Development of an intra blood circuit membrane oxygenator.

This paper deals with development of a prototype intra blood circuit membrane oxygenator. The shell of the oxygenator is made of a flexible polyvinyl chloride tube. The membrane surface area of the oxygenator is 0.3 m2. The total blood priming volume, including the oxygenator, was only 400-600 ml, which allows for extracorporeal circulation with no additional blood. Its potential was evaluated in in vitro experiments. The oxygen transfer rate was 140 ml/min, and the carbon dioxide transfer rate was 85 ml/min at a blood flow rate of 3 l/min. The device could make blood circuits simpler and more compact, with lower priming volumes. This indicates that it may prove useful for extracorporeal circulation.