Pressurized tracheal cuff control arrangement

A method for monitoring and controlling use of an endotracheal or tracheal tube cuff in a patient's trachea of a patient lying in a bed, comprising:

• attaching a pressurized line to a tube cuff for engaging the patient's trachea;
• monitoring and controlling the pressure in the cuff in the patient by a monitor and control system;
• limiting the pressure in the cuff to about 45 inches of water;
• sounding a patient monitoring alarm by the system, to remind a patient assist personnel to check and cleanse the patient's airway;
• sounding a patient monitoring alarm by the system, if the angle of the bed is less than about 30 degrees from horizontal;
• and
• overriding control from the microprocessor by the safety pressure relief switch in response to a received danger signal, should cuff pressures rise to dangerous levels.

An endotracheal tube or tracheostomy tube monitoring and control system for the safe and effective use of a pressurizable annular cuff about the distal end of that tube arranged within the larynx or trachea of a human patient comprising:

• a control unit for the monitoring and control of the pressure in the cuff, in communication therewith;
• a pressure sensor in communication with the control unit and with an empowered air pump and associated a dump valve;
• a pressure decrease delay arrangement to time-wise delay for a short period, any decrease in pressure delivered to the cuff to avoid injury to the patient for any short term increase in cuff pressure sensed by the control unit;
• a patient position sensor to indicate patient inclination, the sensor communication with the control unit upon sensing an improper patient inclination, wherein the control unit triggers an alarm arrangement upon the control unit detecting an improper inclination, and wherein the alarm arrangement consists of both an audible alarm and a visual alarm;
• wherein the pressure in the cuff is pre-set and maintained at a selected value by an system operator, and wherein the system provides feedback of pressure within the cuff to dump pressure from that cuff after a predetermined delay to avoid unnecessary and potentially damaging pressure increase;
• and
• wherein the predetermined delay before a pressure dump is a delay interval of between about 2 to about 10 seconds.