Abstract:
A device for securing an intravenous (IV) catheter inserted into a body portion of a patient includes a planar base member for placement on the body portion. An opening is formed in the base member and first and second hook-shaped members extend into the first opening in opposing relationship. The hook-shaped members are adapted to receive and hold an IV line of the catheter against movement. A pair of straps are connected to the base member for wrapping around the body member to secure the base member and the catheter to the body

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0001]    This invention relates generally to intravenous (IV) devices, and more particularly to a device that can be quickly positioned on and secured to a body portion to protect and support an IV catheter inserted into a vein of a patient.  
           [0002]    When an IV catheter is inserted into a vein of a patient, it is necessary to stabilize the position of the catheter with respect to the vein to ensure its proper operation during intravenous delivery of medication, nutrients, blood, or measurement of one or more physical parameters of the patient. In order to secure inserted IV catheters, medical personnel generally affix one or more lengths of adhesive tape to hold the catheter in place and to prevent foreign contaminants from contacting the entry point on the skin of the patient. Unfortunately, such taping can be less than adequate, and offers little in protection against mishaps that may occur due to patient moving or when the patient&#39;s bed clothing is changed. Dislodgment of the catheter from the designated vein can thus easily occur, resulting in tearing of the vein and painful injury of surrounding tissue, tearing of the skin in the elderly, as well as disruption of the intravenous therapy in all too often critical situations. Consequently, medical personnel must first become aware of the dislodgment, locate another vein, and re-insert the catheter. The number of veins available for intravenous therapy is, however, limited by both the patient&#39;s health condition and the number of veins already damaged by previous catheter insertions. It is often difficult, therefore, to re-insert a catheter into a patient who is in poor health or who has undergone extended intravenous therapy.  
           [0003]    Although many solutions have been proposed to overcome the problems associated with IV catheter support, some prior art devices, such as splints or arm boards, are utilized to maintain the catheter in position by restricting limb flexure. Such boards cover a significant portion of the limb and thus greatly limit the number and location of potential catheter insertion sites. Such limitations may be less than desirable for patients having few available veins or requiring extended intravenous therapy.  
           [0004]    In situations such as mass disasters or military field conditions, or when faced with treating single patients with life threatening injuries under extreme time constraints, medical personnel have found that the piecemeal traditional methods of inserting and supporting IV catheters are less than desirable.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0005]    According to the invention, a device for securing an intravenous (IV) catheter inserted into a body portion of a patient is disclosed. The device comprises a generally longitudinal, substantially planar base member that is adapted for placement on a body portion of a patient. A first opening is formed in the base member and first and second hook-shaped members extend generally longitudinally into the first opening from the base member. The hook-shaped members are adapted to receive and hold an IV line of the catheter against movement. A first strap is connected to the base member and is adapted for wrapping around the body member to thereby secure the base member and the catheter to the body member.  
           [0006]    Further according to the invention, a device for securing an intravenous (IV) catheter inserted into a body portion of a patient comprises a generally longitudinal, substantially planar base member adapted for placement on a body portion of a patient. A first opening is formed in the base member and includes a front edge, a rear edge, and a pair of side edges extending between the front and rear edges. A first hook-shaped member extends generally longitudinally into the opening from the front edge and a second hook-shaped member extends generally longitudinally into the opening from the rear edge in opposing relationship to the first hook-shaped member. The hook-shaped members are adapted to receive and hold the IV line against movement. A second opening is formed in the base member for receiving the catheter and comprises a circular edge and a pair of converging edges that extend from a front edge of the base member to the circular edge. First and second straps are connected to the base member and are adapted for wrapping around the body member to thereby secure the base member and the catheter to the body member. An adhesive strip is positioned on the base member for covering the second opening and securing the catheter to the base member. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0007]    The foregoing summary, as well as the following detailed description of preferred embodiments of the invention, will be better understood when read in conjunction with the appended drawings. For the purpose of illustrating the invention, there is shown in the drawings embodiments which are presently preferred. It should be understood, however, that the invention is not limited to the precise arrangements and instrumentalities shown. In the drawings:  
         [0008]    Embodiments of the present invention will hereinafter be described in conjunction with the appended drawings, wherein:  
         [0009]    [0009]FIG. 1 is a top plan view of an intravenous catheter support according to an embodiment of the present invention;  
         [0010]    [0010]FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the intravenous catheter support of FIG. 1 in a condition prior to use;  
         [0011]    [0011]FIG. 3 is a side elevational view of a portion of the intravenous catheter support of FIG. 1; and  
         [0012]    [0012]FIG. 4 illustrates the intravenous catheter support of FIG. 1 and an intravenous catheter installed on a body part. 
     
    
       [0013]    Embodiments of the present invention will now be described in greater detail with reference to the drawings, wherein like parts throughout the drawing figures are represented by like numerals.  
       DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0014]    Referring now to the drawings, and to FIGS. 1 and 2 in particular, an intravenous (IV) catheter support  10  in accordance with an embodiment of the invention is illustrated. The IV catheter support  10  includes a base member  12  with a front mounting strap  14  and a rear mounting strap  16  connected to the base member  12  at spaced locations. An adhesive strip  18  is connected to the base member  12  forward of the front strap  14 .  
         [0015]    The base member  12  is preferably constructed of a planar sheet  20  of plastic or other material that is sufficiently flexible to conform to the contour of a patient&#39;s limb, such as the hand  84 , wrist  88 , and/or arm  90 , as illustrated in FIG. 4, yet sufficiently stiff to support the IV catheter during use. The sheet  20  is preferably transparent or translucent in nature so that the underlying skin can be viewed both during and after securement of the catheter support  10  to the patient&#39;s limb to monitor the condition of the catheter insertion site, as well as the surrounding skin.  
         [0016]    An elongate rear opening  22  is formed in the sheet  20  approximately midway between elongate side edges  21 ,  23  and proximal a rear edge  25  of the base member  12 . A front hook  24  extends rearwardly from a front edge  26  of the opening  22  and a rear hook  28  extends forwardly from a rear edge  30  of the opening. Preferably, the hooks  24  and  28  are integrally formed with the sheet  20  and include a straight portion  32  extending from one of the edges  26 ,  30  and a curved portion  34  integrally formed with the straight portion  32 . As shown in FIG. 1, the curved portion  34  of the hook  24  preferably extends to the right, while the curved portion  34  of the hook  28  preferably extends to the left. It will be understood, however, that the curved portion of the hook  24  can extend to the left, and that the curved portion of the hook  28  can extend to the right. The hooks  24  and  28  are preferably spaced a sufficient distance from the elongate edges  36 ,  38  of the opening  22  to permit insertion of an IV line or tubing  48  (FIG. 4) between the hooks and the elongate edges  36 ,  38 . The hooks are preferably sufficiently flexible to permit insertion of the IV line  48  through the hooks, as shown in FIG. 4.  
         [0017]    With additional reference to FIG. 3, a groove  40  is formed in an upper surface  42  of the base member  12 . Preferably, the groove  40  extends between the elongate side edges  21  and  23  (FIG. 1) of the base member  12  and includes a first surface  44  and a second surface  46  that preferably form an angle θ of approximately 90°. The groove  40  enables the base member  12  to bend with arm movement and ensures that the area between the groove  40  and front edges  54 ,  56  (FIG. 1) of the base member remains in contact with the wrist or other body area.  
         [0018]    Referring again to FIGS. 1 and 2, a front key-hole shaped opening  50  preferably includes a circular edge  52  located approximately midway between the elongate side edges  21  and  23  of the base member  12 , and side edges  54 ,  56  that preferably converge radially toward a center point of the circular edge  52  from the curved front edges  58  and  60 , respectively, of the base member  12 . The curved front edges  58  and  60  together with the converging edges  54  and  56  facilitate positioning the catheter support  10  around a catheter  62  (FIG. 4) that has been installed in a body part. Alignment marks  64  and  66  are located on the base member  12  and preferably extend radially toward the center point of the circular edge  52  from the elongate side edges  21  and  23 , respectively. The marks  64  and  66  facilitate proper placement of the IV catheter support with respect to the puncture site of the installed catheter.  
         [0019]    The straps  14  and  16  are preferably mounted to the upper surface  42  of the base member  12 , with the front strap  14  positioned between the groove  40  and the front edge  26  of the rear opening  22  and the rear strap  16  positioned between the rear edge  30  of the rear opening  22  and the rear edge  25  of the base member  12 . The straps are preferably secured to the upper surface  42  through adhesive, although double-sided tape, stitching, ultrasonic welding, or any other known fastening technique can be used.  
         [0020]    The straps  14  and  16  are preferably constructed of woven nylon or other sturdy material that normally exhibits little elongation when tensioned. The straps are sufficiently long to completely wrap around the body portion, and preferably sufficiently wide to prevent undue deformation of the skin on the body portion or other undue irritation.  
         [0021]    Preferably, each strap  14 ,  16  has a fixed portion  70  which is secured directly to the base member  12  and a free portion  72  extending from the fixed portion  70 . As shown in FIG. 2, the free portions  72  can be initially pre-rolled and detachably connected to their respective fixed portions  70 . Preferably, hook material  74  is associated with the fixed portions  70  and loop material  76  is associated with the free portions  72  so that engagement of the hooks and loops detachably connects the free portions to the fixed portions in a well-known manner. It will be understood that the hook and loop material can be reversed on the fixed portions and free portions. It will be further understood that other means for fastening the free portions of the straps to the base member  12  can be used, such as adhesive, snaps, buckles, and so on.  
         [0022]    In the pre-rolled condition, the straps  14 ,  16  do not interfere with a lower contact surface  78  (FIG. 3) of the base member  12  so that the IV catheter support  10  can be easily positioned on the body portion of a patient and aligned with the catheter  62  without undue attention to loose straps. The pre-rolled free portions  72  can then be quickly unrolled after being released, passed around the body portion, and secured to their respective fixed portions  70  to thereby secure the IV catheter support to the body portion.  
         [0023]    Preferably, the front strap  14  includes a resilient ring  80  that connects the fixed portion  70  with the free portion  72 . The ring  80  is positioned on the front strap  14  so that the strap  14  can be pivoted with respect to the base member  12  to fit the body part. As shown, the ring  80  is positioned rearwardly of the thumb  82  of a hand  84 . However, the ring  80  may be positioned on the thumb, between the thumb and index finger, or at any other location depending on the position of the catheter support  10  with respect to the body part. With the ring  80  positioned between the thumb  82  and the index finger, the front strap  14  can secure the base member and the IV catheter  62  to the hand  84  while at the same time allowing the thumb  82  a degree of mobility without unduly disturbing the secured IV catheter  62 . Alternatively, the front strap  14  can be constructed identical to the rear strap  16 . The resilient ring  80  is preferably constructed of a silicone based material that provides tension to the strap  14  for purposes of securely mounting the base member  12  to the body part and allows flexibility in the event of body part increases in size due to inflammation or other medical type event.  
         [0024]    The adhesive strip  18  is preferably longer than a width of the base member  12  so that when the IV catheter support  10  is installed, the adhesive strip will wrap over and adhere to the catheter  62  and terminate adjacent the elongate side edges  21  and  23  of the base member  12 . A portion of the strip  18  may also adhere to the patient&#39;s body part in the location of the front opening  50 . The adhesive strip  18  is also preferably constructed of a transparent or translucent material in order to view the catheter  62  and surrounding skin underneath. A backing layer  86  can be provided on a portion of the adhesive strip where it is not initially attached to the base member  12  as shown in FIG. 2, to protect the adhesive layer from contamination prior to installation. The adhesive strip  18  not only secures the catheter to the base member, but also covers and prevents infection over the puncture site.  
         [0025]    In use, and by way of example, the IV catheter  62  is installed on a limb of the patient in a well-known manner. The IV support is then positioned on the patient&#39;s limb with the alignment marks  64 ,  66  preferably in alignment with the catheter insertion site. The straps  14  and  16  are then unrolled and the free portions  72  are wrapped around the patient&#39;s limb and secured to the base member  12  by engaging the loop material  76  with the hook material  74 . The resistance to stretching of the strap material facilitates proper wrapping of the straps around the patient&#39;s limb without impeding blood flow through the limb. In order to secure the catheter  62  to the IV support  10 , the backing layer  86  is removed from the adhesive strip  18  and the adhesive strip is positioned over the catheter  62  in the opening  50  and adhered to the upper surface  42  of the base member  12  on the opposite side of the opening  50 . In order to secure the IV tubing  48  to the IV support  10 , the hooks  24 ,  28  are slightly raised and the tubing  48  is positioned under the hooks. When released, the hooks will tend to spring back toward their initial position, due to the spring-like material property of the base member  12 , to engage and firmly press against the tubing in a manner as shown in FIG. 4. The opposing orientation of the hooks  24 ,  28  secures the IV tubing against lateral movement in a quick and easy manner and thus makes it more difficult for the IV catheter  62  to be inadvertently dislodged.  
         [0026]    It will be understood that the terms front, rear, side, forward, left, right, upper, lower, and their respective derivatives and equivalent terms as may be used throughout the specification, refer to relative, rather than absolute orientations and/or positions.  
         [0027]    While the invention has been taught with specific reference to the above-described embodiments, those skilled in the art will recognize that changes can be made in form and detail without departing from the spirit and the scope of the invention. By way of example, although the opening  22  is shown as rectangular, the opening can be circular, square, or any other shape to accommodate the opposing nature of the hooks. In an alternative embodiment, the hooks may extend into the opening  22  from opposite elongate edges  36  and  38  of the opening. Thus, the described embodiments are to be considered in all respects only as illustrative and not restrictive. The scope of the invention is, therefore, indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description. All changes that come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are to be embraced within their scope.