Next Safety’s Pulmonary Respirator

Problem:

Global influenza pandemics normally occur 3-4 times a century. The last pandemic influenza occurred in 1968, followed by smaller epidemics in 1976 and 1977. Most experts agree that a future flu pandemic is inevitable, whether it be from the H5N1 virus, or a milder bird strain, or an entirely new virus. What is even more troublesome is that according to a leading flu vaccine expert at Stanford University, making powerful vaccines is proving more difficult than anticipated. Another concern is the globalization of the planet. With the incubation periods of H5N1 and anthrax lasting two to eight days and up to six days, respectively, and approximately 310 million air travelers worldwide each month, it is almost inevitable that once a particular geographic area is hit by a contagious epidemic, that epidemic will quickly become a worldwide pandemic.

Solution:

Next Safety’s 8500 series is able to protect the wearer from inhaling particles as small as 25 nanometers, the size of the rhinovirus that causes the common cold. The 8500 series also offers the best protection against H5N1 (100 nanometers in size), anthrax (2-6 microns in size), and other biological threats.

Competition:

The U.S. government through the CDC has stockpiled over 100 million N95 face-masks for pre-pandemic stockpiling. However, a collaborative study between NIOSH, OSHA and the CDC has determined that N95 masks are ineffective 74% of the time. In addition, N95 masks are only certified to block out 95% of contaminants; so even when used to their utmost efficiency, N95 masks still allow 5% of potentially deadly pathogens to be inhaled.