Lung aerosol collection device

• US 8,821,409 B2
• Filed: 12/21/2009
• Issued: 09/02/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 12/23/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: United States Department Of Health And Human Services (Government of the United States of America), Georgia Tech Research Corporation (University System of Georgia)
• Original Assignee: The United States of America As Represented By The Secretary of Agriculture, Georgia Tech Research Corporation (University System of Georgia)
• Inventors: Ku, David N., Anderson, Larry J., Midha, Prem A., Bergman, Harris L., Scholz, Tamera
• Primary Examiner(s): Towa, Rene
• Assistant Examiner(s): ABOUELELA, MAY A
• Application Number:
  US13/141,908
• Publication Number:
  US 20120004571A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,716 Days
• Field of Search: 600/562, 600/529, 600/543, 600/532
• US Class Current: 600/562
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2010/0087 Breath samples
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/082 Evaluation by breath analysis, e.g. determination of the chemical composition of exhaled breath A61B5/083, A61B5/091 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/097 Devices for facilitating collection of breath or for directing breath into or through measuring devices
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 33/497 of gaseous biological material, e.g. breath

Abstract

A device for collecting material from lung aerosols. The device functions by collecting aerosols from the lower airway separated from material in the by collecting air from the upper airway in a chamber that when full causes the remaining exhaled aerosols from the lungs to be captured by a filter. The filter collects sample of material from the separated lung aerosols.

Claims

1. A process of sampling aerosolized lung material comprising:

providing a collection device comprising a conduit having a first open end and a second end, said conduit connected to a filter;

separating upper airway fluid from aerosolized lung material lower airway fluid by inserting said first open end of said collection device a distance posterior to at least one tooth of a subject, wherein the first open end is located in the oral cavity of the subject, and sampling the aerosolized lung material by passing the aerosolized lung material through said conduit, while the first open end is located in the oral cavity of the subject, said aerosolized lung material lower airway fluid traversing said filter to trap aerosolized material in said filter.

2. The process of claim 1 wherein said distance is 5 millimeters or more posterior to at least one tooth of the subject.

3. The process of claim 1 wherein said distance is between 5 and 80 millimeters posterior to at least one tooth of the subject.

4. The process of claim 1 wherein said distance is from 20 to 30 millimeters posterior to at least one tooth of the subject.

5. The process of claim 1 wherein said device further comprises an identifiable position on said conduit between said first open end and said second end, said position defining said distance during collection of aerosolized material from a lung.

6. The process of claim 1 wherein said device further comprises a shaft fluidly connected to said conduit;

at least a portion of said shaft between said conduit and said filter.

7. The process of claim 1 wherein said device further comprises a chamber fluidly connected to said conduit at said second end.

8. A process of discriminatorily sampling lower airway material comprising:

providing a collection device comprising a conduit having a first open end and a second end, said conduit connected to a sampling apparatus;

separating upper airway fluid from lower airway aerosolized material by inserting said first open end of said collection device a distance posterior to at least one tooth of a subject, wherein the first open end is located in the oral cavity of the subject; and

contacting said lower airway aerosolized material with said sampling apparatus to sample the aerosolized lung material by passing the aerosolized lung material through said conduit, while the first open end is located in the oral cavity of the subject.

9. The process of claim 8 wherein said sampling apparatus is a filter or a detector.

10. The process of claim 8 wherein said distance is greater than 5 millimeters posterior to at least one tooth of the subject.

11. The process of claim 8 wherein said distance is between 5 and 80 millimeters posterior to at least one tooth of the subject.

12. The process of claim 8 wherein said distance is between 20 and 30 millimeters posterior to at least one tooth of the subject.

13. The process of claim 8 wherein said material is an analyte.

14. The process of claim 13 further comprising:

detecting the presence or absence of said analyte interacting with said sampling apparatus.