4 June 2020 - - US-based medical technology company Vapotherm, Inc. (NYSE: VAPO), which is focused on the development and commercialisation of its proprietary Hi-VNI Technology products that are used to treat patients suffering from respiratory distress, has launched a major expansion in its capital equipment manufacturing capabilities, the company said.

This expansion is expected to enable the company to increase production of its Precision Flow systems by up to 20X above pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels.

At maximum capacity, Vapotherm's manufacturing increase would create up to an additional 350 manufacturing jobs at its New Hampshire facility.

This scaling up is in response to a potential increase in demand for the company's Precision Flow Hi-VNI system in the event of additional waves of COVID-19.

The Precision Flow Hi-VNI system is an advanced high-flow nasal cannula system using high velocity to treat the respiratory distress experienced by COVID-19 patients.

Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, a growing number of public health authorities and medical specialty societies in the United States and around the world have expressed support for the use of HFNC as a first line therapy for treating the respiratory distress experienced by hospitalized COVID-19 patients over early intubation and mechanical ventilation.

For example, the Center for Disease Control, the National Institutes of Health, the Society of Critical Care Medicine, and the American College of Emergency Physicians recommended HFNC over early invasive mechanical ventilation when possible.

Additionally, SCCM further suggests HFNC is preferable to non-invasive positive pressure ventilation (NiPPV) in the management of COVID-19 respiratory distress.

The company is also seeing expressions of interest from domestic and foreign governments, including a USD 9.9m blanket purchase agreement from the Department of Defense that was awarded on May 22, 2020 to support the acquisition of Precision Flow units by the country's 51 DoD hospitals.

Vapotherm is the only HFNC company eligible under this BPA.

DoD hospitals have the option to seek funding, and if approved, place orders against the BPA's USD 9.9m cap to acquire Precision Flow devices for up to one year from the date of issuance.

Vapotherm invented HFNC and now sells an advanced form of HFNC that provides high flow at a high velocity, rapidly flushing the dead space in the limited time between breaths when respiratory rates are elevated.

The Precision Flow Hi-VNI system also offers a number of additional benefits relative to other conventional HFNC systems, including:

COVID-19 respiratory distress is characterized in particular by patients needing more oxygen. Vapotherm's Precision Flow Hi-VNI system provides more precise control over the amount of oxygen being delivered to patients than conventional HFNC systems, as the Vapotherm Precision Flow Hi-VNI allows flow rates and oxygen concentrations to be titrated independent of each other.

This is vital in treatment of the respiratory distress experienced by COVID-19 patients as published data on critical care patients has suggested that the delivery of either too much or too little oxygen can lead to increased mortality rates.

Vapotherm's Precision Flow Hi-VNI system, which is clinically proven to treat both Type 1 (hypoxic) and Type II (hypercapnic) respiratory distress, is the only HFNC product listed under the United States Food and Drug Administration's QAV product code, which was included by the FDA at the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic on a list of devices used to provide ventilation and ventilatory support to patients with respiratory failure or respiratory insufficiency during the COVID-19 public health emergency.

Vapotherm's proprietary Precision Flow Hi-VNI system provides optimal humidification of the delivered oxygen.

This humidification is important to maintain the integrity and mucous-clearance capacity of the patient's airways.

The Vapotherm Precision Flow Hi-VNI system allows for rapid disinfection between patients - less than five minutes, while other conventional HFNC systems may take up to an hour.

Vapotherm's Precision Flow Hi-VNI system uses a disposable patient circuit to deliver the humidified oxygen to the patient, with a new circuit being used for each patient, an important characteristic when treating respiratory distress from an infectious cause.

Vapotherm, Inc. (NYSE: VAPO) is a publicly traded developer and manufacturer of advanced respiratory technology based in Exeter, New Hampshire, USA.

The company develops innovative, comfortable, non-invasive technologies for respiratory support of patients with chronic or acute breathing disorders.

Over 2.2m patients have been treated with Vapotherm Hi-VNI Technology.

Hi-VNI Technology is mask-free noninvasive ventilation for spontaneously breathing patients and a front-line tool for relieving respiratory distress--including hypercapnia, hypoxemia, and dyspnea.

It allows for the fast, safe treatment of undifferentiated respiratory distress with one user-friendly tool.

Hi-VNI Technology's mask-free interface delivers optimally conditioned breathing gases, making it comfortable for patients and reducing the risks and care complexities associated with mask therapies. While being treated, patients can talk, eat, drink and take oral medication.