No appeal filed for Buet’s ‘OxyJet’ approval: DGDA

No application has been submitted to the Directorate General of Drug Administration (DGDA) seeking approval of 'OxyJet', an oxygen supply device for treating Covid-19 patients. 

In a press release on Tuesday, the DGDA said it noticed different media reports that 'OxyJet' is not getting approval from the administration while it did not get any application regarding the approval.

The DGDA informed the High Court about the media reports and the administration's position. 

DGDA provides approval for marketing and registration of any medical device after ensuring its standard and inspecting its performance study due to safety measures, it said.

The Biomedical Engineering Department of Buet has to file an application to the DGDA for ethical clearance of clinical performance trials from Bangladesh Medical Research Council (BMRC), it added.

It said that the DGDA always facilitates and inspires local inventions.

OxyJet, made by a team of engineers from Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (Buet), may be a functional alternative to the expensive high-flow nasal cannulas. Bangladesh is facing a shortage and crisis in oygen delivery tools for the rising numbers of Covid-19 patients.

The teachers and students of Buet's Department of Biomedical Engineering who made OxyJet, say this easy to use portable device can serve as an alternative to high-flow nasal cannulas by connecting it to an oxygen cylinder or hospital oxygen line. It also does not need any electricity to operate, an important feature in Bangladesh in the event of power outages.