Method of making ventilation tube
AssigneeMedtronic Xomed, Inc.
InventorsRichard L. Goode, F. Barry Bays
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A medical ventilation tube for placement in an opening formed in an anatomical structure, such as the tympanic membrane of the ear, includes a hollow tubular shaft made of a first material having a hardness or durometer to maintain a passage through the shaft when the medical ventilation tube is placed in the opening, and a flange made of a second material having a hardness or durometer less than that of the first material to permit the flange to deform in response to contact with the anatomical structure during removal of the medical ventilation tube from the opening.
Claims21
A medical ventilation tube for placement in an anatomical structure comprising
- a hollow tubular shaft having a passage formed therethrough, said hollow tubular shaft being made of a first material having a rigidity to resist bending and maintain said passage in an open condition when said ventilation tube is placed in the anatomical structure;
- and
- a flange extending outwardly from said hollow tubular shaft, said flange being made of a second material having a rigidity less than that of said first material to permit said flange to deform in response to contact with the anatomical structure.
A method of making a medical ventilation tube comprising the steps of
- forming a hollow tubular shaft from a first material having a rigidity to resist bending and to maintain a passage through the shaft when the ventilation tube is placed in an anatomical structure;
- and
- molding a flange onto the hollow tubular shaft using a second material having a rigidity less than that of the first material to permit the flange to deform in response to contact with the anatomical structure.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.