Jorge Odon was a
fine car mechanic and a part-time inventor, with several car-related inventions
on his own, until he saw the party trick on how to pull out a cork from wine
bottle using only a plastic bag, that led to a revolutionary idea to disrupt
conventional obstetrics.
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He was intrigued by
this trick and almost immediately found its applicability to assist childbirth delivery. After consulting friends, family, and many medical professionals on
the possibility of using the helping, he invented and patented the pilot
working antetype, which later became the Odon Device.
The device uses a
plastic sleeve that inflates around the infant’s head to grasp it. It is then
used to gentle pull and ease head of the infant through the birth canal.
Compared to forceps and vacuum extractors that cause accidental scabbing and
fracture to infant’s head , the Odon Device does not incur such damage. And it helps to reduce chances of fatal complications such as hemorrhage,
infection, and birth asphyxia.
This invention has
attracted massive interests and patronage from major government and health
organizations as well as renowned foundations: the World Health Organization, USAID, the Gates
Foundations, the Clinton foundations and other research institutions.
According to USAID,
the Odon device has successfully helped deliver 30 healthy babies in clinical
trials and could benefit safer childbirth on global scale. Based on WHO’s
statistics, more than 300,000 women die from preventable causes in childbirth.
The number could be significantly reduce the current number. Plus the device
reportedly only costs $50. The inexpensiveness sheds light on mass
adoption in the impoverished regions
where poor and scarce medical resources leads to inevitably high childbirth
mortality rate.
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The Odon Device is
still being tested for safety and effectiveness and will undergo further
clinical trials. According to New York Times, 100 more trials will be conducted
on normal labor in China, India, and South Africa and 170 more on obstructed
labor by the WHO. The exact launch time is yet to be released, as FDA approval is
still up in the air.