MEDICAL FLUID COUPLING PORT WITH GUIDE FOR REDUCTION OF CONTAMINATION
First Claim
1. A medical fluid coupling comprising:
- a female port of a first medical fluid system component including a proximal port end constructed and arranged to sealingly engage a male port coupling; and
a port guide defining a sidewall that surrounds the female port and extends from a distal end of the female port to a proximal guide end, the proximal guide end being open to receive the male port coupling and located proximally at a spacing from the proximal port end, so as to prevent contaminating contact with the female port and aid in guiding the male port coupling into alignment and engagement with the proximal port of the female port.
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Accused Products
Abstract
This invention provides a female medical coupling port with an integrated port guide to enable more accurate and precise coupling of a male port coupling (such as the cannula of a syringe) and to prevent port exposure to non-sterile objects. The male and female ports can be arranged according to standard dimensions for male and female luer taper fittings recognized by ANSI and by ISO. This guide-shielded port is usable with the standard ANSI and ISO male cannula widely used in the medical field. In an embodiment the female port is used in medical fluid systems to receive a blunt male cannula, such as those found in the luer lock fitting of needle-less syringes and IV tubing systems to establish a mechanical coupling. Female ports allow coupling of devices (e.g. syringes and IV tubing) to a variety of medical applications including stopcocks, minimum fluid displacement medical couplings, female-to-female adapters, port dead-end caps, IV extension sets, pressure-monitoring devices, etc. The port guide can be constructed as a unitary part of the port, or can be a retrofittable structure that is either snapped into place on, for example, a female port stem, or slid onto a port, such as a minimum displacement fluid coupling. Appropriate drain ports can be provided in the port guide to prevent capture of excess fluid.
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Citations
20 Claims
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1. A medical fluid coupling comprising:
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a female port of a first medical fluid system component including a proximal port end constructed and arranged to sealingly engage a male port coupling; and a port guide defining a sidewall that surrounds the female port and extends from a distal end of the female port to a proximal guide end, the proximal guide end being open to receive the male port coupling and located proximally at a spacing from the proximal port end, so as to prevent contaminating contact with the female port and aid in guiding the male port coupling into alignment and engagement with the proximal port of the female port. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
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13. A port guide for use with a female externally threaded luer taper medical fluid coupling port comprising:
a sidewall that surrounds the port and extends from a distal end of the port to a proximal guide end, the proximal guide end being open and having an inner diameter constructed and arranged to receive a male port coupling having an internally threaded sleeve, and the proximal guide end being located proximally at a spacing from the proximal port end, so as to prevent contaminating contact with the port. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16)
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17. A medical fluid coupling comprising:
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a minimum fluid displacement coupling defining a housing with a proximal externally threaded female port having a self-sealing plug adapted to selectively allow fluid flow into the housing when biased distally by an ANSI or ISO standard male internally threaded taper luer cannula; and a port guide sidewall that surrounds the female port and extends proximally to a proximal edge a predetermined spacing distance from the proximal end of the female port, the port guide sidewall defining a radial spacing in a proximal region thereof that allows the male cannula to threadingly engage the female port free of interference from the port guide sidewall. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20)
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Specification