Container for medical devices

• US 7,766,163 B2
• Filed: 01/22/2007
• Issued: 08/03/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 01/20/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Coloplast A/S
• Original Assignee: Coloplast A/S
• Inventors: Tanghoej, Allan
• Primary Examiner(s): BUI, LUAN KIM
• Application Number:
  US12/087,861
• Publication Number:
  US 20090008279A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,289 Days
• Field of Search: 206/205, 206/210, 206/363, 206/364, 206/365, 206/368, 604/171, 604/172, 604/263, 604/265
• US Class Current: 206/364
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 50/30 Containers specially adapted for packaging, protecting, dispensing, collecting or disposing of surgical or diagnostic appliances or instruments for wound clamps A61B17/10; for ligaturing clips A61B17/122; packages or dispensers for surgical gloves or finger-stalls A61B42/40
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 25/002 Packages specially adapted therefor combined with means for introducing catheters, e.g. dispensers, A61M25/0113; catheter kit packages for surgical articles A61B50/30
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 25/0111 Aseptic insertion devices

Abstract

The present invention relates to a package comprising a container defining a compartment for containing a liquid and at least partly a medical device. The compartment extends in a longitudinal direction from a bottom of the container towards an opening of the container, wherein a first section of the compartment has a cross-sectional area which is smaller than a cross-sectional area of a second section of the compartment, and where the first section is arranged between the opening and the second section. As the cross-sectional area of the first section is smaller than the cross-sectional area of the second section the first section will function as a stop for the liquid in case the container is placed in a horizontal orientation.

Claims

1. A catheter package comprising:

a coated telescopic catheter having hydrophilic properties when wetted by a liquid;

a predetermined volume of the liquid wherein the predetermined volume of the liquid is sufficient to completely wet the coated areas of the catheter through agitation;

a container defining a compartment for containing the predetermined volume of the liquid and at least partially containing the telescopic catheter, the container having a medial longitudinal axis that terminates in an opening in a first end and a bottom wall at a second end, and a generally circular cross section transverse to the medial longitudinal axis;

the container further including;

a tapered wall extending from the bottom wall to a first section, wherein the first section has an inner shoulder having a cross sectional area that is smaller than a cross sectional area of a second section disposed between the shoulder and the opening so as to form a subcompartment liquid receptacle sized to retain the predetermined volume of liquid between the inner shoulder and the bottom wall when the medial longitudinal axis is horizontally disposed;

at least three linear support members extending parallel to the medial longitudinal axis and having a curved cross section corresponding to a curvature of the catheter, the three linear support members providing a catheter receiving area between the three support members sized to receive the coated telescopic catheter and positioned to provide a gap between each adjacent support member that is smaller than a diameter of the coated telescopic catheter and further configure to provide a channel between each pair of linear support members that contains a sufficient volume to act as the subcompartment liquid receptacle.

2. A package according to claim 1,

wherein the subcompartment liquid receptacle is defined by a plane, tangential to the smallest circumference of the first section of the compartment and parallel to the longitudinal axis of the compartment.

3. A package according to claim 1, wherein the container is elongated and has a dimension which is larger in the longitudinal direction than the diametrical dimension of any cross-sectional area of the container.

4. A package according to claim 1, wherein a third section of the compartment has a cross-sectional area which is larger than the cross-sectional area of the first section, and that the third section is arranged between the opening and the first section.

5. A package according to claim 1, wherein the catheter comprises a distal end and a proximal end, and a connector attached to the distal end of the catheter, and that the outer circumference of at least a part of said connector is larger than the circumference of at least a part of the first section of the compartment.

6. A package according to claim 5, wherein the connector, when placed in the compartment of the container, projects beyond the opening of the container.

7. A package according to claim 1, wherein the telescopic catheter includes a proximal section and a distal section, both sections forming a part of a conduit and where the two sections are capable of being arranged in a collapsed configuration and an expanded configuration where the extent of the conduit in the collapsed configuration is smaller than the extent of the conduit in the expanded configuration.