Low cost tourniquet cuff with identification apparatus

• US 20030036771A1
• Filed: 08/14/2001
• Published: 02/20/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 08/14/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Western Clinical Engineering Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Western Clinical Engineering Ltd.
• Inventors: McEwen, James Allen, Jameson, Michael, Glinz, Kenneth L., Inkpen, Kevin Bryant
• Granted Patent: US 6,682,547 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 606/202
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/135 inflatable for measuring blood pressure A61B5/022; inflatable pressure pads A61F5/34
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/1355 Automated control means therefor
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/00482 with a code
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2562/08 Sensors provided with means for identification, e.g. barcodes or memory chips
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 90/92 coded with colour

Abstract

A low cost tourniquet cuff with identification apparatus comprises: an outer strip; an inner strip positioned against the outer strip; a gas-tight seal joining the inner strip to the outer strip to form a cuff having a physical characteristic wherein the cuff includes an inflatable bladder of a predetermined length greater than the circumference of a limb at a selected location; and a cuff connector carried on the cuff and communicating pneumatically with the bladder for releasably connecting to a tourniquet instrument to establish a gas-tight passageway between the bladder and the instrument, wherein the cuff connector includes identification means indicative of the physical characteristic and detectable by the tourniquet instrument upon establishment of the gas-tight passageway. The bladder may be formed by first joining an outer strip having varying thickness to an inner strip along the sides of the outer strip and then further joining the outer and inner strips together with gas-tight seals spaced apart by the predetermined length.

Claims

1. A low cost tourniquet cuff with identification apparatus, comprising:

an outer strip;

an inner strip positioned against the outer strip;

a gas-tight seal joining the inner strip to the outer strip to form a cuff having a physical characteristic wherein the cuff includes an inflatable bladder of a length greater than the circumference of a limb at a selected location; and

a cuff connector carried on the cuff and communicating pneumatically with the bladder for releasably connecting to a tourniquet instrument to establish a gas-tight passageway between the bladder and the instrument, wherein the cuff connector includes identification means indicative of the physical characteristic and detectable by the tourniquet instrument upon establishment of the gas-tight passageway.

2. The tourniquet cuff of claim 1 and including a tourniquet instrument responsive to the identification means for producing a signal indicative of the detected physical characteristic after establishment of the gas-tight passageway and wherein the instrument further includes means for supplying gas to the bladder through the passageway at a pressure sufficient to stop arterial blood flow into the limb distal to the cuff.

3. The tourniquet cuff of claim 1 wherein the connector is entirely formed of electrically insulating material.

4. The tourniquet cuff of claim 1 wherein the identification means is further visibly perceptible by a user of the cuff.

5. The tourniquet cuff of claim 1 wherein:

the outer strip has first and second side edges, a first thickness along the outer strip at a first predetermined distance from the first side edge and a second thickness along the outer strip at a second predetermined distance from the first side edge, wherein the second predetermined distance is greater than the first predetermined distance;

the inflatable bladder formed by the gas-tight seal has two bladder ends, two bladder sides and a bladder midline between the two bladder sides; and

wherein at the bladder ends the outer strip has the second thickness at the bladder midline and the first thickness at a location between the bladder midline and a bladder side.

6. The tourniquet cuff of claim 1 wherein:

the inner strip has side edges and a side edge surface facing away from the bladder midline along a side edge;

the gas-tight seal has an inner perimeter and an outer perimeter, and

wherein the inner strip is folded so that the side edge surface faces toward the bladder midline and is located within the outer perimeter.

7. The tourniquet cuff of claim 2 wherein the identification means is a selected color from a predetermined number of predetermined colors, each color corresponding to a predetermined physical characteristic, and wherein the instrument produces the signal by detecting the selected color.

8. The tourniquet cuff of claim 1 wherein the physical characteristic identifies the manufacturer of the cuff.

9. A low cost tourniquet system with identification apparatus, comprising:

a tourniquet cuff having an inflatable bladder of a length sufficient for encircling a limb at a selected location;

a connector carried on the cuff and communicating pneumatically with the bladder for releasably connecting the cuff to a tourniquet instrument to establish a gas-tight passageway between the bladder and the instrument, wherein the connector includes identification means indicative of a physical characteristic of the cuff; and

a tourniquet instrument for supplying pressurized gas to the bladder through the gas-tight passageway established by the connector, wherein the instrument includes detection means responsive to the identification means after establishment of the gas-tight passageway for producing a signal indicative of the physical characteristic.

10. A low cost tourniquet cuff, comprising:

an outer strip having first and second side edges, a first thickness along the outer strip at a first predetermined distance from the first side edge and a second thickness along the outer strip at a second predetermined distance from the first side edge, wherein the second predetermined distance is greater than the first predetermined distance;

an inner strip positioned against the outer strip;

a gas-tight seal joining the outer strip to the inner strip to form an inflatable bladder having two bladder ends, a bladder length between the two ends greater than the circumference of a limb at a selected location, two bladder sides and a bladder midline between the two bladder sides; and

wherein at the bladder ends the outer strip has the second thickness at the bladder midline and the first thickness at a location between the bladder midline and a bladder side.

11. The tourniquet cuff of claim 10, wherein:

the inner strip has side edges and a side edge surface facing away from the bladder midline along a side edge;

the gas-tight seal has an inner perimeter and an outer perimeter, and wherein the inner strip is folded so that the side edge surface faces toward the bladder midline and is located within the outer perimeter.

12. The tourniquet cuff of claim 10 and including a cuff connector communicating pneumatically with the bladder for releasably connecting to a tourniquet instrument to establish a gas-tight passageway between the bladder and the instrument, wherein the cuff connector includes identification means indicative of a physical characteristic of the cuff and detectable by the tourniquet instrument upon establishment of the gas-tight passageway.

13. A low cost tourniquet cuff for stopping blood flow into a patient'"'"'s limb, comprising:

a first strip having first and second side edges, a midline equidistant from the first and second side edges, and a first side edge surface facing away from the midline along the first side edge;

a second strip positioned against the first strip;

a gas-tight seal having an inner perimeter and an outer perimeter and joining the first and second strips to form an inflatable bladder having a length greater than the circumference of a limb at a selected location; and

wherein the first strip is folded so that the first side edge surface faces toward the midline and is located within the outer perimeter.

14. The tourniquet cuff of claim 13 wherein

the second strip has a first side edge and a first stiffness along the first side edge, and a second stiffness along the strip at a predetermined distance from the first side edge that is greater than the first stiffness;

the inflatable bladder has two ends, a length between the two ends greater than the circumference of a limb at a selected location, two sides and a bladder midline between the two sides; and

wherein at the bladder ends the second strip has the second stiffness at the bladder midline and the first stiffness at a location between the bladder midline and a bladder side.

15. The tourniquet cuff of claim 13 wherein the first strip has a second side edge surface facing away from the midline along the second side edge, and the first strip is further folded so that the second side edge surface faces toward the midline and is located within the outer perimeter.

16. The tourniquet cuff of claim 14 wherein

the first strip has a top surface, a bottom surface, and a first width;

the second strip has a top surface, a bottom surface positioned against the top surface of the first strip and has a second width narrower than the first width;

the first strip is folded over the second strip so that the top surface of the first strip is in contact with the top surface of the second strip, and

the seal joins the top surface of the first strip to the top surface of the second strip.

17. The tourniquet cuff of claim 16 wherein the seal further joins the top surface of the first strip to the bottom surface of the second strip.

18. The tourniquet cuff of claim 13 and including a connector communicating pneumatically with the bladder for releasably connecting the cuff to a tourniquet instrument to establish a gas-tight passageway between the bladder and the instrument, wherein the connector includes identification means indicative of a physical characteristic of the cuff.

19. A method of making a low cost tourniquet cuff comprising the steps of

positioning an inner strip against an outer strip having first and second side edges, a first thickness along the first side edge and a second thickness along the strip at a predetermined distance from the first side edge that is greater than the first thickness;

joining the outer and inner strips near the first and second side edges with gas-tight seals, thereby forming the sides of an inflatable bladder with a bladder midline equidistant from the bladder sides; and

further joining the outer and inner strips together with gas-tight seals spaced apart by a predetermined length greater than the circumference of a limb at a selected location, thereby forming the ends of the inflatable bladder, wherein at the bladder ends the thickness of the outer strip is greater at the bladder midline than at a bladder side.