This ain’t no shaggin’ wagon, fellas. In fact, after a ride on this baby, you might not be in the mood for a light romp for a few days. The 53-foot-long Heart FXPod tractor holds five separate simulators, each using a special chair, a set of foot pedals and a pneumatic vest in order to help doctors better understand the symptoms of congestive heart failure.

As the doctors are strapped into their seats they are asked to watch an interactive video of a CHF patient taking a walk through a park. While they watch, they’re also pedaling away, simulating the walking of the patient. As the CHF patient starts becoming winded, the simulation kicks in, showing doctors just how it feels to have congestive heart failure.

To simulate the symptoms of CHF, AstraZeneca’s Heart FXPod is made for realism and interactive use. As the CHF patient in the video starts losing their breath, the pneumatic vest tightens around the doctor’s chest. The simulators are designed to induce the same chest tightness, fatigue, and shortness of breath as compared to a real CHF patient.

So what good does this provide the medical community? For one, doctors can now have a better idea of the things potential CHF patients might be feeling. This could mean an earlier diagnosis, and perhaps lives saved. The only problem is that everytime a patient comes in with a tight chest, doctors who use the simulator might be too eager to make the CHF call, when really it could just be asthma, or perhaps the patient is wearing a girdle.

Source via OhGizmo!