Patent ID: 8176920

Claim:
Apparatus for use in establishing an artificial airway in a patient, the apparatus comprising: a tube for introduction into the patient's trachea for passage of gases to and from the patient's lungs; an inflatable seal disposed on the tube to provide, when inflated, a seal between the tube and the trachea of the patient when the device is in use, the seal thereby defining a lung-side portion of the apparatus and a mouth-side portion of the apparatus; and a plurality of ports integrally formed in a wall of the tube on the mouth-side portion to facilitate removal of fluid from the mouth-side portion of the apparatus, the ports being circumferentially spaced around the tube, each port opening into a conduit, wherein each conduit is formed integrally in the wall of the tube, each conduit being in fluid communication with a single aperture located outside of the patient when the apparatus is in use such that suction applied to the single aperture causes fluid to pass into each port, along each conduit and out of the aperture.