‘Butt breathing’ technique may actually help people with lung problems, scientists say
Ig Nobel-winning ‘butt breathing’ treatment moves closer to reality
- A method of delivering oxygen rectally, initially a recipient of the satirical Ig Nobel prize, is progressing through human clinical trials.
- The technique, termed "enteral ventilation", involves an enema-like process to deliver super-oxygenated liquid to the large intestine for absorption into the bloodstream.
- Japanese researchers have published the first human clinical trial data in the journal Med.
- The study involved 27 healthy men who rectally held varying amounts of perfluorocarbon liquid for 60 minutes, demonstrating the procedure's safety and tolerability, though not its effectiveness.
- If proven successful in future trials, this low-tech method could potentially help doctors rescue patients with blocked airways, inflammation, or severely impaired lung function.