Tension pneumothorax is a life-threatening condition that can develop when either the visceral pleura is disrupted, or with injury to the tracheobronchial tree. Rapid, accurate diagnosis and appropriate management are required to prevent significant atelectasis, hypoxia, circulatory arrest, and ultimate patient demise. Needle decompression is the current standard of care for the management of tension pneumothorax. Healthcare providers struggle to assess the success of decompression due to a lack of any immediate objective feedback. The gaseous composition of tension pneumothorax is similar to that of end respiratory gas. This includes an increased partial pressure of carbon dioxide in comparison to atmospheric air, which makes colorimetric capnography an ideal confirmatory test. This colorimetric capnography device may help the healthcare providers to make an objective and accurate assessment of the success of the needle decompression, in particular in prehospital environments.

张力性气胸是一种危及生命的疾病，当脏层胸膜破裂或气管支气管树受伤时可能会发生这种情况。需要快速、准确的诊断和适当的管理，以防止显着肺不张、缺氧、循环停止和最终患者死亡。针头减压是目前治疗张力性气胸的护理标准。由于缺乏任何直接的客观反馈，医疗保健提供者难以评估减压的成功与否。张力性气胸的气体成分与呼吸末气相似。这包括与大气相比增加的二氧化碳分压，这使得比色二氧化碳图成为理想的确认测试。