US 4,621,654 A · Attitude and pressure responsive valve

Abstract

A valve assembly for relieving intracraneal pressure includes a valve housing adapted for implantation and having an inlet port for connection to a ventricular catheter and an outlet port for connection to a venus or peritoneal catheter. The valve housing includes a fluid passage, the flow through which is controlled by a first pressure responsive valve of relatively high resistence and a second pressure responsive valve of relatively low resistence spaced downstream of said first pressure responsive valve. An attitude responsive valve is disposed in said fluid passage in parallel with said first pressure responsive valve. The valve assembly is implanted in a patient with the attitude responsive valve in a closed position when the patient is in an upright position and in an open position when the patient is in a horizontal position. The employment of pressure responsive and attitude responsive valves in parallel provides ventricular pressure relief regardless of the patient's position.

Claims10

Dependent claims

An attitude and pressure responsive valve assembly comprising:

an elongated hollow housing defining a fluid chamber therewithin,
a fluid inlet port in one end of said housing,
a fluid outlet port in the opposite end of said housing from said fluid inlet port,
a first pressure responsive valve and an attitude responsive valve disposed in parallel and defining alternate flow paths within said fluid chamber for fluid flowing from said inlet port through said chamber to said outlet port,
a second pressure responsive valve connecting said fluid chamber with said outlet port,
said first pressure responsive valve requiring a substantially greater fluid pressure for opening than said second pressure responsive valve.

3 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Attitude and pressure responsive valve

Life of this patent

Attitude and pressure responsive valve

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims10