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EpiSHOT: A Single Hand Operated Epinephrine Injector for Anaphylaxis
Team: Arjun B S and Ajay Krishnan A

Significance: Anaphylaxis is a severe, potentially fatal, systemic allergic reaction that occurs suddenly after contact with an allergy-causing substance. The complications associated with the fatal reactions lead to mortality and morbidity. Worldwide, an estimated 0.05 - 2 % of the population experience anaphylaxis at some point in life. Young people and females are the most affected. Anaphylaxis leads to as many as 500 - 1,000 deaths per year (2.7 per million) in the United States, 20 deaths per year in the United Kingdom (0.33 per million), and 15 deaths per year in Australia (0.64 per million). In India, anaphylaxis shows preponderance for the age group 20 – 40 years and females. Ignorance of previous allergic reactions is a significant cause of preventable reactions. The primary treatment of anaphylaxis is through muscular or intravenous epinephrine injection, followed by maintaining the patient in a reclining position with feet elevated to help restore normal blood flow. It is recommended that an epinephrine solution be given intramuscularly into the mid-anterolateral thigh as soon as the anaphylaxis is suspected. The injection may be repeated every 5 to 15 minutes if there is insufficient response. Carrying an epinephrine autoinjector and identifying the condition is recommended in people with a history of anaphylaxis. The projected epinephrine autoinjector market in 2024 is $ 762 Million.

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Proposed Solution: EpiSHOT is a single hand-operated injection device that can deliver epinephrine (adrenaline) by penetrating the muscles through the skin and treating anaphylaxis. The device consists of a syringe filled with epinephrine and a drug injection mechanism. The EpiSHOT is operated by opening the safety cap provided on the top of the device and injecting the drug by pressing the injection button (exposed upon opening the cap). The safety cap prevents accidental injection and can be opened by using the thumb finger of the holding hand. The button has to be pressed after resting the injection end of the device on the thigh. After the injection, the pressure applied on the thigh can be reduced, and a needle retraction mechanism pops out. The EpiSHOT can then be stored safely. A new syringe can be placed into the device for subsequent use, thus making it reusable. 

The use of EpiSHOT need not be limited to anaphylaxis but also to other allergic reactions and scenarios where the drug has to be injected subcutaneously or intramuscularly. 

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Figure: EpiSHOT

James Dyson Design Award 2022

EpiSHOT, has emerged as the National Winner of the prestigious James Dyson Award 2022 (https://lnkd.in/gu7fmaQf). EpiSHOT will also represent India in the International round, where final winners will be handpicked by Sir James Dyson (https://lnkd.in/gynsVKGA), giving a life-changing chance to talented young innovators to give life to their disruptive concepts. The James Dyson Award is an international design award that celebrates, encourages, and inspires the next generation of design engineers. It's open to current and recent design engineering students and is run by the James Dyson Foundation (www.jamesdysonfoundation.com), James Dyson's charitable trust, as part of its mission to get young people excited about design engineering. The James Dyson Award encourages students across 28 countries to design something that solves a problem using clever yet simple engineering principles. This year the James Dyson Award received a pool of over 1600 entries globally for the National Winners round. 

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Figure: Newspaper coverage for EpiSHOT on being the national winner of the James Dyson Award 2022.

Video: EpiSHOT: reusable epinephrine autoinjector demonstration

Video: EpiSHOT: National Winner the James Dyson Design Award Indian 2022

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©2023 by Arjun BS

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