Medical devices and methods for creating bubbles

Abstract

A dedicated device for detection of vascular shunts can include a first chamber, a second chamber, and a third chamber. The first chamber can be configured to hold liquid, the second chamber to hold gas, and the third chamber can be in communication with the first and second chambers. The third chamber can include small-scale geometric features configured to produce gas bubbles as liquid from the first chamber and gas from the second chamber simultaneously flow into the third chamber. The device can also include a device opening in communication with the third chamber such that a mixture of liquid and gas bubbles can flow out of the device opening. The device can also include a plunger configured to force the liquid and the gas simultaneously from the first and second chambers, through the third chamber to mix with each other and produce bubbles, and further through the device opening.

Description

PRIORITY INFORMATION[0001]This application is a divisional application of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15 / 064,306, filed Mar. 8, 2016 with claims priority benefit under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) to U.S. Provisional Patent Application Se. No. 62 / 296,434 filed 17 Feb. 2016 and entitled “MEDICAL DEVICES AND METHODS FOR CREATING BUBBLES”; and U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62 / 178,084, filed 31 Mar. 2015 and entitled “Dedicated device created to perform bubble study, to detect presence of patent foramen ovale (PFO) or atrial septal defect (ASD) in the heart. Given name to the device is ‘B-Shoot’”, the entirety of each hereby expressly incorporated by reference herein.BACKGROUNDField[0002]This application relates to medical devices configured to generate bubbles. Such devices may be particularly useful for cardiovascular procedures, such as to detect the presence of Patent Foramen Ovale (“PFO”), Atrial Septal Defects (“ASD”), shunts in the heart, or other septal defects.Descript...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

The patent describes a device that can be used to create a mixture of bubbles and liquid for the purpose of detecting PFO and other heart conditions using ultrasound imaging. The device includes a chamber for holding liquid and another chamber for holding gas, with a valve to separate the two. The device can also include small-scale geometric features that can produce gas bubbles as the liquid and gas flow through the device. The device can be used to create a consistent and safe mixture of bubbles and liquid, with minimal loss of bubbles and agitation prior to injection into the patient's IV. The device can also help prevent unnecessary volume overload in the patient by allowing for controlled and limited injection of the fluid and gas.

Problems solved by technology

In a fetus, the lungs are still growing and not yet ready to receive blood for oxygenation.

Any clot that bypasses the lungs and reaches the left heart poses a great risk of interfering with the blood supply to tissues and organs to which it flows.

For example, when such a clot enters an artery in the brain it may cause a stroke.

Unfortunately, the technique depicted in FIG. 5 can have certain drawbacks.

For example, poor skill in creating the cloudy mix of agitated saline and air bubbles can cause a false-negative result.

This risk is further heightened by a lack of consistency in the procedure, as the quality of the bubbles and the speed with which they are injected is highly variable, not only with the technique of the operator(s), but also over time as the bubbles dissipate.

For example, different technicians may use varying ratios of air and saline solution, or may apply inconsistent amounts of pressure through the syringe.

Further, the entire mixture is typically used, because the bubbles only last for a short period of time.

Thus, if the results of the test are inconclusive, the test must be repeated in full, risking a volume overload to the patient's vascular system.

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