Catheter Tip Repositioning Assembly for Occlusion Clearance
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Solution Overview
Problem
Catheters often become occluded at their tips due to fibrin sheath or thrombus formation, leading to impaired fluid flow and difficulty in blood withdrawal, necessitating additional needle sticks for vein access.
Innovation Solution
A catheter assembly with a wedge adapter and control features like tabs, handles, or dials that manipulate the catheter tip position within the vasculature to clear obstructions and facilitate blood draw without additional needle sticks.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If the catheter is left inserted in the patient for more than a day, then the catheter becomes susceptible to complications and obstructions that impede fluid flow, but removing the catheter requires additional needle sticks causing additional pain for the patient
Solution Approach 1:
The catheter assembly incorporates a movable wedge adapter that can be dynamically repositioned along the catheter shaft to change the catheter tip position within the blood vessel. This dynamic repositioning capability allows the catheter to adapt to changes in vessel anatomy and avoid obstructions like fibrin sheaths and thrombus that form during prolonged dwell time, thereby maintaining reliability without requiring removal.
Solution Approach 2:
The device enables changing the spatial parameters of the catheter tip position within the vasculature through manipulation of the wedge adapter. By adjusting the position of the wedge adapter, the catheter tip can be repositioned to locations that favor improved blood flow and avoid occlusions, thus maintaining functionality during prolonged insertion.
2Productivity
If the catheter tip is repositioned within the vein by applying traction, then blood draw success and catheter functionality improve by avoiding occlusions, but this requires manipulation of the catheter which may cause patient discomfort
Solution Approach 1:
The wedge adapter serves as an intermediary mechanism between the catheter shaft and the catheter tip. It translates controlled manipulation at the proximal end into precise repositioning of the catheter tip at the distal end, enabling blood draw success without requiring direct manipulation of the catheter tip within the vessel, thereby reducing patient discomfort.
Solution Approach 2:
The catheter assembly is segmented into distinct functional components including the catheter shaft, movable wedge adapter, and catheter tip. This segmentation allows independent control of the catheter tip position through the wedge adapter while keeping the main catheter body stable, enabling blood draw success with minimal patient discomfort.
3Adaptability or versatility
If an additional needle stick is used to provide vein access for blood collection during catheter dwell period, then blood sample can be obtained, but it causes additional pain for the patient and increases material costs
Solution Approach 1:
The catheter assembly is designed with multi-functionality, serving both as a fluid infusion device and a blood collection device. The movable wedge adapter enables the same catheter to perform both functions without requiring additional needle sticks, thereby achieving blood collection capability while eliminating the harmful effects of repeated needle sticks.
Solution Approach 2:
The catheter assembly performs self-service by using its own repositioning mechanism to enable blood collection during dwell period. The wedge adapter allows the catheter to reposition itself to optimal locations for blood draw, eliminating the need for additional needle sticks and reducing both patient pain and material costs.
Data Source
AI summary
A catheter assembly may include a catheter adapter having a proximal end, a distal end, and a lumen extending therebetween. A wedge adapter may be retained within the lumen and have a wedge coupled thereto. The wedge may be configured to retain an end of a catheter such that a tip of the catheter extends through the distal end of the catheter adapter. A control feature may extend through an end or side wall of the catheter adapter. The control feature may be configured to manipulate the wedge to control a position of the tip of the catheter to open a fluid path within a vasculature.