Artificial ventilation systems and components thereof, and methods for providing, assembling and utilizing same

A unilimb respiratory conduit for use in an assisted ventilation system, comprising:

• an outer flexible tube,
• an inner flexible tube, said outer flexible tube and inner flexible tube each having a proximal end and a distal end;
• the outer diameter of said inner flexible tube being smaller than the inner diameter of said outer flexible tube, said inner flexible tube being at least partially disposed within said outer flexible tube, said distal end of said inner flexible tube being disposed within and in direct fluid communication with said outer flexible tube, and
• a proximal fitting, said proximal fitting comprising an inner pipe and an outer pipe maintained in fixed coaxial spaced relationship by spacing means, said outer pipe and inner pipe each having a proximal end and a distal end, wherein said distal end of said inner pipe is operably connected to said proximal end of said inner flexible tube and said distal end of said outer pipe is operably connected to said proximal end of said outer flexible tube,
• said proximal end of one of said pipes capable of being operably connected to an inspiratory gas input while said proximal end of the other one of said conduits is operably connected to an exhaust outlet, and
• wherein said distal end of said outer flexible tube can be operably connected to an airway device connected to a mammal, and wherein a user may utilize said unilimb respiratory conduit in an assisted ventilation system via operative connection thereto via said proximal fitting in order to use said unilimb respiratory conduit to provide inspiratory gases and exhaust expiratory gases from a mammal, and may disconnect said unilimb respiratory conduit from the assisted ventilation system after use by detaching said proximal fitting, and further comprising:
• filter means, and a dead space tube, said dead space tube having a distal end and a proximal end, wherein said proximal end of said dead space tube can be operably connected through said filter means to said distal end of said outer flexible tube, wherein, when said proximal end of said dead space tube and said filter means are operably connected to said distal end of said outer flexible tube, said distal end of said unilimb respiratory conduit is operably connected to a mammal, and said proximal end of said unilimb repiratory conduit is operably connected to a source of inspiratory gases, inspiratory and expiratory gases may pass through said filter means, and inspiratory and expiratory gases may mix in said dead space tube.

A method of providing unilimb respiratory conduits for use in assisted ventilation systems, comprising the step of:

• providing at least one unilimb respiratory conduit to at least one user for use thereby in administering and exhausting gases from a mammal, wherein said unilimb respiratory conduit comprises a flexible tube that can be readily operably connected at a first end to a mammal and at a second end to a terminal housing forming part of an assisted ventilation system by the user for administering and exhausting respiratory gases from the mammal, said unilimb respiratory conduit being readily disconnected from the terminal housing after use, said unilimb respiratory conduit for use with a terminal housing having at least two independent flow paths therein which are capable of simultaneous operative connection to a respiratory conduit and which diverge to form an inlet port at a second location and an outlet port at a third location in the terminal housing, said second end of said unilimb respiratory conduit being operably connectable to the first location in the terminal housing, wherein said unilimb respiratory conduit can be provided with or separately from the terminal housing, said flexible tube being axially extendable and compressible to provide a variable deadspace therein,
• wherein, when said unilimb respiratory conduit is operably connected to a terminal housing and to a mammal so that inspiratory gases to and expiratory gases from the mammal pass therethrough, the dead space volume in said unilimb respiratory conduit is sufficient to maintain the mean arterial carbon dioxide tension of the mammal between about 35 mmHg and about 95 mmHg without causing hypoxia in the mammal.

An assembly for use in providing inspiratory gases to a patient and receiving expiratory gases therefrom, comprising a respiratory conduit and a proximal terminal, said respiratory conduit having a distal end and a proximal end and said proximal terminal having a distal end and a proximal end, wherein said distal end of said respiratory conduit is operatively connectable to and detachable from a patient by a user at a site of use, and said proximal end of said conduit is operatively connectable to and detachable from said proximal terminal by a user at a site of use, wherein said proximal terminal has first and second lumens defining respective first and second flow paths, said first and second lumens being independent of each other and each having a distal end and a proximal end, said distal ends of said lumens capable of simultaneous operative connection to said proximal end of said respiratory conduit and wherein said first and second flow paths in said proximal terminal diverge from each other proximally of said distal end of said proximal terminal so that said proximal end of said first lumen may be independently operatively connected to an inlet for a source of inspiratory gas while said proximal end of said second lumen may be independently operatively connected to an expiratory outlet, wherein said respiratory conduit may be operatively detached from said proximal terminal after use therewith for independent disposal or sterilization.

A method for constructing a breathing circuit having a proximal terminal and a respiratory conduit, wherein the respiratory conduit has a distal end and a proximal end, the distal end of the conduit being operatively connectable to and detachable from a patient by a user at a site of use, and the proximal end of the conduit is operatively connectable to and detachable from a proximal terminal by a user at a site of use, and wherein the proximal terminal has first and second lumens defining first and second flow paths that are independent of each other and converge at a distal end of the proximal terminal so as to be capable of simultaneous operative connection to the proximal end of the respiratory conduit and wherein the first and second flow paths in the proximal terminal diverge from each other proximally of the distal end of the proximal terminal so that the first lumen of the proximal terminal may be independently operatively connected to an inlet for a source of inspiratory gas while the second lumen of the proximal terminal may be independently operatively connected to an expiratory outlet, and wherein the respiratory conduit has third and fourth lumens defining respectively a third flow path and a fourth flow path, the third flow path and the fourth lumen being independent of each other and each having a distal end and a proximal end,

• said method comprising operatively connecting the respiratory conduit to the proximal terminal so that the distal end of the third lumen is placed in fluid communication with the proximal end of the first lumen and the distal end of the fourth lumen is placed in fluid communication with the proximal end of the second lumen so that said third lumen may be operatively connected to an inlet for a source of inspiratory gas via the proximal terminal while said forth lumen may be operatively connected to an expiratory outlet via the proximal terminal, said operatively connecting of the respiratory conduit to the proximal terminal step permitting for the respiratory conduit to be detached from the proximal terminal at a site of use for disposal or sterilization of the respiratory conduit independent of the proximal terminal.