Body Fluid Collection Bottle

Abstract

A vacuum operated body fluid collection bottle having an insert container of receptacle which is calibrated to receive accurately measurable, small quantities of body fluid collected within the bottle. Such insert includes overflow means whereby quantities in excess of a predetermined amount can overflow into the interior of the outside container. The insert container, in a preferred form of the invention, is positioned by means of a flange disposed against a shoulder provided within the interior of the bottle. Both outside and interior containers are uniquely calibrated to satisfy a variety of conditions. An anti-splash tube is incorporated and uniquely positioned within the bottle construction and is appropriately spaced from the lid thereof to provide for a free exhaust of air and hence a creation of reduced pressure conditions proximate the liquid inlet of the bottle.

Parent Case Text

This is a continuation in part of a co-pending application entitled IMPROVEMENTS IN BODY FLUID COLLECTION BOTTLE, Ser. No. 85,075, filed Oct. 29, 1970, and now U.S. Pat. No. 3,699,815.

Description

The present invention relates to vacuum operated bottles used in hospitals and the like, which bottles are used for collecting body fluid such as blood from a patient during or after surgery. The bottle construction of the present nature is particularly suited for collecting and measuring with a high degree of accuracy, small amounts of aspirated body fluid from all types of patients, and especially infants, where the same is taken during instance of pediatric surgery.

In the past body fluid collection bottles have appeared on the market in a limited number of designs. Those bottle constructions of which the applicant is aware are generally suitable for collecting very large amounts of body fluid such as in connection with abdominal surgery for adult patients. A distinct need is present in the marketplace for providing a bottle that can either be used to collect large amounts of body fluid, i.e., from 200 cc to 1,000 cc quantities, but also can be used to collect and accurately measure very small amounts of body fluid such as that anticipated during periods of surgery, especially pediatric surgery. For surgery in connection with infants, it is very important to determine with great care and accuracy the amount of body fluid, e.g., blood, which is taken from a young child; this quantity of fluid must be predetermined and returned in identical amounts as by transfusion or other means. To date no bottle is available, to the applicant's knowledge, which is suitable for fine measurement use.

Accordingly, a principal object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved vacuum operated body fluid collection bottle.

A further object of the invention is to provide a new and improved body fluid collection bottle having a selectively removable container insert, such insert being designed to receive small amounts of fluid introduced into the bottle construction.

An additional object is to provide for a body fluid collection bottle an insert comprising a calibrated container and flange, the flange being designed for support by the interior of the bottle construction concerned.

A further object of the invention is to provide a bottle construction having an outside container and an interiorly disposed, selectively removable inside container, both containers being calibrated such that if only the inside container is used, body fluid collected therein can accurately be measured, whereas if there is overflow, or if the insert is previously removed, then additional accurate respective readings can be taken.

An additional object is to provide a body fluid collection bottle having an anti-splash device usable as an introduction means leading into the fine-measurement portion of the container, and also to prevent blood or other body fluid from foaming at the bottom of the bottle construction, such anti-splash device being spaced from the lid of the bottle construction to provide for reduced pressure conditions at the fluid inlet.

An additional object is to provide a bottle construction having an interior container wherein reduced pressure conditions can be maintained both within and outside of the interior container when disposed within the bottle.

The features of the present invention which are believed to be novel are set forth with particularity in the appended claims.

The present invention, both as to its organization and manner of operation, together with further objects and advantages thereof, may best be understood by reference to the following description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawing in which:

FIG. 1 is a front elevation of a body fluid collection bottle constructed in accordance with the principles of the present invention, and illusrates one embodiment thereof.

FIG. 2 is an exploded view of the construction shown in FIG. 1, the anti-splash device being illustrated in fragmentary view.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the interior container member of the bottle construction in a second embodiment thereof.

In FIGS. 1 and 2 the container 10 is provided with an enlarged, cylindrical, upper margin 11 defining an upwardly facing, interior shoulder 12 at transverse offset T. A downwardly facing shoulder S is likewise formed thereby. A bead 13 is likewise provided, which bead snaps into bead recess 14 associated with the lip 15 of lid 16. Lid 16 is provided with fluid inlet port 17 and vacuum port 18, both of which proceed completely through the generally horizontal configuration of the lid so that their opposite extremities appear on opposite sides of the lid, as indicated. The upper extremities of fluid inlet port 17 and vacuum port 18 are tapered in the usual manner to accommodate a pressed or other fitting thereto of fluid inlet conduit 19 and vacuum conduit 20 in the customary manner. Conduit 19 and 20 provide communication by openings 21' and 22' into the interior 23 of container 10.

The lid is designed so as to effect a vacuum seal between the groove surface of groove 14 and the surface of bead 13, so that upon the application of reduced pressure, as by means of a vacuum pump relative to vacuum conduit 20, then an area of reduced pressure will be present inside the container at 23 so as to cause aspiration body fluid to proceed from the operating area of the patient through inlet conduit 19, downwardly through opening 21' into the interior 23 of the container 10. For convenience of illustration, the connection of the vacuum pump to vacuum conduit 20 and also the end fitting fluid inlet conduit 19 at the patient's operative area are not shown.

In the absence of the inclusion of an inner member such as inner member 21, having graduation indicia 23 or inner member 22 of FIGS. 2 and 3, then the "open container" graduations 23' will be utilized to "read" the amount of fluid collected by the container 10. These graduations, if desired, can be made in increments of 25 cc up to a fluid level of 500 cc, and thereafter in graduation spacings of 50 cc.

Accordingly, in the absence of the inclusion of inner member 21 or 22, see in FIGS. 2 and 3, within the container 10 of FIG. 1, then a vacuum produced via vacuum conduit 20 will cause aspirated body fluid to proceed up the inlet fluid conduit 19 from the patient area and advance through the lid 16 into the interior 23 of container 10. Special note is to be made that in a highly preferred form of the invention, there will be included a very thin-walled, flexible plastic casing or tube 24 through which the body fluid proceeds. This is to prevent a foaming of body fluid at the bottom area of the container, so as to facilitate correct reading of the contents of the container at all times during the operation period. Casing 24 is accommodated as to placement by prongs 25 and 26, see FIG. 2, which prongs include integral spacer bosses 27 and 28. The purpose for these spacer bosses is to delimit the upward advance of casing 24, so that a space 29 is maintained over the column of fluid rising upwardly in casing 24. This preserves the evacuated condition proximate the end of opening 21' relative to fluid inlet port 17 so as to insure proper operation of the device, including the precluding of "siphoning-back" to the patient area.

As to a preferred construction a heat weld may be performed at one or all of the prongs 25, 26 and fluid inlet port 17 to insure that the casing 24 retains its spacing (29) from the lid and serves as an anti-splash element.

In certain types of operation procedures, and especially for pediatric work, there is required an exact measurement of body fluid withdraw from the infant patient, even though such fluids may be in very small amounts. For this purpose the iner member 21 is provided. The same includes inner container 30 provided with pediatric or fine graduations 31. These are preferably of the order of from 5 cc to 200 cc, in 5 cc increments.

The inner container 30 of inner member 21 (in FIG. 2) is shown to be provided with an overflow aperture 32. The overflow aperture may take the form of a slit, as seen in FIG. 2, the bottom 33 of which is aligned with the 200 cc marking at 34. Accordingly, any blood or body fluid proceeding upwardly will immediately spill over the bottom edge 33 into the area outside of inner container 30 but yet within the overall container 10.

To complete the inner container construction, there may be provided the graduated cylinder 35 a bottom disk 36 cemented to the same, or otherwise made integral therewith, so as to provide a bottom-enclosed container.

The inner member 21 also preferably includes an upper portion, here a flange 37 preferably provided with thumb-and-finger apertures 38 and also, insert-alignment, keying notches A registering with outer container protrusions B, and, in addition, access aperture 39 to accommodate selective insertion therethrough of the lower portion 40 of vacuum port 18. In the event that the depending portion 40 of vacuum port 18 is not unduly long relative to the spacing of the upper flange from the lid, then the access opening 39 may not be needed since air can be exhausted through the thumb-and-finger apertures.

As to construction (see FIG. 2) the inner container 30 is merely pressed into annular opening 41. Optionally, the same may be glued into place, of course, or the entire unit may be molded as an integral part, relative to inner member 21.

An alternate form of an inner member 21 is shown in FIG. 3 wherein the inner member 22 is at this time provided with an inner container 43, similar to inner container 30 in FIG. 2. Inner container 43 is closed at the bottom either by an independent disk 36 or otherwise, and at its upper extremity 44 the same includes a plurality of indentations 45 which are mutually spaced as indicated. Correspondingly, a flange 46 is provided with the thumb-and-finger apertures 47, access opening 48, and press-fit aperture 41' corresponding to apertures 38, 39, and 41 in FIG. 2. In the FIG. 3 embodiment the flange 46 likewise includes mutually spaced openings 49-51 which serve as overflow openings relative to body fluid proceeding upwardly relative to the container so as to spill over the edges E forming indentations 45, through the openings 49-51 into the interior 23 of the overall large container 10.

When an inner member is disposed within the container 10, then, in a preferred form of the invention the flange 37 will rest about its outer lower margin 52, see FIG. 1, upon the upwardly facing interior shoulder 12 of container 10. Accordingly, body fluid entering flid inlet conduit 19 and being drawn upwardly by virtue of the reduced pressure area at 23, as before explained, will proceed down fluid inlet port 17 and through casing 24 into the lower portion of inner container 30 of inner member 21. Fluid will rise in inner container 30, both interiorly and exteriorly of the casing 24, proceeding upwardly until either the flow of fluid up inlet conduit 19 stops, through cessation of the operation, or until the body fluid spills over either aperture base 33 (see FIG. 2) or spills over the upper edges E and the indentation 45 in FIG. 3.

It will be seen that for small withdrawals of body fluid there will be present a very accurate measurement of the body fluid within nner container 30, or inner container 43 in FIG. 3. This will be especially desirable for pediatric use where, as it is seen, a general container may accommodate the insert, e.g., inner member 21, to provide for very accurate measurements of small quantities of blood or other body fluid.

Note is to be made relative to FIG. 2 that a reduced pressure area is present at the discharge end of fluid inlet 17 by virtue of either thumb-and-finger apertures 38, access opening 39, or both. The same likewise applies relative to FIG. 3 embodiment as to inner member 22.

In the event that the supply of body fluid withdrawn exceeds the capacity of inner container 30 relative to FIG. 2, then the blood or body fluid will spill over aperture base 33 to rise within the general overall container 10, at the inner area thereof exterior of inner container 30. Accordingly, "overflow" graduations 55 may be supplied on the exterior or even interior of the side wall surface of container 10 in FIG. 2 so that one may know the total body fluid withdrawn, i.e., the body fluid contained in inner container 30 plus the overflow fluid residing in container 10 exterior of container 30. The same will likewise apply relative to the insert or inner member 22 of FIG. 3.

When the insert or inner member is withdrawn, then the general, "open container" graduations 23' will be used to measure accurately the blood or body fluid contained in the container.

It is thus seen that the container of the present invention with its accompanying insert or "inner member," is very versatile in use for affording both reception and also accurate measurement of very small or even relatively large collections of blood or other body fluid from a patient. In the insert the construction supplies a means for ascertaining an accurate reading of body fluid in pediatric quantities, whereas the two sets of graduations 23' and 55 of the outer container 10 provide for both "open container" fluid measurement and also an insert-provided container as to measurement for overflow conditions.

All parts described herein are preferably made of a transparent plastic such as polyethylene, so that visual readings of fluid levels can be made.

While particular embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that changes and modifications may be made without departing from this invention in its broader aspects.

Claims

I claim:

1. A vacuum-operated body fluid collection bottle including, in combination, an outer container, an inner container means, said inner container means being detachably mounted inside said outer container, a lid secured to said outer container and having a vacuum port and also a fluid inlet port communicating with the interior of said container, an anti-splash tubular element aligned with said fluid inlet port and depending with respect thereto, and means on said container means for spacedly mounting said anti-splash tubular element inside with respect to said lid, whereby to translate the vacuum condition of said outer container over and into the interior of said anti-splash tubular element, said fluid inlet port, said anti-splash tubular element, and said spacedly mounting means being mutually constructed and arranged with respect to each other to provide an air-passageway between said fluid inlet port and said anti-splash tubular element to effect such translation.

2. Structure according to claim 1 wherein said lid has a pair of depending prongs comprising said spacedly mounting means, said prongs and fluid inlet port being arranged in triangular relationship, said anti-splash element being disposed over said prongs and said fluid inlet port and enjoying a spaced relationship relative to the remainder of said lid.

3. Structure according to claim 2 wherein said prongs include individual boss means for abutting said anti-splash element to thereby space the same from the remainder of said lid.

4. A body fluid collection bottle including, in combination, an outer container, an inner container means, said inner container means being detachably mounted inside said outer container, a lid secured to said outer container and having a vacuum port and also a fluid inlet port communicating with the interior of said container, a tubular anti-splash element mounted inside said inner container means and spacedly depending from said lid and being in alignment with said fluid inlet port, means affixed to the combination of said outer container and said lid and engaging said anti-splash element for so supporting said anti-splash element inside said inner container means, said anti-splash element and said fluid inlet port being mutually constructed and arranged with respect to each other to provide an air passageway therebetween and over said anti-splash element such that ambient gaseous reduced-pressure conditions of the interior of said outer container are translated to the interior of said anti-splash element beneath said fluid inlet port.