In the war against COVID-19, ventilators face their toughest mission yet

If it wasn't so macabre it would be almost poetic: An illness that aggressively attacks the lungs, caused by a newly discovered coronavirus, has spread so rapidly and completely that we've barely had time to stop and catch our breath.

The coronavirus responsible -- SARS-CoV-2 -- hijacks the cells of the throat and the lungs, causing the illness now dubbed COVID-19. Some people develop a fever and dry cough, others find themselves unable to breathe. Doctors can only manage the symptoms of infection. For mild cases, that requires rest and increased fluid intake, or perhaps painkillers for those feeling worse for wear.

But in the most severe cases, one biomedical device becomes indispensable: the ventilator.

"The ventilator is the difference between life or death for people with severe COVID-19," says Brian Oliver, a respiratory disease researcher at University of Technology Sydney in Australia.

In critical COVID-19 infections, a patient's lungs become so damaged they can no longer breathe. To remedy this, doctors pass a tube down the windpipe, connecting it to an instrument that resembles a standing desk with tentacles. The machine, replete with knobs, switches, buttons and a digital screen, takes control of breathing. It mixes oxygen with air, warming the gas and pushing it into the lungs. Its static, mechanical thrums count out each breath.

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