Method and apparatus for providing artificial ventilation to a trachea of a patient

A method of providing artificial ventilation to a trachea of a patient, the trachea having a longitudinally oriented trachea lumen defined by a trachea wall, the method comprising the steps of:

• providing an airway catheter (“AEC”) including
• an elongate, flexible catheter tube having longitudinally spaced proximal and distal tube end faces in fluid communication with a tube lumen extending longitudinally through the tube and defined laterally by a tube wall extending between the proximal and distal tube end faces, the tube wall having laterally spaced inner and outer tube wall surfaces, the distal tube end face and a minority portion of the tube wall directly longitudinally adjacent to the distal tube end face collectively forming a distal tube end region,
• a plurality of side holes extending laterally through the tube wall between the inner and outer tube wall surfaces, all of the side holes being located in the distal tube end region,
• an inflatable cuff secured to the outer tube wall surface at two longitudinally spaced circumferences of the outer tube wall surface in the distal tube end region such that an inner volume of the cuff is in fluid communication with the tube lumen via all of the plurality of side holes, the inflatable cuff being configured for selective adjustment between inflated and deflated conditions, and
• a reduced-diameter resistor plug having laterally spaced proximal and distal plug end faces in fluid communication with a plug lumen extending longitudinally through the resistor plug and defined laterally by a plug wall extending between the proximal and distal plug end faces, the plug lumen having a substantially smaller inner diameter than an inner diameter of the tube lumen in the distal tube end region, the plug wall having laterally spaced inner and outer plug wall surfaces, the resistor plug being maintained within at least a portion of the tube lumen in the distal tube end region with an outer plug wall surface being at least partially in compressive contact with the inner tube wall surface;
• providing a ventilation fluid source having a selectively adjustable ventilation fluid flow pressure and direction;
• operatively placing the ventilation fluid source in fluid communication with the proximal tube end;
• arranging at least a distal portion of the AC within the trachea lumen;
• directing ventilation fluid from the ventilation fluid source flows in a first, distally oriented direction through the tube lumen;
• by the diameter of the plug lumen being smaller than the diameter of the tube lumen, causing a first elevated ventilation fluid pressure in a portion of the tube lumen longitudinally coincident with at least a portion of the distal tube end region by resisting passage of the ventilation fluid through the plug lumen;
• and
• with the first elevated ventilation fluid pressure, urging at least a portion of the ventilation fluid through at least one side hole and into the inflatable cuff to urge the inflatable cuff toward the inflated condition.