Breath actuated nebulizer

A breath actuated nebulizer for the administration of inhaled medication to a patient only during the inhalation portion of a breathing cycle, comprising

• a. an upper body positionable in a vertical orientation, said upper body defining an output upper chamber airway, with an internal body nested within the upper body, wherein the internal body defines an input upper chamber airway, and having a one-way inhalation valve at the top of the input upper chamber airway;
• b. a lower body positionable in a vertical orientation, said lower body having a chamber therein defining a liquid reservoir in which a medicament solution may be contained, wherein said liquid reservoir defines a horizontal axis;
• c. a pressurized air inlet port in fluid communication with a gas jet at the interface of the upper body and the lower body wherein the gas jet is aimed in a center of the input upper airway;
• d. a liquid channel adjacent to the gas inlet port, wherein the bottom of the liquid channel is in fluid communication with the liquid reservoir and the top of the liquid channel is a liquid orifice adjacent to the gas jet;
• e. a baffle moveable between a first position and a second position, said baffle, when in the first position, being a predetermined distance from the gas jet such that a pressure differential is created in the liquid channel that draws the medicament solution through the liquid channel and causes nebulization of the medicament solution by the interaction of the gas jet and liquid orifice;
• f. wherein the baffle, when in the second position, being distal from the gas jet so that the pressure differential in the liquid channel is insufficient to draw the medicament solution into the liquid channel, and no nebulization of the medicament solution occurs;
• g. wherein the baffle moves in a channel between the first and second positions at a fixed distance relative to the gas jet;
• h. wherein the baffle is moved from the second position to the first position in response to the motion of a diaphragm that moves in response to the inhalation by the patient, wherein the diaphragm is in mechanical communication with the baffle and the diaphragm movement during inhalation moves the baffle to the first position, and
• i. the diaphragm defaults to the second position when the patient is not inhaling;
• j. whereby, the breath actuated nebulizer is operable to cause a medicament solution that has been dispensed into the liquid reservoir to become nebulized and delivered through the output airway of the nebulizer device in response to the application of negative pressure upon the output airway;
• and
• k. wherein the nebulizer further comprises a two-position selector mechanism that locks the diaphragm, with a first selector position in which the diaphragm moves in response to the breathing of the patient, and a second selector position in which the diaphragm is locked, and wherein in the second selector position the baffle is in the first baffle position.