Gas-Permeable Membrane Drip Chamber for Enteral Feeding
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Solution Overview
Problem
In enteral feeding systems, gastric gases can backflow through feeding tubes and cause spilling, leaks, or blockages, especially in infants who cannot release gases naturally, leading to inefficiencies and complications in nutrient delivery.
Innovation Solution
A feeding system with a gas-permeable membrane resistant to liquid spillage, integrated into a drip chamber of a syringe or container, allows gastric gases to escape while preventing fluid leakage, combined with a hanging hook for gravity feeding, and optional one-way valves to prevent backflow.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a traditional syringe is used for enteral feeding, then fluid delivery is simple, but gastric gases cause backflow, spilling, and blockages
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies a gas-permeable membrane with porous structure in the drip chamber that allows gas molecules to pass through while blocking liquid molecules. This selective permeability enables gastric gases to escape preventing backflow blockages, while maintaining liquid containment to prevent spilling and leakage during feeding.
Solution Approach 2:
The gas-permeable membrane acts as an intermediary barrier between the internal feeding chamber and external environment. It mediates the interaction between gastric gases and the feeding system by allowing gas passage while preventing liquid backflow, thus solving the contradiction between gas venting and liquid containment.
2Reliability
If a gas-permeable membrane is added to prevent gas backflow, then leakage is reduced, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The gas-permeable membrane with its porous structure provides a sophisticated solution that prevents liquid leakage while allowing gas escape. The porous material's selective permeability enables it to block liquid molecules larger than gas molecules, achieving reliable liquid containment without requiring complex mechanical valves or seals.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces traditional mechanical sealing systems (valves, stoppers, tight seals) with a gas-permeable membrane that uses selective permeability to achieve both gas venting and liquid containment. This substitution eliminates the need for complex mechanical components while improving reliability.
3Productivity
If gravity feeding is used with hanging hook, then fluid delivery is simple and efficient, but control over delivery rate is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The system provides dynamic control over fluid delivery by allowing the hanging hook to be positioned at different heights, changing the gravitational force and thus the delivery rate. The system can transition between rapid gravity feeding and controlled slow feeding by adjusting the hook position, enabling both high productivity and operational flexibility.
Solution Approach 2:
The hanging hook is pre-positioned at appropriate heights to establish the desired delivery rate before feeding begins. This preliminary positioning allows the system to achieve controlled delivery without requiring active control during the feeding process, maintaining simplicity while enabling rate control.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The system effectively mitigates leakage and spilling of nutrients, ensuring controlled and efficient delivery of nutritive fluids to patients by allowing gas passage while maintaining liquid containment, thus preventing blockages and overflows.
Implementation Method 1
The container is provided with a gas-permeable membrane that is resistant to liquid spillage, typically a hydrophobic membrane. Because the membrane is gas-permeable but resistant to liquid leakage, the attendant problems of leakage and spilling of formula may be mitigated.
Implementation Method 2
a gas-permeable membrane that is resistant to liquid spillage, typically a hydrophobic membrane
Implementation Method 3
A hanging hook may be provided to elevate the container relative to the patient to enable gravity feeding of nutritive fluid through the patient
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed is a system for administrating fluids to a patient, such as an infant. The system comprises a container that defines a drip chamber, a source of nutritive fluid fluidically communicating with the drip chamber, and a tube connecting the drip chamber to the gastric cavity of a patient, the chamber including a membrane that is gas-permeable but that is resistant to fluid passage. The system allows fluids to be introduced to the patient and for gastric gases to be released while they are resistant to the leak and spillage.