Container For Administering Barium Sulfate For Upper Gastro-intestinal Radiological Examination

Abstract

A plastic cup for containing barium sulfate suspension and having a leak-proof removable lid. The lid has an opening through which a soft vinyl straw passes. The diameter of the straw is large enough to permit the patient to rapidly take in the desired mouthful of suspension. The lid opening is slightly undersize relative to the straw so that a leak-proof relationship is created. However, the size of the opening is such that this vinyl straw can readily be moved into any position relative to the lid and thus the bottom of the straw can be positioned anywhere within the cup.

Description

This invention relates in general to a means for administering barium sulfate suspension to a patient so that an upper gastro-intestinal radiological examination can be made and more particularly to a self-contained covered cup and straw combination for holding the barium sulfate suspension and for facilitating the drinking of any desired quantity of the barium sulfate suspension.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The most common technique for administering upper gastro-intestinal (hereinafter Upper G.I.) radiological examinations involves having a patient drink a suspension in water of a radio-opaque substance such as barium sulfate. The X-ray examination is made while the suspension is being swallowed. The patient has to feed himself. It is usual to use a cup containing the suspension and to have the patient drink from the cup, often by using a straw.

This technique poses certain problems. An important problem is that the contents of the cup tends to spill, particularly when infants or feeble persons are the patients involved. To avoid spilling the contents care and time must be spent to administer the test. This problem of spilling is quite acute because part of the examination may require that the person drink the barium sulfate suspension while laying in a supine position or in a prone position.

It is a major purpose of this invention to provide a spill-proof container for administering the required barium sulfate suspension in making an upper G.I. Examination.

It is a further purpose of this invention to provide such a spill-proof container which will permit the patient to take in the barium suspension at a rate sufficiently great so that the Upper G.I. examination can be properly made.

Acceptability of the product by the patients who use the product and by the doctor involved is of crucial importance. It must be remembered that the patient has to cooperate in filling his mouth with the suspension and then swallow when required. Drinking from a cup seems to be more acceptable to many patients than is the use of a squeeze tube or other unfamiliar type of container.

Thus, it is a further purpose of this invention to provide an acceptable to the patient spill-proof container.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

In brief, this invention involves a simple plastic cup, recognizable as such, for containing the barium sulphate suspension. The cup has a leak-proof lid snapped on top of it. The lid has an opening through which a soft vinyl straw passes. The diameter of the straw is large enough to permit the patient to rapidly take in the desired mouthful of suspension. The lid opening is slightly undersize relative to the straw so that a leak-proof relationship is created. However, the size of the opening is such that this vinyl straw can readily be moved into any position relative to the lid and thus the bottom of the straw can be positioned anywhere within the cup.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the device of this invention fully assembled and ready for use.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the cup portion of the FIG. 1 device with a solid lid as it would appear during shipment.

FIG. 3 is a view similar to that of FIG. 1 except that the lid and straw are shown removed from the cup portion just prior to being snapped down onto the cup portion.

FIG. 4 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view through the FIG. 1 device.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

As shown in the Figures, all of which are of the same embodiment, a sturdy, compared to paper, plastic cup 10 is used to contain a barium sulphate suspension 12. A premeasured amount of dry barium sulphate is preferably shipped within each cup and, in such case, (as may be seen in FIG. 2) the cup 10 has a plastic lid 14 that snaps down over the rim 16 of the cup 10. Thus the dry powdery barium sulphate cannot be lost from the cup 10.

For use in administering the barium sulphate solution, a separate lid 16 is provided together with a vinyl straw 18. This lid 16 has a straw opening 20 which has a diameter slightly less than the outer diameter of the vinyl straw 18. A very small air vent opening 22 is also provided in the lid 16.

To prepare the barium sulphate suspension, the radiologist or his assistant removes the solid lid 14, adds water to the predetermined dose of barium sulphate powder and aggitates in order to form a suspension of the barium sulphate in the water, thereby providing the suspension illustrated in FIG. 4. He then snaps on the special lid 16 having the vinyl straw 18 associated with the lid 16 as shown in FIG. 3. As shown in FIG. 4, the lid 16 has a re-entrant groove 24 on the inside corner of the rim portion 26 of the lid 16. This groove mates with the outwardly extending bead-like annular rim 16 of the cup 10 so that the liquid cannot leak out between the lid 16 and cup 10.

In order to make sure that liquid does not leak out between the straw 18 and the lid 16, it is important that the opening 20 firmly engages the straw 18 and form a seal that prevents water from leaking out along the outside of the straw 18. In order to achieve this result, it has been found necessary to employ an interference fit in which the straw material is both flexible and resilient. Thus a vinyl straw 18 has been found necessary. With a vinyl straw 18 having an outside diameter of 0.409 inches and a wall thickness of 0.045 inches, it has been found that an opening 20 diameter of 0.375 inches provides a substantially leak-proof fit between opening 20 and straw 18.

However, in order to function properly, it is important that the bottom 18b of the straw be fairly readily movable from a position near the bottom of the cup 10 (as shown in FIG. 4) to a position near the top of the cup 10. This movability of the straw 18 is necessary so that the patient can drink the required mouthful of suspension from the cup regardless of the position or attitude of the cup 10.

Thus when the cup 10 is on its side, or tilted up, it is important that the cup not leak and that the bottom 18b of the straw be immersed in the suspension and not in an air space above the suspension 12. Thus the interference fit cannot be too tight so as to bind the straw 18. It has been found that a combination of a vinyl straw 18 and a diameter relationship mentioned above permits both an air-tight engagement between straw 18 and lid opening 20, as well as a reasonable easy movement of the straw through the opening 20. If the straw 18 binds too strongly on the opening 20, the radiologist, his assistant, or the patient might well yank the straw 18 out of the hole 20, and thus spill the suspension 12, when positioning the bottom 18b of the straw near the opening 20 when the cup 10 is tilted up.

The use of a vinyl straw 18 and the use of the dimensional relationship mentioned above, makes possible the combination of a substantially water-tight interference fit and the easy type of movement of the straw through the opening 20 that would be desired under a slip-fit relationship. In order to make sure that the frictional engagement between straw 18 and the lid 16 is not too great, it is necessary that the lid 16 not be too thick. A plastic lid 16 having a thickness of approximately one-sixteenth inch has been found effective to provide the desired combination of easy movement and leak-proof characteristics.

As can readily be deducted from the above dimensions, the inner diameter of the straw is 0.319 inches. It is desirable to have an inner diameter of the straw of this order of magnitude or larger so that the patient can fairly quickly take in the desired mouthful of suspension upon command of the radiologist.

Because of the airtight relationship between straw 18 and opening 20, the air vent 22 is needed to avoid creating a small partial vacuum which would tend to inhibit fast, ready patient intake.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A container for administering barium sulphate suspension in connection with upper gastro-intestional radiological examinations comprising:

a cup portion,

a removable lid on the cup, the relationship between the cup and lid providing a leak-proof engagement between cup and lid,

a straw made for soft plastic material and having an outer diameter of approximately 410 mils. and a wall thickness of approximately 45 mils.,

said lid having a thickness of approximately 60 mils., a first opening of approximately 375 mils through which said straw is positioned, and a second vent hole opening,

whereby the interference fit relationship between said straw and said lid provides a leak-proof engagement between said lid and said straw while permitting smooth, easy manual movement of said straw through said first opening so as to permit positioning the inner end of said straw at any desired position within said cup.

2. The container of claim 1 wherein said straw is vinyl.