Ventilation interface for sleep apnea therapy
First Claim
1. A ventilation interface, comprising:
- (a) a nasal cannula, the cannula being a hollow, arcuate body and a semi-cylindrical bottom wall defining an air chamber, the body having cylindrical tubes at opposing ends of the body adapted for connection to ventilator supply tubes; and
(b) a pair of hollow, flexible, resilient nasal inserts, each nasal insert having a base end connected to a top wall of said nasal cannula and an open distal tip end, each nasal insert being oval in cross-section and defining a conduit forming an air passage in communication with said air chamber, each said nasal insert having a flange formed as a bead disposed about the distal tip end;
(c) wherein each said nasal insert is capable of being compressed and inserted into a patient'"'"'s naris to a patient'"'"'s mucosal membrane and being retained therein solely said flange, by the resilience of said nasal insert, and by lateral pressure against the naris from ventilator air flow through each said nasal insert.
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Accused Products
Abstract
The ventilation interface for sleep apnea therapy interfaces a ventilation device to the patient'"'"'s airways. The ventilation interface includes a pair of nasal inserts made from flexible, resilient silicone which are oval shaped in cross-section and slightly tapered from a base proximal the ventilation supply to the distal tip end. A bead flange is disposed about the exterior of each insert at the distal end of the insert. A bleed port for release of exhaled air is defined through a conical vent projecting normally to the path of the incoming air flow, and continues through a nipple extending to the exterior of the air conduit. In one embodiment, a pair of nasal inserts are integral with a nasal cannula body, with bleed ports axially aligned with each insert. In another embodiment, each insert is independently connected to a separate, thin-walled, flexible supply line.
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Citations
18 Claims
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1. A ventilation interface, comprising:
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(a) a nasal cannula, the cannula being a hollow, arcuate body and a semi-cylindrical bottom wall defining an air chamber, the body having cylindrical tubes at opposing ends of the body adapted for connection to ventilator supply tubes; and
(b) a pair of hollow, flexible, resilient nasal inserts, each nasal insert having a base end connected to a top wall of said nasal cannula and an open distal tip end, each nasal insert being oval in cross-section and defining a conduit forming an air passage in communication with said air chamber, each said nasal insert having a flange formed as a bead disposed about the distal tip end;
(c) wherein each said nasal insert is capable of being compressed and inserted into a patient'"'"'s naris to a patient'"'"'s mucosal membrane and being retained therein solely said flange, by the resilience of said nasal insert, and by lateral pressure against the naris from ventilator air flow through each said nasal insert. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
(a) a pair of barb connectors; and
(b) a pair of supply tubes, said supply tubes being connected to the cylindrical tubes at opposite ends of said nasal cannula by said barb connectors.
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7. The ventilation interface according to claim 6, further comprising a Y-connector having a first end adapted for connection to a ventilator supply hose, and a second end having a pair of ports connected to said supply tubes.
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8. The ventilation interface according to claim 1, wherein the top wall of said nasal cannula has a notch defined therein parallel to and disposed between said nasal inserts for increasing flexibility of said nasal cannula in order to bend said nasal cannula to conform to a patient'"'"'s nostril configuration.
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9. The ventilation interface according to claim 1, further comprising a pair of bleeder ports defined through the bottom wall of said nasal cannula, each said bleeder port being axially aligned with a separate one of said nasal inserts and further including an upper nipple projecting into said air chamber and a lower nipple depending from the bottom wall of said nasal cannula, the bleeder 7 port being defined through said upper and lower nipples.
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10. A ventilation interface, comprising:
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a nasal cannula, the cannula being a hollow, arcuate body and a semi-cylindrical bottom wall defining an air chamber, the body having cylindrical tubes at opposing ends of the body adapted for connection to ventilator supply tubes; and
a pair of hollow, flexible, resilient nasal inserts, each nasal insert having a base end connected to a top wall of said nasal cannula and an open distal tip end, each nasal insert being oval in cross-section and defining a conduit forming an air passage in communication with said air chamber, each said nasal insert having a flange formed as a bead disposed about the distal tip end;
wherein each said nasal insert can be adapted to be inserted into a nails and being retained therein by at least one of said flange, the resilience of said nasal insert, and by lateral pressure against the nails from ventilator air flow through each said nasal insert. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
a pair of barb connectors; and
a pair of supply tubes, said supply tubes being connected to the cylindrical tubes at opposite ends of said nasal cannula by said barb connectors.
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16. The ventilation interface according to claim 15, further comprising a Y-connector having a first end adapted for connection to a ventilator supply hose, and a second end having a pair of ports connected to said supply tubes.
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17. The ventilation interface according to claim 10, wherein the top wall of said nasal cannula has a notch defined therein parallel to and disposed between said nasal inserts for increasing flexibility of said nasal cannula in order to bend said nasal cannula to conform to a patient'"'"'s nostril configuration.
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18. The ventilation interface according to claim 10, further comprising a pair of bleeder ports defined through the bottom wall of said nasal cannula, each said bleeder port being axially aligned with a separate one of said nasal inserts and further including an upper nipple projecting into said air chamber and a lower nipple depending from the bottom wall of said nasal cannula, the bleeder port being defined through said upper and lower nipples.
Specification