Abstract:
The object of this invention is to provide a simple, safe, convenient and economical means of securing catheters, feeding tubes and other types of medical tubing devices to or at a human or other animal body by suturing, tying or taping to a tubular depression-shaped portion that is integrally formed during manufacture with the forming of the overall medical tube resulting in a one-piece construction unit.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
         [0001]    Not applicable.  
         STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT  
         [0002]    Not applicable.  
         REFERENCE TO A “SEQUENCE LISTING”, A TABLE, OR A COMPUTER PROGRAM LISTING APPENDIX SUBMITTED ON A COMPACT DISC  
         [0003]    Not applicable.  
         BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0004]    The present invention relates to a means for securing a tubular conduit such as a catheter or the like to or at a patient&#39;s body in order to prevent or restrict undesirable movement or displacement of said tube while in, on or at the patient&#39;s body. This invention references the following U.S. patent classification/sub classification as the field of endeavor:  
           [0005]    Intravenous catheters, urethral catheters, intrauterine catheters, feeding tubes and other types of medical tubing devices used in surgical or medical procedures for humans and animals alike usually require attachment to or at the patient&#39;s body in order to avoid undesirable tube movement or displacement. A variety of conventional methods are employed to secure a catheter or similar medical tube to a patient&#39;s body those of which include suturing, taping, strapping, stapling, rubber-banding, using pressure-sensitive adhesive pads or a combination thereof. Of all the preferred methods suturing is the most effective, durable and economical means of attaching catheters and the like to a patient&#39;s body.  
           [0006]    In order to accommodate the attachment of a suture to a catheter tube or member thereof, many catheter designs use different types of suture retention means that are located on various mating components such as catheter wing members, catheter flange members, catheter collars, catheter hubs, slip on suture pads and grooved tube members.  
           [0007]    For example U.S. Pat. No. 3,730,187 reflects a catheter using a tube mounted securing collar that can be sutured to a patient&#39;s body. U.S. Pat. No. 3,821,957 describes a catheter with a tube mounted retention slide whose lugs permit suturing to a patient&#39;s body. The catheter of U.S. Pat. No. 4,230,110 comprises a hub section that is suture pierceable allowing suture attachment to a patient&#39;s body. The adapter body shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,650,473 is a device that fits on the proximal end of a catheter and has suture holes at its wing tips and in addition a saddle for looping a suture across and then to a patient&#39;s body. The “Tom Cat” catheter made by Kendall Sovereign is supplied with a frictional fit slip-on winged suturing adapter with suture holes that permit suturing to a patient&#39;s body. The “Jackson” cat catheter made by Jorgensen Laboratories, Inc. is supplied with a button with holes that serves as an attachment for suture retention to a patient&#39;s body. U.S. Pat. No. 4,906,233 uses a sliding catheter tube sleeve with an annular groove for retaining sutures that will be attached to a patient&#39;s body.  
           [0008]    All of the aforementioned patents use suture type retention devices in order to anchor a catheter tube to a patient&#39;s body. However, these suture retention devices are individually constructed components thereby associated with additional manufacturing costs beyond the cost of the catheter tube proper.  
           [0009]    It is an object of the present invention to provide an economic one-piece catheter tube and suture retaining unit that is simple, safe and convenient.  
           [0010]    Prior art U.S. Pat. No. 6,053,902 is an economic one-piece construction catheter tube and suture retention device, but it is intended strictly for implantation in a tubular structure of a patient&#39;s body. In addition its suture retaining radial grooves are designed only for the distal or discharge end of the catheter, and not the proximal or inlet end as is the object of the present invention.  
         BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0011]    The object of this invention is to provide a simple, safe, convenient and economical means of securing catheters, feeding tubes or other types of medical tubing devices to or at a human or other animal body by suturing, tying or taping to a tubular depression-shaped member of the medical tube. The present invention applies to medical tubing devices constructed of plastic, rubber, glass, metal or other suitable materials. It is intended that this tubular anchor member of the medical tube be integrally formed during manufacture with the forming of the overall medical tube resulting in a one-piece construction unit. The prior art requires the manufacture and assembly of multiple components in order to produce an equal unit. The novel “built-in” tubular anchor member of this catheter obviously requires far less production material than that of the prior art thereby significantly reducing manufacturing costs. Also there are no individual or additional anchoring components to inspect, test, sterilize, package or distribute.  
           [0012]    Due to the simplistic design of the present invention, medical personnel will not find it necessary to assemble various parts, hunt for misplaced parts or replace dropped parts. Suturing, tying or taping can immediately begin after finalizing tube placement. This novel tubular anchor is in very limited contact with the patient&#39;s body thus reducing the potential for bacterial growth and infection. When the present invention is used on the outside of a patient&#39;s body, the attachment site on or at the body remains visible and accessible at all times and can easily be observed or cleansed. The absence of suture pads, suture buttons and the like allow maximum air circulation to flow around the tubular anchor. Due to its high visibility medical personnel will be able to readily severe sutures, ties or tape for tube repositioning or removal.  
           [0013]    It is an object of the present invention that the tubular anchor, whether it be configured as an hourglass type shape, a radial collar or a radial groove, that the tubular depression-shaped member be capable of retaining sutures, ties, tape or other similar fasteners.  
           [0014]    It is also an object of the present invention that the tubular anchor be used in straight, tapered, flexible or rigid tubing or a combination thereof.  
           [0015]    Clearly this invention is a significant improvement and an advantage over the prior art. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0016]    [0016]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the prior art “Tom Cat” catheter.  
         [0017]    [0017]FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the prior art “Butterfly” intravenous catheter.  
         [0018]    [0018]FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the prior art “Jackson” cat catheter.  
         [0019]    [0019]FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a prior art red rubber medical tube that can be used as a feeding tube or as a urethral catheter.  
         [0020]    [0020]FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the present invention applied to a catheter tube using an hourglass-type shaped anchoring configuration.  
         [0021]    [0021]FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the present invention applied to a catheter tube using a radial collar type anchoring design.  
         [0022]    [0022]FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the present invention applied to a catheter tube using a radial groove type anchoring design.  
         [0023]    [0023]FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the present invention applied to a feline urethral catheter shown inserted in a feline urethra and sutured to the patient. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0024]    Prior art FIG. 1 shows a typical “Tom Cat” catheter made by Kendall Sovereign comprised of a semi-rigid polypropylene catheter tube  10  and a flexible polypropylene winged suturing adapter  12 . A tapered portion  14  at the proximal end of catheter tube  10  is supplied with an integral female luer end  16  for mounting a syringe or other medical device. Suturing adapter  12  is provided with a plurality of premolded suture holes  18 . This two-piece “Tom Cat” catheter design is assembled by slipping distal end  11  of catheter tube  10  through hub  20  which is molded in the center of suturing adapter  12 . Hub  20  provides a snug friction fit around tapered portion  14 . Once sutures are attached to the patient&#39;s body by utilizing suture holes  18 , the “Tom Cat” catheter becomes anchored thus avoiding catheter tube movement or displacement. Quite frequently however, the patient&#39;s biting and pulling of tapered portion  14  and or luer end  16  causes unwanted movement or removal of catheter tube  10  from the patient&#39;s body.  
         [0025]    Prior art FIG. 2 shows a typical “Butterfly” intravenous catheter made by Abbott Laboratories comprised of a steel needle  22 , a flexible plastic winged suturing adapter  24  and a flexible length of plastic tube  26 . The proximal end of tube  26  is supplied with a female adapter  28  for mounting a syringe or other medical device. Suturing adapter  24  is provided with a plurality of premolded suture holes  30 . This four-piece “Butterfly” catheter design is anchored to the patient with sutures by utilizing suture holes  30  or by taping winged portions  32   a  and  32   b  to the patient.  
         [0026]    Prior art FIG. 3 shows a typical “Jackson” cat catheter made by Jorgensen Laboratories, Inc. comprised of a clear nylon catheter tube  34 , a nylon tapered portion  38  and a nylon suture button  36 . Tapered portion  38  is attached to the proximal end of catheter tube  34  and is supplied with an integral female luer adapter  40  for mounting a syringe or other medical device. Suture button  36  is provided with a plurality of premolded suture retention holes  42 . This three-piece “Jackson” catheter design is anchored to the patient with sutures by utilizing suture retention holes  42 .  
         [0027]    [0027]FIG. 4 shows a typical tapered medical tube comprised of a length of flexible tubing  44  and a proximal integral funnel end  46  for mounting a syringe or other medical device. The medical tube shown can be used as a feeding tube or as a urethral catheter and is made of medical red rubber tubing material. This one-piece medical tube has no anchoring means and is usually secured by taping the tube to the patient and is quite susceptible to loosening due to fluids. Note: FIG. 4 also represents medical tubing in general that is provided in a variety of tapered and straight tubing designs and has a multitude of uses. Medical tubing can be made from many different materials depending upon the required application.  
         [0028]    [0028]FIG. 5 is an example of the present invention applied to a catheter tube and its novel one-piece design is comprised of a catheter tube  48 , a tubular anchoring member  50 , a proximal integral female luer end  52  and a distal opening  54 . The present invention can be made from plastic, rubber, glass, metal or any other suitable material depending upon its intended application as long as tubular anchoring member  50  is integrally formed during manufacture with the forming of catheter tube  48  resulting in a one-piece construction unit. Catheter tube  48  can be tapered or straight or a combination thereof, as well as flexible or rigid. Luer end  52  can be provided as male or female as necessary to accommodate the mounting of syringes or other medical devices. Distal opening  54  can be open-ended or closed-ended with a lateral opening(s) or combination thereof.  
         [0029]    The novelty of the present invention is the tubular anchoring member  50 , which is shown as an hourglass-type shape configuration. As shown in FIG. 6 tubular anchoring member  50  can also be formed with radial collars  56  similar to the radial collars in corrugated tubing, drinking straws and the like. As shown in FIG. 7 the tubular anchoring member can also be formed as a radial groove(s). Not limited to the tubular depression anchoring configuration designs as shown in FIG. 5, FIG. 6 and FIG. 7, the object of the present invention is that the tubular depression formed as the anchoring member be able to retain sutures, ties, tape or other similar fasteners and restrict the medical tube from longitudinal movement.  
         [0030]    [0030]FIG. 8 shows an example of the present invention applied to a feline urethral catheter. The feline penis  60  depicted is shown normally sheathed within the prepuce  62 . The catheter tube  48  is shown inserted in the urethra  64 . Distal opening  54  is shown terminating within bladder  66 . Luer end  52  remains outside of the patient&#39;s body for mounting a syringe or other medical device. The tubular anchoring member  50  has been attached to the patient&#39;s skin (not shown) with sutures  68  thus restricting longitudinal movement of catheter tube  48 . The tubular anchoring member  50  can alternately be sutured to prepuce  62  as well. Tubular anchoring member  50  is shown here as an hourglass-type shape, but other anchoring configurations such as shown in FIG. 6 and FIG. 7 could have been used as well.  
         [0031]    [0031]FIG. 8 clearly indicates that a medical tubing device such as the catheter shown can be simply, safely and economically attached to a patient without the need for any additional costly anchoring components as required and shown in prior art FIG. 1, FIG. 3 and FIG. 4. FIG. 8 also clearly suggests that when the anchoring of medical tubing is required, how simple, economical and advantageous it would be to add the tubular anchoring member of the present invention to any medical tube such as the anchorless medical tube shown in prior art FIG. 4, or to the winged-type catheters such as shown in FIG. 2.