy and safety. Too often these have to be repeated to be accepted in each country.

# 24 Mr H. Fusion said, on August 1st, 2006 at 7:59 am

AB CD, looks like you’re trolling again. I posted my comments from a topic last week on Chicago’s health initiatives. You may either read the comment above in #19, or try the link to go to the original. If you can’t provide anything to back up your point, then please be more careful about what you say. You are wrong way too often.

# 25 joshua said, on August 1st, 2006 at 7:31 pm

#17…Smartalix….I don’t….but thats another topic.

Leave Your Reply Below...

Comment Moderation is Active, so if your comment doesn't
show up immediately, please don't submit it again.

Special Deals 4U

25% off eHarmony subscription with code EHTECH
12-percent discount forever with code TECH
10-percent discount and free month using TECH10
10-percent or 30 dollars off weekly car rental!
Get 10-percent discount on car rental!
Get 10% off rental cars!
Get 10% off Dollar rentals!
Discounts on domain names!