Ohmeda TEC 6 Vaporizer

Catalog Record: Ohmeda TEC 6 Vaporizer

Access Key: akin
Accession No.: 2001-01-16-1

Title: Tec 6 / Ohmeda.

Corporate Author: Ohmeda.

Title variation: Alt Title
Title: Ohmeda Tec 6 vaporizer.

Title variation: Alt Title
Title: 6 Plus Vaporizer, Datex-Ohmeda variant.

Publisher: Steeton, West Yorkshire : Ohmeda, [1994-1998].

Physical Descript: 1 vaporizer ; metal, plastic ; 25 x 11 x 23.5 cm.

Subject: Nebulizers and Vaporizers – instrumentation.
Subject: Anesthesia, Inhalation – instrumentation.
Subject: Desflurane – administration and dosage.
Subject: Isoflurane – analogs and derivatives.

Note Type: General
Notes: Early year (1994) in the date range for the possible year of manufacture
based on the year that the late development model was released (Graham, 1994)
The later year (1998) in the range for the possible year of manufacture is
based on two stickers that are on the item. One sticker indicates that the
warranty expires in July of 1999 (but does not indicate if this is the
original warranty or an extended warranty). Generally the original basic
warranty for the Tec 6 was 12 months. A service check sticker on the
vaporizer is dated November 6, 1998.

Note Type: Citation
Notes: Andrews JJ, Johnston RV. The new Tec 6 desflurane vaporizer. Anesth Analg.
1993;76(6):1338-1341.

Note Type: Citation
Notes: Ball C, Westhorpe RN. Desflurane. Anaesth Intensive Care. 2007;35(5):657.

Note Type: Citation
Notes: Boumphrey S, Marshall N. Understanding vaporizers. Contin Educ Anaesth Crit
Care Pain. 2011;11(6):199-203.

Note Type: Citation
Notes: Burns W, Eger EI. Ross C. Terrell, PhD, an anesthetic pioneer. Anesth Analg.
2011;113(2):387-389.

Note Type: Citation
Notes: Graham SG. The desflurane Tec 6 vaporizer. Br J Anaesth. 1994;72(4):470-473.

Note Type: Citation
Notes: Tec 6 Vaporizer for North American Dräger: Operation and Maintenance Manual.
Steeton, West Yorkshire: Ohmeda; 1993.

Note Type: Citation
Notes: Weiskopf RB, Sampson D, Moore MA. The desflurane (Tec 6) vaporizer: design,
design considerations and performance evaluation. Br J Anaesth.
1994;72(4):474-479.

Note Type: Physical Description
Notes: Vaporizer of rectangular shape, deeper than it is wide; The body is mostly
light grey, with a black filling system and front panel display; A line of
blue appears under the filling assembly and under the word, “DESFLURANE” on
the display; The dial assembly on top is also black; On the front panel
display are five labeled indicator lights; The labels are “OPERATIONAL”, “NO
OUTPUT”, “LOW AGENT”, “WARM-UP”, “ALARM BATTERY LOW”; To the right of these
labels is an LCD desflurane level display with a 250 ml refill mark; Above
the front panel display is a button to mute the auditory alarm; To the left
of the display panel is the filling assembly; Marked below the filling
assembly is “Use only Desflurane”; Air vent grills are located on both sides
of the vaporizer; Two stickers are on the left side of the vaporizer; One is
a fluorescent green sticker supplied by Ohmeda and is marked with the next
recommended service date (July 2000) and the warranty expiration date (July
1999); The other sticker is from , “ATS”, “ANESTHESIA TECHNICAL SUPPORT A
FULL SERVICE BIOMEDICAL COMPANY …”; Other markings on the service sticker
indicate that the last service was completed to check the vaporizer’s output
and is dated, “11/6/98”; The connection for the power supply is located on
the lower left side and partially under the main body of the vaporizer; A
covered space for a 9 volt battery and terminal is located underneath the
vaporizer; A sticker with two warnings is located at the front of the dial
assembly; The first warning includes the text, “High vaporizer settings with
low gas flows may lead to hypoxic mixtures within the breathing circuit.
Ohmeda strongly recommends the use of oxygen monitoring.”; The second warning
includes, “Refer to the manual before use. Calibrated (Vol %) for use at
flows of 0.2 to 10 L/min. and at ambient temperatures of 18°C to 30°C at 1013
mb.”; Graduation marks on the left side of the dial include 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6,
7, 8, (9 has a mark but is not numbered), 10, 12, 14, 16, and 18; Six
warnings are printed on the top of the dial; They include, “Keep upright when
in use”, “Do not autoclave.”, “Do not use in the presence of flammable
anaesthetic agents.”, “Not for use downstream of common gas outlet.”, “Refer
to manual for: draining precautions. Operational Instructions. Factors
affecting performance. Service and maintenance recommendations.”; Located
just behind the dial is the dial release; Behind the dial release is the
equi-potential stud and the lock lever; The dial assembly overhangs the body
of the vaporizer in back for connection to a Datex-Ohmeda’s interlocking
Selectatec manifold; Markings on the back of the vaporizer include, “Volts
100+120 [new line] Type B”, “Frequency 50/60 Hz”, “Current 2.0 A”; The
vaporizer is heavy for its size, weighing no less than 9.5 kg (or 20 lbs).

Note Type: Reproduction
Notes: Photographed by Mr. Steve Donisch on January 16, 2013.

Note Type: Acquisition
Notes: Donated to the WLM by George S. Bause, MD, Wood Library Museum of
Anesthesiology Honorary Curator.

Note Type: Historical
Notes: By the time the Tec 6 Vaporizer was commercially introduced in 1993,
vaporizers made for use with only one kind of anesthetic had been around for
over three decades. The Tec 6 was designed specifically to vaporize the
anesthetic “desflurane.” Desflurane had been synthesized in the 1960s but,
because it posed challenges that other newly created compounds did not, it
was shelved. Renewed interest in desflurane began in the 1980s when
anesthesiologists were increasingly caring for patients in day-surgery or
outpatient settings. So that patients could recover and return home in a
timely manner, anesthesiologists needed an anesthetic that would ‘wear-off’
quickly.

Desflurane’s physical properties were quite different from those of other
inhalation anesthetics, such as enflurane and isoflurane”. Accordingly, the
manufacturer, Ohmeda, designed the Tec 6 to function differently than other
vaporizers. From how the carrier gas flows through the vaporizer, to the
vapor pressure sensors, and the electrically powered heating element, the Tec
6 reflects the uniqueness of the anesthetic for which it is engineered. To
facilitate its incorporation into existing anesthesia systems, the Tec 6 came
in two versions. The version described here is made to function with systems
made by Ohmeda, which later became a part of GE Medical Systems, Inc.

Note Type: Exhibition
Notes: Displayed in a vaporizer series in museum gallery in the Northwest Highway
building from 2001-2009; Chosen for the WLM website (noted August 12, 2013).