"This new endeavor will help advance technology and patient-care techniques in this growing area of medicine," says Ernst, who is also an Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. The program will support both basic and clinical research in the field of Interventional Pulmonology and also calls for the creation of a course to instruct interventional pulmonologists in the use of stents for the treatment of central airway obstruction, a narrowing or collapse of the lungs' central airways that can develop as the result of cancers involving the trachea or central airway as well as any number of benign pulmonary disorders. Without immediate treatment, central airway obstruction can rapidly lead to disabling dyspnea, obstructive pneumonia, and impending suffocation.
"This is the first of what we hope will be a number of such initiatives," explains Eric Mangiardi, President of Alveolus, a Charlotte, North Carolina-based medical device company that specializes in the development of non-vascular interventional stents. "We selected BIDMC as the location of our inaugural program based on the medical center's longstanding commitment to advancing research and education in interventional pulmonology."
Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center is a major patient care, teaching and research affiliate of Harvard Medical School, ranking third in National Institutes of Health funding among independent hospitals nationwide. The medical center is clinically affiliated with the Joslin Diabetes Center and is a founding member of the Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Care Center.
Headquartered in Charlotte, NC, Alveolus is a leading developer of non- vascular interventional stent technology. The Alveolus product ideation process, guided by world leading interventionalists, allows for rapid prototyping and development of products to address the specific requirements for each area of the body. Products are created by physicians, for physicians, with an end goal of enhancing the quality of life of individuals suffering from pulmonary or gastrointestinal obstruction and reducing the long term medical costs for patients and their families. For further information visit www.alveolus.com or call (704) 998-6008.