Background and Identification
Respironics is a medical supply company that specializes in products that improve respiratory function such as ventilators. In December 2007, Respironics entered a merger agreement with Philips. Philips is a Dutch multinational conglomerate that was formerly one of the largest electronics companies in the world. Philips focuses in the area of health technology, along with other divisions. Within Philips’ healthcare division, the company produces a wide range of products, including ventilators, blood pressure sensors, and ultrasound machines.
A ventilator is a machine that provides mechanical ventilation by moving breathable air into and out of a person’s lungs to deliver breaths to a patient who is breathing insufficiently or physically unable to breathe. Modern ventilators are computerized microprocessor-controlled machines that are primarily used in intensive care medicine, home care, emergency medicine, and anesthesiology. Ventilators are sometimes called “respirators,” though medical terminology uses the word “respirator” to refer to a protective face-mask.
Philips produces hospital respiratory care solutions in several forms. Some Philips ventilators support both invasive and noninvasive ventilation and include portable ventilation systems, ventilation therapy, and automative-adaptive technology. Philips has developed a patient-ventilator synchrony technology called Auto-Trak designed to address the challenges of noninvasive ventilation including leak compensation, inspiratory triggering, and expiratory cycling.