Air Heaters for Insufflation

A Reliable Heating Source for Better Patient Outcomes

With a rapidly growing global medical device market, the demand for custom heaters—often in miniaturized form—is increasing as well. Within the $495 billion medical device market[i], devices used for insufflation, primarily laparoscopic and endoscopic procedures, require a precise, reliable heating source to ensure positive outcomes and quicker recovery times for patients.

Insufflation allows gases, typically carbon dioxide (CO₂), to be flowed into a body cavity in order to inflate the cavity and create more space, so the surgeon has better visibility and access. Each year, approximately 13 million laparoscopic surgeries are performed worldwide[ii], and this figure is expected to grow. Laparoscopic surgery is used for a wide variety of procedures, including cholecystectomy, hernia repair, and splenectomy, and often times involves high-risk patients such as the elderly, people with preexisting illnesses, and those who are obese.

The advantages of laparoscopic surgery may include reduced postoperative pain, increased patient satisfaction, and shorter hospital stays. The use of insufflation devices, that warm gases flowed into the cavity during laparoscopic surgery, contributes to successful patient outcomes.

How to Determine the Best Air Heater for Your Application

The ability to precisely control air heater temperatures during insufflation ensures surgeons can maintain optimal conditions during minimally invasive procedures. Warming a gaseous substance such as CO₂ for insufflation is beneficial to surgeons; as well, research has found it can reduce pain and increase patient comfort post procedure.

Backer Hotwatt works closely with leading medical device OEMs to engineer customer air heaters for use in insufflation devices. Our air heaters are made in the USA, and designed to perform with precision, quality, and long-life dependability.

A few things to keep in mind in determining the best air heater for your application:

• Determine the volume of air or gas (SCFM) you will be heating.
• Determine temperature rise in degrees Fahrenheit (DeltaT in F).
• Consider the physical size requirements of your application.
• Determine the temperature control you will need.
• Calculate the wattage required as follows:

Our team can help you design an air heater that will precisely control temperature and ensure your insufflator systems and insufflation equipment achieve optimal results for your customers. 

A Custom Heating Solution for Your Insufflation Device

Backer Hotwatt can design and engineer a custom heating solution for your vital healthcare application. With more than 20 years of experience with leading OEMs in the medical device industry, we have created a range of compact, high-performing heaters that meet the highest purity standards and achieve varying flow and temperature requirements.

We adhere to stringent quality standards that are required for the manufacture of medical devices. Our air heaters perform at the highest levels and meet the precise measurement and temperature requirements necessary for insufflation devices to achieve optimal patient outcomes.

Our personal, one-on-one product design and engineering process enables us to quickly develop prototypes to speed development and time to market. We can help custom design and manufacture the best heater for your medical device application. We understand that lives depend on the work we do manufacturing heaters for medical device OEMs. We've created a resource, "Heaters for Medical Devices," to help OEM engineers see how we serve this industry. You can download it here or click on the image.

[i] https://www.fortunebusinessinsights.com/industry-reports/medical-devices-market-100085

[ii] https://idataresearch.com/over-13-million-laparoscopic-procedures-are-performed-globally-every-year/