Blood transfusion circuit and blood transfusion kit

Abstract

[Problem] To provide a blood transfusion circuit capable of shortening the time required for blood transfusion, and a blood transfusion kit having the same. [Solution] This blood transfusion circuit has: an inflow port 51 that communicates with a blood bag 20; an inflow channel 50 that communicates with the inflow port 51; a branching part 62 that splits the inflow channel 50 into a plurality of branch channels 54, 55 proceeding from upstream to downstream; and blood transfusion parts 71, 72 provided individually at the downstream ends of the plurality of branch channels 54, 55, respectively.

Description

Blood transfusion circuit and blood transfusion kit

[0001] The present invention relates to a blood transfusion circuit capable of transfusing blood from a blood bag to a patient and a blood transfusion kit including the same.

[0002] Blood transfusion to a patient is normally performed by stocking blood products that have been collected in advance and subjected to certain processing such as leukocyte removal, and using the same as needed. On the other hand, in situations where blood products are insufficient, or in emergencies, for example when a large amount of blood transfusion is required in a short time for a patient with massive bleeding, an emergency blood transfusion kit may be used.

[0003] The blood transfusion kit includes a blood collection unit that collects blood from a blood donor, a blood bag that stores the collected blood, and a blood transfusion circuit that administers blood from the blood bag to a patient. The blood transfusion circuit is provided with a filter for removing leukocytes, and blood that has passed through the filter can be transfused to the patient. Examples of such blood transfusion kits include those disclosed in Patent Document 1, for instance.

[0004] Japanese Patent No. 7361605

[0005] In conventional blood transfusion kits, since collected blood is passed through a filter, time is required from blood collection to blood transfusion. The blood transfusion circuit of the blood transfusion kit disclosed in Patent Document 1 allows selection of a route that does not pass through a filter in an emergency. However, since the blood transfusion circuit of a conventional blood transfusion kit has only one blood transfusion route from the blood bag to the patient, a sufficient blood flow rate during transfusion cannot be secured, and blood transfusion takes time.

[0006] The present invention has been made to solve the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a blood transfusion circuit capable of shortening the time required for blood transfusion and a blood transfusion kit including the same.

[0007] (1) The blood transfusion circuit according to the present invention that achieves the above object comprises: an inflow port communicating with a blood bag; an inflow channel communicating with the inflow port; a branching portion that branches the inflow channel into a plurality of branch channels from upstream to downstream; and one blood transfusion unit provided at each of the downstream ends of the plurality of branch channels.

[0008] The transfusion circuit (1) configured as described above has a branching point for the blood flow path, allowing for transfusion to be performed on the patient at multiple transfusion points, thus shortening the time required for transfusion.

[0009] (2) In the transfusion circuit described in (1) above, the lengths of the multiple branched channels from the branching point to the transfusion point may be the same. This allows the transfusion circuit to supply the same amount of blood to the multiple transfusion points, enabling smooth transfusion.

[0010] (3) In the transfusion circuit of (1) or (2) above, the inflow channel may have an upstream branch on the inlet side of the branch, and the inflow channel downstream of the upstream branch may have a first channel with the branch located at its downstream end and a second channel with a confluence located at its downstream end that merges with one of the branch channels. This allows the transfusion circuit to choose whether to perform a transfusion from one transfusion site via the second channel or from multiple transfusion sites via the first channel, enabling transfusion according to the situation.

[0011] (4) In the transfusion circuit described in (3) above, a filter for removing white blood cells from the blood may be placed in the second channel. This allows the transfusion circuit to normally transfuse blood from which white blood cells have been removed to the patient via the second channel.

[0012] (5) In the transfusion circuit of (3) or (4) above, the tube having the inflow channel may be equipped with a first clamp for switching between the flow state and the occluded state of blood in the first channel, and a second clamp for switching between the flow state and the occluded state of blood in the second channel. This makes it possible to easily switch between performing a transfusion from one transfusion site or from multiple transfusion sites.

[0013] (6) In the transfusion circuit of (1) or (2) above, the inflow channel may have an upstream branching section that branches the inflow channel into three or more channels on the inlet side from the branching section, and the inflow channel downstream of the upstream branching section may have a plurality of first channels with the branching section located at the downstream end, and a second channel with a confluence section located at the downstream end that merges with the branched channels. This allows the transfusion circuit to have three or more transfusion sections, and transfusions can be performed in a shorter time.

[0014] (7) The transfusion kit according to the present invention that achieves the above objective comprises a blood bag for storing blood and one of the transfusion circuits (1) to (6) connected to the blood bag. As a result, the transfusion kit can transfuse blood to the patient from the blood bag through multiple transfusion sites, thereby shortening the time required for transfusion.

[0015] This is an explanatory diagram showing the overall configuration of the blood transfusion kit according to this embodiment. This is an explanatory diagram showing the blood bag and blood transfusion circuit arranged in the positional relationship during blood transfusion, where (a) shows the state in which the first channel is closed and the second channel is open, and (b) shows the state in which the first channel is open and the second channel is closed. This is an explanatory diagram of the blood transfusion circuit and blood bag according to the first modified example. This is an explanatory diagram of the blood transfusion circuit and blood bag according to the second modified example. This is an explanatory diagram of the blood transfusion circuit and blood bag according to the third modified example. This is an explanatory diagram of the blood transfusion circuit and blood bag according to the fourth modified example.

[0016] Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. Note that the size and proportions of the components shown in the drawings may be exaggerated for illustrative purposes and may differ from their actual size and proportions.

[0017] The transfusion kit 10 according to this embodiment includes a blood bag 20 for storing blood, a blood collection circuit 35 for collecting blood from a blood donor and guiding the collected blood to the blood bag 20, and a transfusion circuit 30 connected to the blood bag 20 for transfusing blood to a patient.

[0018] The transfusion circuit 30 and the blood collection circuit 35 are each formed by a tube structure 40 which combines a flexible tube 43 having a flow path through which blood flows along its length, and a three-way tube connector 44 that connects the tubes 43 to branch or merge the flow paths.

[0019] The blood collection circuit 35 has a blood collection channel 83 that communicates with the blood bag 20, and a blood collection section 80 provided at the tip of the blood collection channel 83 and equipped with a blood collection needle 81. The blood collection channel 83 branches midway, and the branched channel is provided with an initial blood bag 85 for storing the donor's initial blood flow. A blood collection pump is positioned in the blood collection channel 83 to draw blood from the donor as needed.

[0020] The transfusion circuit 30 is formed by an inflow port 42 connected to a blood bag 20, a tube 43 and a three-way tube connector 44, and a first transfusion section 71 and a second transfusion section 72, each equipped with a transfusion needle 78. All tubes 43 constituting the transfusion circuit 30 have the same inner diameter. The inflow port 42 has an inlet 51 that communicates with the blood bag 20 and serves as the entry point for blood into the transfusion circuit 30.

[0021] The blood transfusion circuit 30 has an inflow channel 50 downstream of the inlet 51 that communicates with the inlet 51. The inflow channel 50 branches into a first channel 52 and a second channel 53 at an upstream branching section 60. The tube 43 forming the first channel 52 is equipped with a first clamp 46 that switches between a flowing state and an occluded state of blood in the first channel 52. The tube 43 forming the second channel 53 is equipped with a second clamp 47 that switches between a flowing state and an occluded state of blood in the second channel 53.

[0022] A branching section 62 is located at the downstream end of the first channel 52. The inflow channel 50 branches into multiple channels from upstream to downstream at the branching section 62. The branched channels are the first branch channel 54 and the second branch channel 55. The first branch channel 54 and the second branch channel 55 are connected to the branching section 62 from a direction opposite to the direction in which the inflow channel 50 connects to the branching section 62. Therefore, when the inflow channel 50 is arranged to extend vertically in the direction of gravity, the first branch channel 54 and the second branch channel 55 extend at least downward from the horizontal direction in the direction of gravity. A first transfusion section 71 is provided at the downstream end of the first branch channel 54. The second branch channel 55 merges with the downstream end of the second channel 53 at the confluence section 65. A second transfusion section 72 is provided at the downstream end of the second branch channel 55. The downstream ends of the second branch channel 55 and the second channel 53 are each connected to the upper end of the confluence section 65. In other words, as viewed from the confluence section 65, both the second branch channel 55 and the second channel 53 extend in the upstream direction. Therefore, when blood flows through the second channel 53, it is difficult for blood to flow from the confluence section 65 to the second branch channel 55 side, ensuring that blood is reliably delivered to the second transfusion section.

[0023] The second channel 53 is provided with a filter 48 that removes white blood cells from the blood passing through it. The filter 48 can be formed, for example, by a mesh filter having many pores smaller in diameter than white blood cells. However, the filter 48 may be of any other type as long as it can remove white blood cells from the blood passing through it. The filter 48 may also have the function of removing other minute substances contained in the blood.

[0024] As shown in Figures 2(a) and 2(b), when performing a blood transfusion with the transfusion kit 10, the blood bag 20 is positioned above and the transfusion circuit 30 below so that the blood from the blood bag 20 flows due to gravity. At this time, the first clamp 46 provided in the first channel 52 and the second clamp 47 provided in the second channel 53 are positioned at the same height.

[0025] Figure 2(a) shows the first mode, in which the first channel 52 is occluded by the first clamp 46 and the second channel 53 is open by the second clamp 57. In the first mode, blood from the blood bag 20 does not flow through the first channel 52 but flows through the second channel 53. The blood that flows through the second channel 53 passes through the filter 48 and then through the confluence 65 and the second branch channel 55 before being transfused to the patient from the second transfusion section 72. In other words, in the first mode, only one transfusion needle 78 of the second transfusion section 72 is inserted into the patient, and the blood from the blood bag 20 passes through the filter 48 to remove white blood cells before being transfused from the second transfusion section 72. For this reason, the transfusion kit 10 in the first mode can be used for normal transfusions.

[0026] Figure 2(b) shows the second mode, in which the first channel 52 is left open by the first clamp 46 and the second channel 53 is closed by the second clamp 47. In the second mode, the blood from the blood bag 20 does not flow into the second channel 53 but flows into the first channel 52. The blood that flows into the first channel 52 flows from the branching point 62 into both the first branch channel 54 and the second branch channel 55, and is transfused from both the first transfusion point 71 and the second transfusion point 72 without the removal of white blood cells. In other words, in the second mode, the patient is punctured with two transfusion needles, one from the first transfusion point 71 and one from the second transfusion point 72, and the blood from the blood bag 20 is transfused simultaneously from both the first transfusion point 71 and the second transfusion point 72. The transfusion needles 78 of the first transfusion section 71 and the second transfusion section 72 can be used to puncture, for example, the patient's right and left arms, but each transfusion needle can be used to puncture any location on the patient. This allows for a higher flow rate of blood to be transfused compared to when transfusion is performed only from the second transfusion section 72. In addition, since the first flow path 52 does not have a filter 48, white blood cells cannot be removed from the blood, but the transfusion rate can be increased and the transfusion time can be shortened. For this reason, the second mode transfusion kit 10 can be used for emergency transfusions that require a short transfusion time. The first branched flow path 54 and the second branched flow path 55 are formed to be the same length, so the amount of blood supplied to the first transfusion section 71 and the amount of blood supplied to the second transfusion section 72 are equivalent.

[0027] During blood transfusion, a third mode may be used in which both the first channel 52 and the second channel 53 are left open. In the third mode, blood from the blood bag 20 flows through the first channel 52 and the second channel 53. The blood in the first channel 52 flows through the first branch channel 54 and the second branch channel 55. The blood in the second channel 53 passes through the filter 48 and flows from the confluence 65 to the second branch channel 55. Therefore, in the third mode, the patient is punctured with two transfusion needles, one from the first transfusion port 71 and one from the second transfusion port 72. Blood with leukocytes still attached is transfused from the first transfusion port 71, and a mixture of blood with and without leukocytes is transfused from the second transfusion port 72. In the third mode, since the second channel 53 is also used for transfusion, the blood flow rate can be increased and the transfusion time can be shortened.

[0028] Next, a first modified example of the blood transfusion circuit will be described. As shown in Figure 3, the blood transfusion circuit 31 includes a tube structure 40 formed by an inflow port 42, a tube 43, a three-way tube connector 44, and a four-way tube connector 45. The blood bag 20 is connected to the inflow port 42 and has an inlet 51 of the inflow channel 50. The inflow channel 50 has an upstream branching section 60 that branches into three channels by the four-way tube connector 45. Downstream from the upstream branching section 60, it branches into two first channels 52 and one second channel 53.

[0029] Each tube 43 forming the two first channels 52 is provided with a first clamp 46. The tube 43 forming the second channel 53 is provided with a second clamp 47. Both the first clamps 46 and the second clamps 47 are positioned at the same height. At the downstream ends of the two first channels 52, branch sections 60 are formed by three-way tube connectors 44. Downstream from one branch section 60, the channel branches into a first branch channel 54 and a second branch channel 55. Downstream from the other branch section 60, the channel branches into a second branch channel 55 which merges with the second branch channel 55 that branched from the first branch section 60 at a merging section 65, and a third branch channel 56. A filter 48 is placed in the second channel 53, and its downstream end merges with the second branch channel 55 at the merging section 65. A first transfusion section 71 is provided at the downstream end of the first branch channel 54, a second transfusion section 72 is provided at the downstream end of the second branch channel 55, and a third transfusion section 73 is provided at the downstream end of the third branch channel 56.

[0030] During blood transfusion, the system can be switched between three modes: a first mode in which the first channel 52 is occluded by two first clamps 46 and the second channel 53 is open by a second clamp 47; a second mode in which the first channel 52 is open by two first clamps 46 and the second channel 53 is occluded by a second clamp 47; and a third mode in which both the first channel 52 and the second channel 53 are open by both the first clamps 46 and the second clamps 47. In the first mode, only the second transfusion site 72 is punctured into the patient, and blood from which white blood cells have been removed by the filter 48 can be transfused. In the second mode, the first transfusion site 71, the second transfusion site 72, and the third transfusion site 73 are all punctured into the patient, and blood from which white blood cells have not been removed can be transfused simultaneously from all three sites. In the third mode, the first transfusion port 71, the second transfusion port 72, and the third transfusion port 73 are all punctured into the patient, and blood from which white blood cells have not been removed is transfused from the first transfusion port 71 and the third transfusion port 73, while blood from which white blood cells have been removed and blood from which white blood cells have not been removed is transfused from the second transfusion port 72 simultaneously. Thus, the transfusion circuit 31 may be configured to have three or more branched channels.

[0031] Next, a second modified example of the transfusion circuit will be described. As shown in Figure 4, the transfusion circuit 32 does not need to have a filter in the second channel 53 that branches off from the first channel 52 at the upstream branching section 60. In this case, even when the second channel 53 is opened by the second clamp 47, blood in which leukocytes have not been removed is transfused to the patient from the second transfusion section 72.

[0032] Next, a third modified example of the blood transfusion circuit will be described. As shown in Figure 5, the blood transfusion circuit 33 has a branching section 62 in the inflow channel 50, and downstream of the branching section 62, it branches into three channels: a first branching channel 54, a second branching channel 55, and a third branching channel 56. Clamps 46 are provided in the first branching channel 54, the second branching channel 55, and the third branching channel 56, respectively. A first transfusion section 71 is provided at the downstream end of the first branching channel 54, a second transfusion section 72 is provided at the downstream end of the second branching channel 55, and a third transfusion section 73 is provided at the downstream end of the third branching channel 56. Blood can be supplied to one to three transfusion sections by opening and closing the clamps 46. Note that no filters are provided in any of the branching channels. With this blood transfusion circuit 33, blood can be transfused to a patient simultaneously from one to three locations, thus shortening the transfusion time.

[0033] Next, a fourth modified example of the blood transfusion circuit will be described. As shown in Figure 6, the blood transfusion circuit 34 includes a first flow path 90 having a first transfusion section 71 at its downstream end, a second flow path 91 having a second transfusion section 72 at its downstream end, and a third flow path 92 having a third transfusion section 73 at its downstream end, and the first flow path 90, the second flow path 91, and the third flow path 92 may each be configured to communicate with a blood bag 20. Clamps 46 are placed in the first flow path 90, the second flow path 91, and the third flow path 92, respectively. Blood can be supplied to one to three transfusion sections by opening and closing the clamps 46. No filters are provided in any of the flow paths. With this blood transfusion circuit 34, blood can be transfused to a patient from one to three locations simultaneously, thereby shortening the transfusion time.

[0034] As described above, the transfusion circuit 30 (1) according to this embodiment has an inlet 51 communicating with a blood bag 20, an inflow channel 50 communicating with the inlet 51, a branching section 62 that branches the inflow channel 50 into a plurality of branching channels 54 and 55 from upstream to downstream, and transfusion sections 71 and 72, one of each provided at the downstream end of the plurality of branching channels 54 and 55. With the transfusion circuit 30 (1) configured in this way, the blood flow path is branched at the branching section 62 and blood can be transfused to the patient through the plurality of transfusion sections 71 and 72, thus shortening the time required for transfusion.

[0035] (2) In the transfusion circuit 30 described in (1) above, the lengths of the multiple branched channels 54 and 55 from the branching section 62 to the transfusion sections 71 and 72 may be the same. This allows the transfusion circuit 30 to supply the same amount of blood to the multiple transfusion sections 71 and 72, enabling smooth transfusion.

[0036] (3) In the transfusion circuit 30 described in (1) or (2) above, the inflow channel 50 may have an upstream branch 60 on the inlet 51 side of the branch 62, and the inflow channel 50 downstream of the upstream branch 60 may have a first channel 52 with a branch 62 located at its downstream end, and a second channel 53 with a confluence located at its downstream end that merges with one of the branch channels 54 or 55. This allows the transfusion circuit 30 to choose whether to perform a transfusion from one transfusion section 71 or 72 via the second channel 53, or from multiple transfusion sections 71 or 72 via the first channel 52, enabling transfusions to be performed according to the situation.

[0037] (4) In the transfusion circuit 30 described in (3) above, a filter for removing white blood cells from the blood may be placed in the second channel 53. This allows the transfusion circuit 30 to transfuse blood from which white blood cells have been removed via the second channel 53 to the patient under normal circumstances.

[0038] (5) In the transfusion circuit 30 described in (3) or (4) above, the tube having the inflow channel 50 may be equipped with a first clamp 46 for switching between the flow state and the occluded state of blood in the first channel 52, and a second clamp 47 for switching between the flow state and the occluded state of blood in the second channel 53. This makes it easy to switch between performing a transfusion from one transfusion section 71, 72 or from multiple transfusion sections 71, 72.

[0039] (6) In the transfusion circuit 31 described in (1) or (2) above, the inflow channel 50 may have an upstream branching section 60 that branches the inflow channel 50 into three or more channels on the inlet side 51 side from the branching section 62, and the inflow channel 50 downstream of the upstream branching section 60 may have a plurality of first channels 52 with branching sections 62 located at the downstream end, and a second channel 53 with a merging section located at the downstream end that merges with the branched channels 55. This allows the transfusion circuit 30 to have three or more transfusion sections 71, 72, and enables transfusion to be performed in a shorter time.

[0040] (7) The transfusion kit 10 according to the present invention that achieves the above objective comprises a blood bag 20 for storing blood and one of the transfusion circuits 30 (1) to (6) connected to the blood bag 20. As a result, the transfusion kit 10 can transfuse blood to the patient from the blood bag 20 through multiple transfusion sections 71 and 72, thereby shortening the time required for transfusion.

[0041] It should be noted that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and various modifications can be made by those skilled in the art within the technical framework of the present invention.

[0042] 10 Blood transfusion kit 20 Blood bag 30 Blood transfusion circuit 35 Blood collection circuit 40 Tubing structure 42 Inflow port 43 Tubing 44 Three-way tubing connector 46 First clamp 47 Second clamp 48 Filter 50 Inflow channel 51 Inlet 52 First channel 53 Second channel 54 First branch channel 55 Second branch channel 60 Upstream branch 62 Branch 63 Second branch 65 Confluence 71 First transfusion section 72 Second transfusion section 73 Third transfusion section 78 Transfusion needle 80 Blood collection section 81 Blood collection needle 83 Blood collection channel 85 Initial blood bag

Claims

1. A transfusion circuit comprising: an inlet communicating with a blood bag; an inflow channel communicating with the inlet; a branching section that branches the inflow channel into a plurality of branching channels from upstream to downstream; and a transfusion section provided at the downstream end of each of the plurality of branching channels.

2. The transfusion circuit according to claim 1, wherein each of the multiple branched channels has the same length from the branching point to the transfusion point.

3. The transfusion circuit according to claim 1, wherein the inflow channel has an upstream branch on the inlet side of the branch, and the inflow channel downstream of the upstream branch has a first channel with the branch located at its downstream end, and a second channel with a confluence located at its downstream end that merges with one of the branch channels.

4. The transfusion circuit according to claim 3, wherein a filter for removing white blood cells from the blood is placed in the second channel.

5. The transfusion circuit according to claim 3, wherein the tube having the inflow channel comprises a first clamp for switching between a blood flow state and an occluded state in the first channel, and a second clamp for switching between a blood flow state and an occluded state in the second channel.

6. The transfusion circuit according to claim 1, wherein the inflow channel has an upstream branching section that branches the inflow channel into three or more channels on the inlet side from the branching section, and the inflow channel downstream of the upstream branching section has a plurality of first channels with the branching section located at the downstream end, and a second channel with a confluence section located at the downstream end that merges with the branched channels.

7. A blood transfusion kit comprising: a blood bag for storing blood; and a transfusion circuit according to any one of claims 1 to 6, connected to the blood bag.

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