All issues > Volume 46(12); 2003

Original Article

J Korean Pediatr Soc. 2003;46(12):1235-1241. Published online December 15, 2003.

Comparison of the Characteristics of 16 Commercial Nebulizer/Compressor Combinations Used in Korea

Hyun Jung HJ Kim¹, Cho Ae CA Lee¹, Eun Kyung EK Hwang¹, Man Young MY Han¹, Uk Sung US Ann², Young Min YM Cho³

¹Department of Pediatrics, Bundang CHA General Hospital, College of Medicine, Pochon CHA University, Sungnam, Korea.
²Korea Institute of Ceramic Engineering and Technology, Korea
³School of Environment and Applied Chemistry, Kyunghee University, Korea

Correspondence Man Young MY Han ,Email: drmesh@cha.ac.kr

Abstract

Purpose
: We assessed the dynamic characteristics of 16 nebulizer/compressor combinations currently available in Korea.
Methods
: The 16 nebulizer/compressor combinations(Pariboy Type 38/Long life, Pariboy Type N/ Long life, Pariboy Type N/Salter 8900, Pariboy Type N/LC, Devilbiss pulmoaid-LT/Hudson, Devilbiss pulmoaid/Hudson, Mesmed neb-300/Own, San-up 3040/Hudson, Midas(Basic)/Own, AirJolie 2/ Hudson, Thomas 1127/Salter 8900, Noel NE-2000/Salter 8900, Omron CX3/Hudson, Chang Woo CWN-100/Salter 8900, Voyage/Mefar, Chang Woo ASI-Pro/Medel jet pulse) were evaluated in terms of particle size and mass output. In addition, we determined the effects of nebulizer fill volume on mass output.
Results
: Pariboy Type N/Long life has the highest respirable mass of 0.184 mg/min and Mesmed Neb-300/Own has the lowest 0.019 mg/min. Pariboy Type N/Long life has the highest mass output of 0.68 mg/min and the shortest mass median aerodynamic diameter(MMAD) of 3.76 m. All combinations other than Pariboy Type N/Long life produced a MMAD of over 5 m. MMAD over a 5 min nebulization ranged 3.76 to 9.83 m. There were no significant effects of fill volume on mass output.
Conclusion
: We concluded that there is a wide variation in performance of nebulizer/compressor combinations. The characteristics of nebulizer/compressor combinations should be considered in selecting products.

Keywords :Particle size, Mass output, Nebulizers, Respiratory therapy