Patent Publication Number: US-2020281816-A1

Title: Colostrum collection device

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims priority to and all the benefits of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/814,491, filed Mar. 6, 2019, entitled “Colostrum Collection Device,” the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates to a receptacle attachment for a breast pump machine capable of collecting and dispensing the extracted liquids, more particularly, extracted liquids such as colostrum, which is the first secretion from the mammary glands of a woman after giving birth. 
     2. Description of Related Art 
     Breast milk is uniquely adapted to the nutritional requirements of an infant and is distinctly superior to any substitute which has been devised by nutritional scientists. Breast milk, and more particularly, colostrum has been found to contribute directly to the infant&#39;s immunological adaptation to life after birth. Colostrum is a thicker and more viscous fluid than milk and can only be collected either a few days before or a few days after parturition and subsequently fed to an infant. 
     Extraction devices, such as breast pumps, are well known and are generally used to collect breast milk, colostrum, and other such fluids from the mammary glands of the mother&#39;s breast. Most breast pumps are generally comprised of a hood that fits over the breast, a vacuum pump connected to the hood for generating an intermittent vacuum (or negative pressure) within the hood, and a receptacle for collecting the expressed fluids. Breast pump receptacles are typically cylindrical in shape and simply collect the expressed milk to later be transferred to another container for feeding or storage. With colostrum, many doctors suggest using a syringe to suction the fluid from the receptacle to feed to the infant. A syringe is often used because many infants have trouble swallowing the colostrum due to its viscosity as well the general issues many infants have with suckling early on. The benefits of colostrum are immeasurable thus it is extremely important for an infant to receive as much of it as possible. Accordingly, it is desirable to have a single receptacle device that can be used to effectively feed, collect, and store the colostrum produced by the mother. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     According to one embodiment, there is provided a syringe receptacle device for collecting a liquid from an extraction device, a cylindrical barrel, and a plunger. The barrel has an inner circumferential surface that extends between opposite first and second ends. The first end of the barrel is adapted to be removably coupled to the extraction device. The plunger is slidably coupled to the barrel and includes a plunger head and an actuating rod. The plunger head is frictionally engaged with the inner circumferential surface of the barrel. The actuating rod is fixedly attached to the plunger head an extends out through the second of the barrel. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       Advantages of the present disclosure will be readily appreciated as the same becomes better understood by reference to the following detailed description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings wherein: 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a conventional extraction device; 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective view of a syringe receptacle device according to one embodiment of the present invention attached to the conventional extraction device of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3  is a perspective view of a syringe receptacle device according to one embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 4  is a partially transparent perspective view of a cap attachment according to one embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 5  is a partially transparent perspective view of a cap attachment according to a second embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 6  is a partially transparent perspective view of a cap attachment according to a third embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 7  a partially transparent perspective view of a cap attachment according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention; and 
         FIG. 8  a partially transparent perspective view of a cap attachment according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS 
       FIGS. 2-8  illustrate a syringe receptacle device  10  configured to be removably attached to any conventional breast pump machine to collect and dispense fluids such as breast milk and/or colostrum. Directional references employed or shown in the description, figures, or claims, such as top, bottom, front, back, upper, lower, upward, downward, lengthwise, widthwise, left, right, and the like, are relative terms employed for ease of description and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention in any respect. 
       FIGS. 1 and 2  illustrate one embodiment of a conventional breast pump machine or extraction device  12 . The extraction device  12  includes a funnel  20 , a breast pump connector  22 , a suction device connector  30 , and a source of suction  32 . The funnel  20  includes a narrow end  24  and a wide end  28  opposite the narrow end  24 . The breast pump connector  22  is a hollow cylindrical tube extending between an open front end  26  and an open back end  27 . The funnel  20  may be removably attached to the breast pump connector  22  by inserting the narrow end  24  of the funnel  20  into the front end  26  of the breast pump connector  22 . 
     The suction device connector  30  includes a main body  37  extending between a front end  29  and an opposite back end  31 . The suction device connector  30  may be removably attached to the breast pump connector  22  by inserting the front end  29  of the suction device connector  30  into the back end  27  of the breast pump connector  22 . The back end  31  of the suction device connector  30  and the source of suction  32  may include threading to removably couple the source of suction  32  to suction device connector  30 . 
     The suction device connector  30  also includes a collection device connector  33  extending downwardly from the main body  37 . The collection device connector  33  includes a receiving member  34 , an arm member  35  and a one-way valve  42 . The receiving member  34  includes internal threading  38  on an internal circumferential surface  40  to threadedly couple with a receptacle device, such as a baby bottle. The arm member  35  extends between the main body  37  of the suction device connector  30  and the receiving member  34 . The one-way valve  42  extends from and is attached to the arm member  35  at the receiving member  34 . 
     Referring to  FIGS. 2 and 3 , the syringe receptacle device  10  includes a barrel  52  and a plunger  50  slidably coupled to the barrel  52 . The barrel  52  extends between a first end  70  and a second end  72 , and includes an inner circumferential surface  82  and an outer circumferential surface  74 . The barrel  52  is preferably made from plastic. The first end  70  of the barrel  52  includes external threading  76  on the outer circumferential surface  74 . The barrel  52  may further include indicia  60  to indicate the volumetric amount of contents in the syringe receptacle device  10 . The barrel  52  also may include an extension member  94  extending transversely from the second end  72  of the barrel  52 . The extension member  94  may be made from the same material as the barrel  52  and may vary in number, size, and shape from one embodiment to another. 
     The plunger  50  includes a plunger head  55  and an actuating rod  56 . The plunger head  55  preferably has a conical shape with a central apex  80 . Alternatively, the plunger head  55  may have a flat spherical shape. The actuating rod  56  may be cylindrically shaped and extends from a first end  90  to a second end  92 . The first end  90  of the actuating rod  56  is fixedly attached to the plunger head  55 . 
     The plunger  50  also may further include a plunger base  58  transversely extending from the second end  90  of the actuating rod  56 . Although the plunger base  58  is depicted as circular in shape, the shape of the plunger base  58  may vary in other embodiments. The plunger base  58  preferably extends beyond the outer circumferential surface  74  of the barrel  52 . The plunger base  58  creates a stable platform to hold the syringe receptacle device  10  upright when it is placed on a flat surface. A gripping material may be attached to the plunger base  58  to give it a more stable nonslip grip. 
     When the plunger  50  is inserted into the second end  72  of the barrel  52 , the plunger  50  is capable of axial telescopic movement within the barrel  52 . The second end  92  of the actuating rod  56  extends out from the second end  72  of the barrel  52 , and the plunger base  58  prevents a user from fully inserting the actuating rod  56  into the barrel  52 . The plunger head  55  frictionally engages the inner circumferential surface  82  of the barrel  52 . The plunger head  55  may be made from a polyisoprene material to increase the frictional engagement between the plunger head  55  and the inner circumferential surface  82  of the barrel  52 . Alternatively, the plunger head  55  may be made from the same plastic material as the barrel  52  to allow for smooth telescopic movement within the barrel  52  and provide cost savings during manufacturing. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 4-8 , the syringe receptacle device also includes a cap attachment  54  configured to be removably attached to the first end  70  of the barrel  52 . Each cap attachment  54  includes a rim portion  100  and a face  120 . The rim portion  100  is cylindrical in shape and extends between a first end  102  and a second end  104 . The rim portion  100  includes internal threading  106  on an inner circumferential surface  108  of the rim portion  100 . The face  120  is fixedly attached to the first end  102  of the cap attachment  54 . The cap attachment  54  also includes a sealing ring  110  fixedly attached to the face  120  along the inner circumferential surface  108  of the rim portion  100 . The sealing ring  110  is preferably made from a silicone or rubber-like material.  FIGS. 4-8  illustrate a variety of cap attachments  54  with different faces  120 . 
       FIG. 4  illustrates a first embodiment of the cap attachment  54 . The face  120  of the cap attachment  54  comprises a disc  109  that completely encloses the first end  102  of the cap attachment  54  to seal fluids in the syringe receptacle device  10  for storage purposes. 
       FIG. 5  illustrates a second embodiment of the cap attachment  54  where the face  120  comprises a flexible elastomeric nipple  130 . The elastomeric nipple  130  includes a base end  136  and a tip end  134 . The tip end  134  has a sealed opening  138  that opens in response to a sucking action on the nipple  130  to enable the flow of liquid from the barrel  52  through the nipple  130  to the infant&#39;s mouth. In some embodiments, the base end  136  may include an air inlet  140  which acts as a one-way valve to allow air to flow back into the barrel  52  to offset the negative pressure created in the barrel  52  due to the sucking action. The cap attachment  54  in  FIG. 5  allows the infant to suck the liquid directly from the syringe receptacle device  10 . 
       FIG. 6  illustrates a third embodiment of the cap attachment  54  where the face  120  includes a base portion  150  and an irrigation member  160  extending from the base portion  150 . The irrigation member  160  includes a hollow curved frustoconical portion  158  extending from a first end  162  to a second end  164 . The second end  164  is fixedly attached to the base portion  150  of the cap attachment  54 . The first end  162  has a small opening  166 . The cap attachment  54  in  FIG. 6  is used in instances where the infant is having trouble swallowing large amounts of liquid quickly. The curved shape places the liquid in the back corner of the infant&#39;s mouth rather than directly down the center. Placing the liquid in the back corner allows the liquid to slowly move to the back of the infant&#39;s throat giving them more time to properly swallow. 
       FIG. 7  illustrates a fourth embodiment of the cap attachment  54  where the face  120  includes a base portion  169  and a cylindrical member  170  extending from the base portion  169 . The cylindrical member  170  includes a central opening  177  extending from a first end  178  to a second end  179 . The second end  179  is fixedly attached to the base portion  169  of the cap attachment  54 . A feeding tube  180  may be releasably secured around an outer circumferential surface  182  of the cylindrical member  170 . The feeding tube  180  may be made of a flexible medical grade material that can be inserted into an infant&#39;s gastrointestinal tract for direct administration of the liquid from the barrel  52  into the infant. 
       FIG. 8  illustrates a fifth embodiment of the cap attachment  54  where the face  120  a base portion  185  and a cone shaped tip  190  extending from the base portion  185 . The cone shaped tip  190  has a hollow interior extending from a first end  192  to a second end  194 . The second end  194  is fixedly attached to the base portion  185  of the cap attachment  54 . The first end  192  has a small opening  196 . The cap attachment  54  in  FIG. 8  may be used to insert fluid into the infant&#39;s mouth when the infant is unable to extract fluid from the nipple attachment  54  depicted in  FIG. 5 . 
     To set up the device, the syringe receptacle device  10  is attached to the receiving member  34 , and the plunger  50  is retracted to allow maximum space within the barrel  52 . Breast milk and/or colostrum may be expressed into the wide end  28  of the funnel  20 . Suction applied through the breast pump connector  22  via the suction source  32  draws the colostrum from the breast through the collection device connector  33  and into the syringe receptacle device  10 . When the pumping process is complete and the milk and colostrum are captured in the barrel  52 , the syringe receptacle device  10  is disconnected from the extraction device  12 . The cap attachment  54  of the user&#39;s choice may then be threadedly coupled to the first end  70  of the barrel  52  for the purpose of storing or feeding the liquids to an infant, as discussed above. During the feeding process, the plunger  50  may be depressed into the barrel  52  to assist an infant having trouble suckling or to ensure the infant has received the total contents of the syringe receptacle device  10 . 
     The variety of cap attachments  54  seen in  FIGS. 4-8  allows for a variety of feeding and storage methods depending on the user&#39;s desires or needs. The advantage of using the syringe receptacle device  10  to collect the expressed fluids is that no other containers or receptacles are needed for the feeding. By attaching the cap attachment  54  and depressing the plunger  50  into the barrel  52  the total contents of the barrel  52  can be delivered to the infant. Furthermore, the syringe receptacle device  10  can help feed infants who may have trouble sucking early on in life. The ability to deliver the full contents of the barrel  52  becomes significantly more important when dealing with colostrum which is very important to an infant&#39;s development and relatively limited in quantity. 
     The invention has been described in an illustrative manner, and it is to be understood that the terminology, which has been used, is intended to be in the nature of words of description rather than of limitation. Many modifications and variations of the present invention are possible in light of the above teachings. It is, therefore, to be understood that within the scope of the appended claims, the invention may be practiced other than as specifically described.