DEVICE FOR DETECTING MOISTURE FOR USE WITH A DEVICE FOR MONITORING AN ACCESS TO A PATIENT, IN PARTICULAR FOR MONITORING THE VASCULAR ACCESS IN AN EXTRACORPOREAL BLOOD TREATMENT

• US 20130053754A1
• Filed: 03/23/2011
• Published: 02/28/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 03/23/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fresenius Medical Care Deutschland GmbH (Fresenius SE & Co. KGaA)
• Original Assignee: Fresenius Medical Care Deutschland GmbH (Fresenius SE & Co. KGaA)
• Inventors: Heppe, John
• Granted Patent: US 9,119,916 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 604/6.16
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/00 Measuring for diagnostic purposes radiation diagnosis A61B6/00; diagnosis by ultrasonic, sonic or infrasonic waves A61B8/00; Identification of persons
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 13/15666 Wrapping formed fibrous webs or pads, e.g. the pads being formed by uniting pad pieces cut from fibrous webs
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 13/42 with wetness indicator or alarm
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2013/424 having an electronic device
• CPC Class Codes: A61L 15/56 Wetness-indicators or colourants
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 1/3653 Interfaces between patient blood circulation and extra-corporal blood circuit
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 1/3656 Monitoring patency or flow at connection sites; Detecting disconnections
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 1/3659 Cannulae pertaining to extracorporeal circulation
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2207/00 Methods of manufacture, assembly or production
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/16836 by sensing tissue properties at the infusion site, e.g. for detecting infiltration detecting tissue temperature for diagnostic purposes A61M39/0247
• CPC Class Codes: D03D 1/0088 Fabrics having an electronic function

Abstract

A device for detecting moisture for use with a device for monitoring an access to a patient for an extracorporeal blood treatment apparatus is described. The device for detecting moisture is constituted as a two-dimensionally extending fabric to be placed on the patient'"'"'s skin, having an electrically conductive structure as a moisture sensor and constituted by non-conductive and conductive warp and weft threads configured to produce in the woven fabric a defined electrically conductive structure through spatial separation of the warp and weft threads. By the use of conductive warp and weft threads, an electrically conductive structure can be constituted having sections running in different directions, thereby creating a moisture sensor exhibiting a particularly high degree of sensitivity. The electrically conductive structure is preferably terminated with a terminating resistor, preferably not a component part but rather part of a connection part of the device, so that production is simplified.

Claims

1-24. -24. (canceled)

25. A device for detecting moisture for use with a device for monitoring an access to a patient for an apparatus with which at least one of a fluid is fed to the patient and a fluid is carried away from the patient via a hose line, in particular for monitoring a vascular access in an extracorporeal blood treatment, wherein a patient'"'"'s blood is carried away from the patient via an arterial hose line which has an arterial cannula and is fed to the patient via a venous hose line which has a venous puncture cannula, the device for detecting moisture comprising:

a two-dimensionally extending fabric to be placed onto a patient'"'"'s skin, said two-dimensionally extending fabric comprising an electrically conductive structure as a moisture sensor,

wherein the two-dimensionally extending fabric is a textile two-dimensionally extending fabric comprising non-conductive warp threads, non-conductive weft threads, conductive warp threads and conductive weft threads, the conductive and non-conductive warp and weft threads being disposed such that the electrically conductive structure is constituted.

26. The device according to claim 25, wherein the electrically conductive structure comprises a first strip conductor and a second strip conductor, ends of the first and second strip conductors being constituted as terminal contacts, and the first strip conductor and the second strip conductor being disposed lying beside one another in a plurality of sections.

27. The device according to claim 25, wherein the electrically conductive structure comprises a strip conductor constituted as a closed conductor loop, ends of the strip conductor being constituted as terminal contacts, and the strip conductor comprising a plurality of sections disposed lying beside one another.

28. The device according to claim 25, wherein the electrically conductive structure comprises a plurality of electrically conductive sections running in a first direction and a plurality of electrically conductive sections running in a second direction, the first and second directions being at right angles to one another.

29. The device according to claim 25, wherein the textile two-dimensionally extending fabric is constituted at least partially as a woven fabric with a plurality of layers.

30. The device according to claim 29, wherein the electrically conductive and electrically non-conductive warp and weft threads are disposed in the multi-layer woven fabric such that:

a layer to be placed on the patient'"'"'s skin, which is non-conductive,

a layer in which electrically conductive sections of a strip conductor run in a first direction, and

a layer in which electrically conductive sections of the strip conductor run in a second direction, are constituted.

31. The device according to claim 30, wherein the electrically conductive and electrically non-conductive warp and weft threads are disposed in the multi-layer woven fabric such that an intermediate layer, which is not electrically conductive, is situated between the layer in which the sections of the strip conductor run in the first direction and the layer in which the sections of the strip conductor run in the second direction.

32. The device according to claim 30, wherein, in order to create electrical contact points, electrically conductive warp threads partially change position in the multi-layer woven fabric, such that electrically conductive warp and weft threads come into contact at points of intersection.

33. The device according to claim 26, wherein the sections of the strip conductors are formed by one of a plurality of electrically conductive warp threads and a plurality of electrically conductive weft threads running beside one another.

34. The device according to claim 33, wherein the textile two-dimensionally extending fabric is cut out such that a part of the one of the plurality of electrically conductive warp threads and the plurality of electrically conductive weft threads running beside one another is severed.

35. The device according to claim 34, wherein the textile two-dimensionally extending fabric comprises a circular cutout or a cross-shaped cutout.

36. The device according to claim 25, wherein the textile two-dimensionally extending fabric is U-shaped.

37. The device according to claim 25, wherein the textile two-dimensionally extending fabric is circular.

38. The device according to claim 26, wherein the textile two-dimensionally extending fabric comprises a tab on which the terminal contacts are disposed.

39. The device according to claim 25, wherein the textile two-dimensionally extending fabric comprises a section with a cutout and a section with a cover for the cutout, wherein the electrically conductive structure is constituted such that the textile two-dimensionally extending fabric is sensitive to moisture at an upper side.

40. A device for monitoring an access to a patient for an apparatus with which at least one of a fluid is fed to the patient and a fluid is carried away from the patient via a hose line, in particular for monitoring a vascular access in an extracorporeal blood treatment, wherein a patient'"'"'s blood is carried away from the patient via an arterial hose line which has an arterial cannula and is fed to the patient via a venous hose line which has a venous puncture cannula, the device for monitoring comprising:

a device for detecting moisture according to claim 25.

41. The device according to claim 40, further comprising:

an evaluation unit which can be connected to the device for detecting moisture.

42. The device according to claim 41, further comprising:

a connection part to which the device for detecting moisture can be connected.

43. The device according to claim 42, wherein the connection part comprises four terminal contacts, two of the four terminal contacts being connected to a connection cable in order to produce an electrical connection between the evaluation unit and the device for detecting moisture, and a remaining two of the four terminal contacts being connected electrically to one another via a terminating resistor.

44. The device according to claim 43, wherein the connection part is constituted as a clamping device for clamping the textile two-dimensionally extending fabric.

45. A blood treatment apparatus with an extracorporeal blood circuit, comprising:

an arterial blood line with an arterial cannula and a venous blood line with a venous cannula, and

a device for monitoring the vascular access according to claim 40.

46. A method for production of devices for detecting moisture for use with a device for monitoring an access to a patient for an apparatus with which at least one of a fluid is fed to the patient and a fluid is carried away from the patient via a hose line, in particular for monitoring a vascular access in an extracorporeal blood treatment, wherein a patient'"'"'s blood is carried away from the patient via an arterial hose line which has an arterial cannula and is fed to the patient via a venous hose line which has a venous puncture cannula, the method comprising:

weaving a textile two-dimensionally extending fabric comprising non-conductive warp threads, non-conductive weft threads, conductive warp threads and conductive weft threads, the conductive and non-conductive warp and weft threads being disposed such that the conductive and non-conductive warp and weft threads form an electrically conductive structure, and

separating individual devices for detecting moisture into single units.

47. The method according to claim 46, further comprising:

applying an adhesive layer on a side of the textile two-dimensionally extending fabric to be placed on a patient'"'"'s skin, and

applying a covering material covering the adhesive layer.

48. The method according to claim 47, wherein the adhesive layer is impermeable to moisture.