DEAR DR. GOTT: My father, age 93, suffers from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). I have read about a device called a “lung flute.” Can this device be used to help break up mucus and clear the lungs? I’ve enclosed a Web-site link to the company that makes it.
DEAR READER: The Web-site link directed me to the Lung Flute’s manufacturer. Based on the information there, it appears the product is cleared by the Food and Drug Administration for collecting diagnostic sputum samples. This means that, after a cursory review, the device was found to do what the maker said it did without causing unnecessary harm. FDA clearance does not establish whether a product or device is effective. [Read more...]
Medical device not proven effective
February 13, 2010 By