Patent ID: 7727188

Claim:
A balloon catheter capable of being introduced rectally into the bowel, said balloon catheter comprising a tube with a distal end and a proximal end, an inflatable balloon mounted on said distal end, said tube and balloon being soft and compliant, and a recess proximate to said distal end of said tube between an outer surface of said distal end of the tube and said inflatable balloon, said distal end, balloon and recess being predeterminedly dimensioned to be insertable through the rectum into the bowel, said inflatable balloon being predeterminedly dimensioned when inflated to retain said distal end within the bowel, said recess including an access opening facing said proximal end of said tube, said recess and access opening being predeterminedly dimensioned and oriented to accommodate a finger tip, said access opening and recess being predeterminedly dimensioned so that the finger tip is removably receivable within said recess through said access opening for manipulatably inserting said inflatable balloon into the bowel with the finger tip and remaining in the bowel when the finger tip is removed.