U.S. patent number 3,731,684 [Application Number 05/132,421] was granted by the patent office on 1973-05-08 for closed irrigation and urinary drainage system apparatus.
This patent grant is currently assigned to Cenco Medical Health Supply Corporation. Invention is credited to Ronald E. Spiegel.
United States Patent |
3,731,684 |
Spiegel |
May 8, 1973 |
CLOSED IRRIGATION AND URINARY DRAINAGE SYSTEM APPARATUS
Abstract
A closed irrigation and urinary drainage system apparatus having
a catheter means for removing fluids from a patient and a drainage
inlet tube which may be connected or disconnected from the catheter
means by a hinged connector means for transferring such fluids into
a distensible collection bag having an outlet tube for emptying it.
The hinged connector means includes an upstream hollow socket
portion insertable into the catheter means and a downstream adapter
portion insertable into the drainage inlet tube and attached by a
hinge means to the upstream portion. The system may be closed for
drainage or opened to permit access for irrigation by swingably
joining or separating the two portions of the connector means
which, when joined, are held in fixed and sealed relationship by
interior interlocking ring and groove means.
Inventors: |
Spiegel; Ronald E. (Chicago,
IL) |
Assignee: |
Cenco Medical Health Supply
Corporation (Chicago, IL)
|
Family
ID: |
22453979 |
Appl.
No.: |
05/132,421 |
Filed: |
April 8, 1971 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
604/326; 285/319;
285/921 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A61M
39/10 (20130101); A61M 2039/1077 (20130101); Y10S
285/921 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
A61M
39/10 (20060101); A61M 39/00 (20060101); A61f
005/44 () |
Field of
Search: |
;128/275-278,295,247,DIG.24 ;285/23,260,283,319,423,DIG.22 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Rosenbaum; Charles F.
Claims
I claim:
1. In a drainage system of the type used for removing fluids from a
patient, the combination comprising:
a conventional flexible tube catheter means having a distal end
which is insertable into the body of the patient and a proximal
end;
a connector means joining said catheter means at its proximal end
to a drainage inlet tube means with an upstream end and a
downstream discharge end, said connector means having an upstream
hollow socket portion insertable into said proximal end of said
catheter means, and a downstream hollow adapter portion insertable
into the upstream end of said drainage inlet tube means, said
socket portion and said adapter portion being attached in swingable
relationship to each other by hinge means, said hinge means
allowing said adapter portion and said socket portion to be joined
in sealed relationship so that fluids may be conducted from said
catheter means through said connector means to said drainage inlet
tube means, and said hinge means alternatively allowing said
adapter portion and said socket portion to be separated, thereby
permitting access to said system for irrigation and aspiration
purposes;
a distensible collection bag for receiving and storing fluids
removed from the patient connectable to said downstream discharge
end of said drainage inlet tube means; and
an outlet tube means for emptying fluid stored in said collection
bag.
2. The combination of claim 1 wherein said upstream hollow socket
portion of said connector means is frustoconical in exterior
configuration having a series of circumferential ribs disposed on
its surface, said ribs being effective to hold said portion of said
connector means in fixed, sealable relationship within said
proximal end of said flexible tube catheter means.
3. The combination of claim 1 wherein said downstream hollow
adapter portion of said connector means comprises a
cylindrically-shaped end insertable into and fixed to said upstream
end of said drainage inlet tube means, and an opposite plug end
having an exterior configuration similar to the interior
configuration of said upstream socket portion of said connector
means, though of slightly smaller dimension, said plug end being
swung into said upstream hollow socket portion on said hinge means
and joined to said upstream hollow socket portion of said connector
means by locking means, said locking means being effective to hold
said adapter portion and said socket portion in fixed, sealed
relationship.
4. The combination of claim 3 wherein said locking means comprises
raised annular means disposed about the circumference of said plug
end of said adapter portion, said annular means being fittable into
depressed groove means similarly disposed in corresponding position
about the interior circumference of said upstream hollow socket
portion of said connector means.
5. In a drainage system of the type used for removing fluids from a
patient and including a conventional flexible tube catheter means
having a distal end and a proximal end and in communication through
a drainage inlet tube means having an upstream end and a downstream
end with a distensible collection bag means for holding and
containing the fluids removed from the patient and having an outlet
tube means for emptying said bag means, the improvement comprising,
connector means joining said catheter means to said tube means in
hinged relationship, thereby permitting temporary disengagement of
said catheter means from said inlet tube means, said connector
means including an upstream hollow socket portion insertable into
the proximal end of said catheter means, and a downstream hollow
adapter portion having a cylindrical end insertable into the
upstream opening of said drainage inlet tube means and a plug end
insertable into said upstream hollow socket portion of said
connector means, said hollow adapter portion and said hollow socket
portion being swingably attached to one another by hinge means and
having corresponding locking means disposed in each portion to
prevent relative movement and leakage when joined together to form
a closed drainage system.
6. The connector means of claim 5 wherein the hollow upstream
socket portion of said connector means includes an exterior shell
of frusto-conical configuration having a series of raised ribs
disposed circumferentially about its surface, said ribs being
effective to fixedly and sealably maintain said socket portion
within the proximal end of said catheter means.
7. The connector means of claim 5 wherein said locking means
includes raised annular means circumferentially disposed about said
plug end of said hollow adapter portion, said raised annular means
corresponding to depressed annular means disposed about the
interior circumference of said hollow socket portion, said raised
annular means fitting into said depressed annular means to join
said adapter portion and said socket portion in fixed, sealed
relationship when said plug end is swingably inserted into said
hollow socket portion.
Description
This invention relates to an irrigation and urinary drainage system
apparatus having a hinged connector means interposed between the
catheter and drainage inlet tube which permits the system to be
closed or opened without disconnecting any of its elements.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Typical elements for closed irrigation and urinary drainage system
apparatus in use today include various commercial types of flexible
tube catheters for insertion into the patient and removal of fluids
from the patient, and a drainage inlet tube connected to such a
catheter, for transferring fluids removed by the catheter into a
distensible collection bag which contains and stores such fluid and
which may be emptied by an outlet tube at its bottom. The
connection between the drainage inlet tube and the catheter is
presently accomplished by either a catheter adapter which consists
of a frusto-conical tip inserted over the upstream end of the
drainage inlet tube and then inserted into the downstream end of
the flexible catheter tube, or a right angle adapter such as that
shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,513,849 to Vaillancourt et al.
In the operation of irrigation and closed urinary drainage systems,
however, it is often desirable to have selective and easy access to
the system to insert irrigating fluid or to withdraw samples at any
desired time. A system employing the catheter adapter tip as a
connector has several disadvantages in this regard. First, removal
of the semi-rigid tip from the flexible rubber catheter tubing
requires use of a pulling and twisting motion and separation is
often so abrupt and violent that not only is there a danger of
accidentally pulling on the catheter itself and causing discomfort
or even trauma to the patient but also a great possibility of
spilling fluid. Moreover, once separation has been accomplished,
the catheter adapter tip must be capped before it is set aside, in
order to prevent fluid remaining in the inlet tube from being
discharged through the catheter tip adapter should the inlet tube
be laid down at an elevation below that of the fluid contained
within the tube. Such capping is also necessary to prevent
contamination of the catheter tip adapter by foreign bodies which
it may come in contact with when set aside. If the tip is
contaminated, bacteria could be easily propagated through the
catheter by backflow of the fluid.
Another disadvantage of this type of connector is that such
catheter adapter tip caps are usually manufactured in conjunction
with a plug insertable into the downstream end of the catheter
itself to prevent discharge while removing the catheter tip adapter
cap. Such units are sold with a plug placed inside the tip adapter
cap, the open end of the cap being closed by a plastic sealer cap.
These components are only usable once unless sterilized and are
easily misplaced because of their small size.
Finally, reconnection of the system requires removal of the
catheter tip adapter cap and the catheter plug and reinsertion of
the catheter adapter tip into the catheter. This operation not only
involves spilling of fluid but also requires unavoidable touching
of the interior surfaces of the system by the attendant in order to
secure a good connection.
Thus, the significant problems with this type of catheter adapter
tip have been that the number of components and the necessity for
complete disconnection of the system to permit sampling or
irrigation and removal of part of the system from the area adjacent
the catheter have increased the possibility of contamination both
within the catheter tube opening itself and on the surface of the
catheter tip, such contamination often resulting in the
introduction of foreign bacteria into interior parts of the body
such as the bladder.
The right angle catheter adapter shown in the patent to
Vaillancourt et al would appear to constitute an improvement over
the widely used catheter adapter tip described above. However, it
has the definite disadvantage of having a rather unwieldy right
angle configuration which not only could act to impede the flow of
fluid from the catheter into the discharge inlet tube but also is
difficult to manufacture because it requires molding of one piece
of material having an interior hollow section with two right angle
bends and a removable cap. Such a construction is difficult and
expensive to manufacture.
The Vaillancourt et al. adapter also has the disadvantage that when
the system is opened to permit introduction of a syringe for
irrigation, the adapter, since it is rigid, holds the inlet tube
and the catheter at the same relative positions they are in during
closed flow. Thus, the two elements cannot be maneuvered with
respect to each other and, depending upon the position that the
adapter is held in and depending upon the time required for the
syringe to be inserted, fluid contained in either the inlet tube or
the catheter will either spill out of the syringe opening or will
flow back into the patient through the catheter.
DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
This invention includes a closed irrigation and urinary drainage
system apparatus for removing fluids from a patient or providing at
any desired time for irrigation or aspiration through the same
system, having hinged connector means interposed between a
conventional flexible tube catheter and a drainage inlet tube
connected to a distensible collection bag and outlet means. The
dual purpose of this system is accomplished through use of a novel
connector means having an upstream hollow socket portion insertable
into the downstream or proximal end of the catheter and a
downstream hollow adapter portion, one end of which is insertable
into the upstream end of the discharge inlet tube, the opposite or
plug end being insertable into the hollow socket portion of the
connector means. The hollow socket portion and the adapter portion
of the connector means are attached to each other by a hinge means
which allows the two portions to be swingably joined and
separated.
The upstream hollow socket portion of the connector means has an
exterior shell of frusto-conical configuration having a series of
ribs disposed about its circumference. Such a configuration allows
it to be easily inserted into the proximal end of the catheter and
the ribs provide for a securely fixed and fluid-tight seal between
the upstream socket portion and the catheter.
The plug end of the hollow adapter portion of the connector means
is formed in a shape similar to that of the interior of the hollow
socket portion and has disposed about its circumference one or more
raised ribs which correspond with and are located in a similar
position to depressed grooves disposed about the interior
circumference of the hollow socket portion. When the adapter
portion is swung into the socket portion on the hinge connecting
the two, the raised rings lock into the depressed grooves, holding
the two portions in fixed and sealed relationship.
In the preferred method of construction, the socket portion has an
annular flange located at its downstream end and the adapter
portion has an annular flange disposed about its middle, the two
flanges being adjacent to one another when the plug end of the
adapter portion is securely locked into the socket portion. The
unique construction of this connector means offers a closed urinary
drainage and irrigation system with several distinct advantages
over the present system.
First, because of the snap-lock hinge connector means, it is much
easier and more convenient to break into this system to permit
sampling or irrigation and aspiration than it was in previous
systems. No twisting is required to separate the socket portion and
the adapter portion of the connector means and no sudden or violent
jerks result. The portions are merely unsnapped. This invention
permits the drainage system to be opened without requiring a
complete separation of the elements of the system.
In addition, since the portions of the connector means are attached
by a hinge means, the attending personnel will never have to place
the end of the discharge inlet tube on the bed or nearby table and
will not have to bother with protecting the catheter adapter tip
from contamination or worry about leaking fluid since the plug end
of the adapter portion of this connector means is always in view
and is always held away from contaminating contact with foreign
bodies. Furthermore, the flange portions of the preferred
construction of this invention project out from the exterior
surfaces of the connector and serve to shield the areas of vital
contact which are most susceptible of contamination both from
contact by those touching the connector means or from side
contact.
Another advantage of this connector means is that it may be molded
in one piece which performs the same function with a greater degree
of efficiency and sterility than conventional catheter adapter tips
which require protective caps and plugs, which are in themselves
easy to lose or contaminate.
Moreover, since this invention provides, when both portions are
joined in locked position, straight-line flow from the catheter to
the inlet tube, there is not the possibility of impeding flow as is
present in a right angle type of connector. Furthermore, when the
portions of this connector are swung back in disconnected position,
the flow, unlike that in the right angle type of adapter, is
completely broken and both the catheter and inlet tube may be
positioned with respect to each other so that the fluid neither
spills on the surrounding area nor flows back into the patient.
Finally, since the connector means is molded out of one piece and
in a straight line, it is less expensive to manufacture than the
present connectors or catheter adapters.
Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide a closed
irrigation and urinary drainage system apparatus which provides
selective access to the system to insert fluid or withdraw samples
at any desired time.
It is another object of this invention to provide a closed
irrigation and urinary drainage system apparatus which permits
intermittent irrigation and aspiration whenever desired without
completely separating any of the elements providing the drainage
path.
It is a further object of this invention to provide, in such a
closed irrigation and urinary drainage system apparatus a hinged
connector means interposed between the catheter and drainage inlet
tube which allows the catheter and drainage inlet tube to be
disconnected and swingably separated without twisting or
jerking.
It is a still further object of this invention to provide, in a
closed irrigation and urinary drainage system apparatus, a
connector means having a one piece molded construction in which all
components are present and permanently attached.
It is still another object of this invention to provide a closed
irrigation and urinary drainage system apparatus having a connector
means of one piece construction which permits easy assembly of the
elements of this system.
It is also an object of this invention to provide a closed
irrigation and urinary drainage system apparatus having a connector
means which provides in joined position for straight-through flow
of the fluids in the system.
It is also a further object of this invention to provide a closed
irrigation and urinary drainage system apparatus having a connector
means which permits the elements of the system to be disconnected
without being subject to contamination by contact with foreign
bodies.
These and other important objects of this invention will become
apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with
the drawings illustrating a preferred embodiment wherein:
FIG. 1 is a front elevational view showing the closed irrigation
and urinary drainage system apparatus;
FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view parallel to the direction of flow
taken through the hinged connector means interposed in closed
position between the catheter and drainage inlet tube of the closed
irrigation and urinary drainage system apparatus;
FIG. 3 is a top view of a free body of the hinged connector means
of the closed irrigation and urinary drainage system apparatus;
and
FIG. 4 is an elevational view of the hinged connector means of the
closed irrigation and urinary drainage system apparatus in open or
disconnected position as taken along line 4--4 in FIG. 3.
Referring now to the drawings and more particularly to FIG. 1,
there is shown the closed irrigation and urinary drainage system
apparatus 10 having a conventional catheter 38 including a
balloon-type inflatable distal end 39, which is insertable into the
patient, and a proximal or downstream end 37.
The catheter 38 is connected to a drainage inlet tube 26 by a
hinged catheter connector means 40 interposed between the proximal
end 37 of the catheter 38 and the upstream end of the drainage
inlet tube 26.
The drainage inlet tube 26, in turn, is in communication with a
distensible collection bag 12 through a medial drip chamber 28
disposed on the handle 14 of the distensible collection bag 12. The
medial drip chamber 28 assures proper uniform flow of fluid into
the distensible bag 12 through discharge tube 30 at its downstream
end which is inserted into bag 12 through opening 32 in bag 12. An
outlet tube 16 at the lower end of distensible collection bag 12
permits emptying of the contents of the bag 12 whenever desired.
The outlet tube 16 is in communication with the interior of the
distensible collection bag 12 through the outlet bag opening 22 and
has at its downstream end an outlet valve 18 controlling the flow
of fluid out of the outlet tube 16.
The inlet and outlet openings 32 and 22, respectively, in the
distensible collection bag 12 are hermetically sealed, and outlet
tube 16, when not in use, may be held in an upright position by
outlet tube holder 20. The distensible collection bag 12 may be
also provided with an air filter 36 as shown in FIG. 1.
The catheter 38 is conventionally constructed of a flexible and
soft but impervious material such as rubber. The drainage inlet
tube 26 and the outlet tube 16 may be constructed of any flexible,
impervious material such as plastic. The distensible collection bag
12 may be constructed of any thin, flexible, impervious material,
preferably transparent, such as plastic.
The hinged catheter connector means 40 which provides for the
unique operation of this closed irrigation and urinary drainage
system apparatus is shown in more detail in FIG. 2. The connector
means 40 is shown in closed position and includes an upstream
hollow socket portion 42 having a frusto-conical exterior shell 44
with a series of raised ribs 46 disposed about its exterior
circumference. This hollow socket portion 42 is inserted into the
downstream or proximal end 37 of catheter 38.
Hollow socket portion 42 is connected by hinge means 52 to
downstream hollow adapter portion 48 of connector means 40. In the
preferred connection shown in FIG. 2, hinge means 52 is attached at
its one end to an annular flange 43 disposed at the downstream end
of hollow socket portion 42, and is attached at its opposite end to
an annular flange 45 disposed at the middle of hollow adapter
portion 48.
The downstream hollow adapter portion 48 includes a cylindrical
drainage inlet tube adapter end 50, which is insertable into the
upstream end of drainage inlet tube 26, and a hollow plug end 49,
which is insertable into the hollow socket portion 42 of catheter
connector means 40, to complete the connection between catheter 38
and drainage inlet tube 26. Hollow plug end 49 is similar in
exterior configuration to the interior configuration of hollow
socket portion 42, and has disposed about its exterior
circumference at least one raised ring means 56 which corresponds
to depressed groove means 58 disposed about the interior
circumference of hollow socket portion 42. When downstream hollow
adapter 48 is swingably joined to upstream hollow socket portion
42, raised ring means 56 snap-lock into depressed groove means 58
to hold the two portions in fixed and sealed relationship.
When the two portions are joined as described in fixed
relationship, the annular flanges 43 and 45 are placed adjacent to
each other. As shown in FIG. 2, these flanges 43 and 45 have a
greater over-all diameter than the diameters of the different
portions of the connector means 40, so that flanges 43 and 45 will
support portions 42 and 48 of the connector means 40 above any
surrounding foreign surfaces when such portions 42 and 48 are
either connected or disconnected. Flanges 43 and 45 also provide
for greater maneuverability of the portions 42 and 48 with respect
to one another since hinge means 52 is attached to portions 42 and
48 at the periphery of their respective flanges, in effect
providing a longer length of hinge. Finally, flanges 43 and 45 also
serve to prevent the inadvertent contamination of sensitive
interior parts of the connector means 40 while the interlocking
portions 42 and 48 of the connector means 40 are being handled in
order to disconnect or connect them.
In FIG. 3, the connector means 40 is shown as a free body in open
or disconnected position and the series of raised ribs 46 disposed
about the circumference of the frustoconical exterior shell 44 of
the upstream hollow socket portion 42 is seen in more detail. The
raised ring means 56 disposed about the outer circumference of the
hollow plug end 49 of the downstream hollow adapter portion 48 is
also pictured. On the opposite side of downstream flange 45 from
plug end 49 is shown the cylindrical drainage inlet tube end
50.
In FIG. 4 is illustrated the interior detail of connector means 40.
This view shows the similar configuration of hollow plug end 49 and
the interior of upstream hollow socket portion 42. In addition, a
preferred construction of hinge means 52 is shown as consisting of
separate flexible straps 59 and 60 attached at opposite ends to the
peripheries of downstream flange 45 and upstream flange 43.
In the operation of the closed irrigation and urinary drainage
system apparatus, the fluid is removed from the patient by the
catheter 38 having its distal balloon end inserted into the
patient. The catheter 38 is connected to the drainage inlet tube 26
by the hinged catheter connector means 40 which transfers the fluid
removed from the patient in straight-line flow into drainage inlet
tube 26. Drainage inlet tube 26 then transfers this fluid into
medial drip chamber 28 which dispenses it uniformly into
distensible collection bag 12. Distensible collection bag 12 is
transparent and contains volumetric indicators on its face so that
the amount of fluid collected may be determined by observation.
Outlet tube 16 permits emptying of the fluid stored in distensible
collection bag 12 at any desired time.
In the operation described above, the urinary drainage system is
considered closed because fluid is transferred directly from the
patient into the collection means without being exposed to any
exterior influences. To open the system, however, for purposes of
irrigating, aspirating or sampling fluid, the system is broken into
at the connector means 40 where the downstream hollow adapter
portion 48 joins the upstream hollow socket portion 42. The two
portions are simply pulled apart and downward toward the position
of the hinge 52, unsnapping the raised ring means 56 from the
depressed groove means 58, thereby disconnecting the two portions.
The adapter portion 48 is then swingably separated from the hollow
socket portion 42 until the two portions are moved to a position
such as that shown in FIG. 3. Any irrigation, aspiration or
sampling procedures may then be performed through the open hollow
socket portion 42 of connector means 40 which provides direct
access to the patient.
The connector means 40 may be constructed of any suitable material
which is impervious, corrosion-resistant, capable of being formed
or molded as a unitary piece into the required configuration and
slightly resilient, such as plastic.
The catheter connector means 40 makes possible the operation of a
closed irrigation and urinary drainage system apparatus which may
be opened at any desired time to permit irrigation and aspiration
of the patient and sampling of discharged fluids and which, by the
unique construction of the connector means, does not require total
separation of the elements of the drainage system following
disconnection and, therefore, substantially reduces the danger to
the patient from possible contamination of the elements of the
system and reduces the time required to perform such irrigation or
sampling.
While the invention has been described in relation to a preferred
embodiment thereof, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art
that the structural details are capable of wide variation without
departing from the principles of the invention.
* * * * *