Drug infusion device for neural axial and peripheral nerve tissue identification using exit pressure sensing
First Claim
Patent Images
1. An apparatus comprising:
- a fluid reservoir, an injection fluid, a pumping mechanism capable of pumping said injection fluid at a flow rate, an end adapted to be inserted into the body of a patient, wherein said end is in fluid contact with said fluid reservoir;
a sensor arranged to determine a measurement, and a controller capable of receiving said measurement, calculating the exit pressure of said injection fluid, and modulating said flow rate.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
An automatic injection device includes a drive mechanism and a sensor used to determine an internal characteristic such as a force or internal pressure generated during an injection process. This characteristic is then used as a control parameter by a microprocessor or controller to determine the exit pressure of the fluid expelled by the device. This exit pressure is then used to identify the kind of tissue in which the injection is being introduced.
-
Citations
31 Claims
-
1. An apparatus comprising:
-
a fluid reservoir, an injection fluid, a pumping mechanism capable of pumping said injection fluid at a flow rate, an end adapted to be inserted into the body of a patient, wherein said end is in fluid contact with said fluid reservoir;
a sensor arranged to determine a measurement, and a controller capable of receiving said measurement, calculating the exit pressure of said injection fluid, and modulating said flow rate. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
-
-
15. A method for administering an injection to a patient, said method comprising:
-
providing a fluid reservoir, an injection fluid, a pumping mechanism, and an end adapted for insertion into said patient, pumping said fluid from said reservoir into said patient, calculating the exit pressure of said fluid at an interface between said end and the tissue of said patient, and controlling the flow rate of said injection fluid such that said exit pressure does not exceed a pre-set maximum exit pressure. - View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27)
-
-
28. A method for administering an epidural injection into the epidural tissue space, said method comprising:
-
providing a testing fluid, an injection fluid, a pumping mechanism, and an end adapted for insertion into said patient, pumping said testing fluid into said patient, calculating the exit pressure of said testing fluid at an interface between said end and the tissue of said patient, controlling the flow rate of said injection fluid such that said exit pressure does not exceed a pre-set maximum exit pressure, identifying the loss-of-pressure associated with the entry of said end into said epidural tissue space, and pumping said injection fluid into said epidural tissue space. - View Dependent Claims (29, 30, 31)
-
Specification