BAROguard combines Paragonix’s existing advanced hypothermic preservation technology with automated continuous and active airway pressure control. This ensures that the system maintains an optimal temperature range and a clinically recommended inflation pressure range. It maintains this for donor lungs throughout the journey from donor to recipient patient.
According to a news release, current practice sees donor lungs preserved and transported from an inflated state between donor and recipient. However, current organ recovery techniques fail to reliably maintain and control inflation pressures. Dr. Lisa Anderson, Paragonix president and CEO, said BAROguard addresses these issues with an automated, easy-to-use pressure management system.
“At Paragonix, we believe that transplant surgeons should have maximum control over the organ transplant process,” Anderson said. “BAROguard now offers automated active control over donor lung airway pressures and automated donor lung temperature control, both of which are continuously reported out in real-time to the transplant team. The FDA clearance of BAROguard is a major step in providing transplant teams with leading technology to enhance organ transplantation outcomes.”
A ‘significant advancement’ from Paragonix
Dr. Jack Haney added that maintaining a consistent donor lung airway pressure can help optimize static preservation. This especially rings true when recovering organs over extended times or distances. Haney serves as the surgical director of the Lung Transplant Program at Duke Medical Center. He also served as principal investigator for the company’s GUARDIAN registry.
“BAROguard offers the potential for significant advancement of lung preservation that we will be studying via the GUARDIAN registry,” Haney said.
The GUARDIAN registry also evaluated Paragonix’s LUNGGuard against conventional ice-cold storage. The Cambridge, Massachusetts-based company’s study used real-world, multi-center data. In April, Paragonix said it demonstrated a favorable influence from advanced lung preservation technology on post-transplant outcomes.
