Intravenous fluid warming unit

Abstract

A novel intravenous ("IV") warming unit warms and keeps warm intravenous fluid bags for use at remote sites under arctic conditions. The IV fluid warming unit is made of fabric cut and sewn to form a suitcase-like folding receptacle, or satchel. The satchel has four inside pockets along one inside surface and overlapping webbing on the other inside surface. Chemical heating pads are activated and placed inside the pockets and IV fluid bags placed under the webbing. When the satchel is closed, the chemical heating pads warm and keep warm the IV fluid bags. In use, the satchel is placed on top of the chest of a patient so that the satchel warms the patient from the outside while the warmed IV fluid warms the patient from the inside.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONThe present invention relates generally to emergency medical procedures, and more specifically to maintaining intraveneous fluids at usable temperatures, particularly at remote sites under arctic conditions.Intravenous ("IV") fluids must be kept at usable temperatures, generally above 98.6.degree. F. This presents an unusually severe challenge at remote sites in artic conditions. In the past, emergency medical rescuers would try to keep IV fluids warm by putting bags of fluid inside their parkas and attempting to use their body heat to warm the fluids. This was ineffective in that it was difficult to keep the bags from falling out of the parkas and body heat is insufficient to warm the fluids to an ideal temperature of 110.degree. F. Another problem was that once an IV is started and the IV bag is on a patient's chest, there is no longer a heat source for the fluid because the patient is already cold. Therefore, cold fluid is being delivered to a hypotherm...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

It is an advantage of the present invention that it continues to warm spare IV bags as fluid is being supplied to a patient from one of the warmed IV bags.

that it continues to warm spare IV bags as fluid is being supplied to a patient from one of the warmed IV bags.

It is another advantage of the present invention that it can be made at a very low cost.

These and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent as the description of certain representative embodiments proceeds.

The present invention provides a fast and safe apparatus and method for warming and keeping warm bags of IV fluid at remote sites in arctic conditions. The unique discovery of the present invention is that a sealable satchel containing pockets for holding chemical heating pads and webbing for holding corresponding bags of IV fluid next to the pockets provides a fast and safe apparatus for warming and keeping warm bags of IV fluid for use at remote sites under arctic conditions.

Accordingly, the present invention is directed to a warmer for intravenous fluids, comprising a flexible satchel, including first and second generally rectangular sides, the sides connected along a mutual edge to form a folding seam for closing the two sides together, the two sides and the satchel having corresponding insides and outsides, hook and fabric reclosable fastening strips along at least a portion of the inside of the edges of the first and second sides for securing the satchel when closed, four pockets sewn onto the inside of the first side for holding four chemical heating pads, and web straps over the inside of the second side for holding in place four intravenous fluid bags.

Problems solved by technology

This presents an unusually severe challenge at remote sites in artic conditions.

This was ineffective in that it was difficult to keep the bags from falling out of the parkas and body heat is insufficient to warm the fluids to an ideal temperature of 110.degree. F.

Another problem was that once an IV is started and the IV bag is on a patient's chest, there is no longer a heat source for the fluid because the patient is already cold.

Therefore, cold fluid is being delivered to a hypothermic patient, worsening his or her condition.

A commercial IV fluid warmer is available for about $300.00, but it requires external 120 volt power, which is generally unavailable in remote arctic regions.

Unfortunately, the extreme cold of arctic regions substantially reduces the performance of batteries, so much so that, for example, in the case of battery-powered radios, the problem of keeping those radios running is already so difficult that attempting to keep another battery-powered device in operation would be more trouble than it is worth.

Not only does the extreme cold reduce the life of the batteries, but they are also prone to becoming cold soaked, rendering a radio useless.

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