# Novel Device to Optimize Aerosol Drug Delivery for Pulmonary Hypertension Treatment

> **NIH NIH R44** · BRIDGESOURCE MEDICAL CORPORATION · 2024 · $875,246

## Abstract

Abstract
Aerosol inhalation therapy is one of the cornerstones of respiratory therapy. The size of airborne
particles determines their deposition pattern within the lungs and therefore, the efficacy of
inhalation therapy. In this Phase 2 SBIR project, BridgeSource Medical (BSM) proposes to
develop a breath-adaptive nebulizer with variable aerosol droplet sizes and actuation times.
This can be used to administer precise doses of pharmaceutical drugs to the pulmonary system
with much greater efficiency than currently available aerosol delivery devices like small-volume
adaptive aerosol delivery (AAD) nebulizers that require strict patient breath timing, but do not
vary droplet size. The nebulizer would be particularly beneficial in the administration of
medications to treat elderly patients with respiratory conditions such as pulmonary hypertension,
where long treatment times and strict requirements on patient breathing lead to poor
compliance. The ultimate goal will be to develop a clinical tool that would be approved by the
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as an effective system to nebulize several drug
formulations targeted for patients who cannot easily comply with strict breathing maneuvers,
such as the those with advanced lung disease such as pulmonary hypertension.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10912642
- **Project number:** 5R44HL154960-03
- **Recipient organization:** BRIDGESOURCE MEDICAL CORPORATION
- **Principal Investigator:** John E Porterfield
- **Activity code:** R44 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $875,246
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2020-08-01 → 2026-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10912642

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10912642, Novel Device to Optimize Aerosol Drug Delivery for Pulmonary Hypertension Treatment (5R44HL154960-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-26 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10912642. Licensed CC0.

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