Swab for collecting biological specimens

• US 9,011,358 B2
• Filed: 06/25/2012
• Issued: 04/21/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 04/01/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Copan Italia SpA
• Original Assignee: Copan Italia SpA
• Inventors: Triva, Daniele
• Primary Examiner(s): Hindenburg, Max
• Assistant Examiner(s): Pani, John
• Application Number:
  US13/531,800
• Publication Number:
  US 20120271196A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,030 Days
• Field of Search: 600/569, 600/572, 600/573, 600/582, 604 1- 3, 435/283.1, 435/307.1, 131/245, 132/218, 132/318, 151/030.3, 151/040.5, 151/041.6, 151/042, 436/810
• US Class Current: 604/1
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 10/0045 Devices for taking samples of body liquids devices for taking blood samples A61B5/15
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 13/38 Swabs having a stick-type handle, e.g. cotton tips ear cleaners other than cotton tips A61F11/006; swabs containing a liquid, e.g. in a rupturable reservoir, A61M35/006
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2200/087 Ergonomic aspects
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/0832 cylindrical, tube shaped
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 2300/161 Control and use of surface tension forces, e.g. hydrophobic, hydrophilic
• CPC Class Codes: B01L 3/5029 using swabs
• CPC Class Codes: C12M 33/02 by impregnation, e.g. using swabs or loops fluid transport using swabs B01L3/5029

Abstract

A swab for collecting biological specimens is of the type consisting of a rod terminating in a tip covered with fibers with hydrophilic properties to allow absorption of said specimens, wherein said fibers cover said tip in the form of a layer deposited by flocking.

Claims

1. A swab for collecting biological specimens to be analyzed, the swab comprising a rod terminating in a tip and a layer of fibers disposed on a surface of said tip by flocking with a flocking technique in which the fibers were deposited, in an electrostatic field, in an ordered manner perpendicularly to the surface of the tip of the swab rod, the layer of fibers having a thickness of 0.6 to 3 mm and a fiber count of 1.7 to 3.3 Dtex, said layer of fibers being configured to absorb a quantity of liquid specimens in said layer of fibers by capillarity and an amount of fiber deposited forming the flocked layer being configured to enable 40 μ

l of specimen to be absorbed in said layer of fibers on the tip of the rod.

2. The swab according to claim 1 wherein said layer of fibers is capable of absorbing a quantity of 100 μ

l of specimen in said layer of fibers on the tip of the rod.

3. The swab according to claim 1 wherein said tip of the rod has a diameter of 1 mm.

4. The swab according to claim 1 wherein said layer of fibers has a uniform thickness.

5. The swab according to claim 1 wherein said rod is a plastic rod.

6. The swab according to claim 1 wherein said rod is suitable for human clinical collection.

7. The swab according to claim 1 in which said layer of fibers is directly deposited on said tip.

8. The swab according to claim 1 in which

capillaries are defined between said fibers in said layer of fiber.

9. The swab according to claim 1 wherein said layer of fibers is configured to release a quantity of about 90% of the quantity of specimen absorbed.

10. The swab as claimed in claim 1, wherein said rod tip is rigid.

11. The swab as claimed in claim 1, wherein

said rod tip is shaped with a rounded geometry.

12. The swab as claimed in claim 1, wherein said fibers are disposed substantially parallel to each other by flocking, avoiding overlapping of fibers.

13. The swab as claimed in claim 1, wherein said fiber is made of polyester or polyamide.

14. A method of collecting biological specimen to be analyzed, the method carried out by using a swab comprising a rod terminating in a tip and a layer of fibers disposed on a surface of said tip by flocking with a flocking technique in which the fibers were deposited, in an electrostatic field, in an ordered manner perpendicularly to the surface of the tip of the swab rod, the layer of fibers having a thickness of 0.6 to 3 mm and a fiber count of 1.7 to 3.3 Dtex, said layer of fibers being configured to absorb a quantity of liquid specimens in said layer of fibers by capillarity and an amount of fiber deposited forming the flocked layer being configured to enable 40 μ

l of specimen to be absorbed in said layer of fibers on the tip of the rod, the method comprising at least the step of collecting a specimen to be analyzed by absorbing a quantity of specimen of 40 μ

l in said layer of fibers on the tip of the rod.

15. The method according to claim 14 in which said step of collecting a specimen to be analyzed comprises absorbing a quantity of 100 μ

l of specimen in said layer of fibers.

16. The method according to claim 14 in which said specimen absorbed in said layer of fibers is a liquid specimen.

17. The method according to claim 14 wherein

said fibers define capillaries in said layer of fibers conferring hydrophilic properties by capillarity to the layer of fibers.

18. The method according to claim 14 further comprising the step of storing and transporting said quantity of specimen in said layer of fibers.

19. The method according to claim 14 further comprising releasing a quantity of said specimen to be analyzed from said layer of fibers.

20. The method according to claim 14 further comprising releasing a quantity of said specimen to be analyzed from said layer of fibers by swabbing.

21. The method according to claim 14 further comprising releasing a quantity of specimen of about 90% of said quantity of specimen absorbed to be analyzed from said layer of fibers.

22. The method according to claim 14 further comprising analyzing said quantity of liquid specimen released by said layer of fibers.

23. A method of collecting biological specimen to be analyzed, the method carried out by using a swab comprising a rod terminating in a tip, in which a layer of fibers is disposed by flocking on a surface of the tip with a flocking technique in which the fibers were deposited, in an electrostatic field, in an ordered manner perpendicularly to the surface of the tip of the swab rod, the layer of fibers having a thickness of 0.6 and to 3 mm and a fiber count of 1.7 to 3.3 Dtex, the layer of fibers being configured to absorb, by capillarity, a quantity of 100 μ

l of specimens in said layer of fibers on the tip of the rod, the method comprising at least the step of collecting a specimen to be analyzed by absorbing a quantity of 100 μ

l of specimen in said layer of fibers on the tip of the rod.

24. A swab for collecting biological specimens to be analyzed, the swab comprising:

a rod terminating in a tip, and

a layer of fibers disposed on a surface of said tip by flocking with a flocking technique in which the fibers were deposited, in an electrostatic field, in an ordered manner perpendicularly to the surface of the tip of the swab rod, the layer of fibers having a thickness of 0.6 and to 3 mm and a fiber count of 1.7 to 3.3 Dtex, said layer of fibers being configured to absorb by capillarity a quantity of 100 μ

l of specimens in said layer of fibers on the tip of the rod.