Intracorporeal catheter improvement

A rotatable tub assembly attachable to a single-channeled intracorporeal catheter, said assembly having a receiving socket for connection to the distal end of a fluid conducting system for feeding, injecting and draining, said assembly for use with a catheter member of flexible tubing having its intermediate portion formed with a relatively constant bore, said catheter having a distal end of tapered configuration and having its other end secured in a fluid-tight manner to a hub, said rotatable hub including:

• (a) a hub portion having a circular receiving recess formed therein and a connecting passageway from said recess and adapted to connect with the bore in the flexible catheter;
• (b) a rotatable member having a substantially circular portion mountable in said circular receiving recess in a fluid-tight manner and in said recess movable to two limits of rotation, this rotatable member having two passageways therethrough with each passageway in a plane generally normal to the axis of rotation of the movable member, a first passageway in alignment with the bore in the catheter when the rotatable member is in a first limit of movement and a second passageway having a flow connection with said catheter bore when the movable member is turned to the other limit of movement in said recess;
• (c) a hub portion formed in and on the rotatable member and extending exterior of said circular portion, this hub portion having a tapered socket formed therein, this socket adapted to receive and retain an end of a fluid conductor such as an intravenous fluid tubing and the like, the inner end of this socket flow connected to the second passageway, and (d) means for retaining the circular portion of the rotatable member in the circular recess formed in the hub portion of the rotatable assembly, the rotatable member when in the first position having the first passageway aligned with the bore of the catheter providing a substantially straight passageway through the catheter hub and assembly for the mounting therein of a needle which may be used to assist venipuncture and placement of the catheter in the body of the patient, the second passageway when the rotatable member is in the first position having its distal end closed to fluid flow by a portion of the wall of the circular recess and with the rotatable member at the second limit of movement this second passageway is in flow connection with the bore of the catheter and the ends of the first passageway formed in the circular portion of the rotatable member are moved from in way of a fluid flow to the catheter.