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US 7,056,316 B1Granted
Valve port and method for vascular access
AssigneeVasca, Inc.
InventorsJeffrey H. Burbank, James M. Brugger
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Valved ports for accessing blood vessels and other body lumens include a lock mechanism which locks the valve fully open when a needle or other access tube is placed into the port. The lock mechanism includes a latch typically comprising one or more laterally deflectable elements, such as a pair of opposed balls. The deflected elements are pushed outwardly by the needle to engage a recess in the port which locks the valve open until the needle is removed.
Claims10
An implantable port comprising
- a base having a passage for receiving an access tube;
- a valve assembly in the base, said valve assembly having a bore which receives the access tube and wherein the valve assembly opens in response to movement of the access tube;
- and
- a valve lock having a latch which shifts position to lock the valve assembly open in response to movement of the access tube;
- wherein the valve assembly comprises a plunger and wherein the latch comprises a pair of space-filling elements which are displaced by the needle both downwardly, to lower the plunger to open the valve, and outwardly into the receptacle, to lock the plunger open.
2 more elements
An implantable port comprising
- a base having a passage for receiving an access tube;
- a valve assembly in the base, said valve assembly having a bore which receives the access tube and wherein the valve assembly opens in response to movement of the access tube;
- a valve lock having a latch comprising a pair of balls which are displaced laterally into a receptacle and remain in the receptacle to lock the valve assembly open in response to movement of the access tube.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.