Electronic guidewire detector for catheter insertion
AssigneeHorizon Patents, LLC
InventorsMark M. Gottlieb, James B. Solomon
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A detector and a method of its use with a guidewire to reduce the incidence of guidewires accidently being left inside patients during the placement of central venous (and other) catheters. In particular, an electronic detector detects whether a catheter has been placed over a guidewire and whether the guidewire has been removed thereafter. In addition, the distance the guidewire has progressed out the patient side of the detector housing which will correspond to the length of guidewire actually inside the patient and any time may be provided.
Claims21
A detector for a guidewire to be used with a catheter, comprising:
- a housing including a passageway having a first opening on a patient side of the housing and a second opening on a caregiver side of the housing;
- and
- circuitry contained within the housing for detecting and indicating:
- (1) that a first end of the guidewire has not yet entered the housing through the first opening on the patient side, (2) that the first end of the guidewire has entered the housing through the first opening on the patient side and a second end of the guidewire has not passed through the second opening on the caregiver side and (3) that the second end of the guidewire has been removed from the housing through the second opening on the caregiver side having previously entered through the first opening on the patient side.
A detector for a guidewire to be used with a catheter, comprising:
- a housing including a passageway having a first opening on a patient side of the housing and a second opening on a caregiver side of the housing;
- and
- circuitry contained within the housing for detecting and indicating:
- (1) that the guidewire has not yet entered the housing, (2) that the guidewire has entered the housing, (3) that the guidewire has been removed from a patient through the housing, and (4) determine a distance a first end of the guidewire has progressed past the detector housing having exited the first opening while moving in a direction from the second opening to the first opening.
A method of detecting a state of a guidewire being placed into a catheter connected to a detector having a housing including a passageway having a first opening on a patient side of the housing and a second opening on a caregiver side of the housing, the method comprising:
- powering on the detector prior to a first end of the guidewire entering the first opening on the patient side by at least one of attaching the detector to the catheter and pushing a power button on the detector;
- indicating using the detector that the first end of the guidewire has not yet entered the housing through the first opening on the patient side;
- detecting and indicating using the detector that the first end of the guidewire has entered the housing through the first opening on the patient side and a second end of the guidewire has not passed through the second opening on the caregiver side;
- and
- detecting and indicating using the detector that the second end of the guidewire has been removed from the housing through the second opening on the caregiver side having previously entered through the first opening on the patient side.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.