Patent ID: 7048680

Claim:
A multilumen catheter for directing the flow of blood through a patient through a single cannulation site, said catheter comprising: a catheter body having a proximal end configured to enable the catheter to be applied through a single cannulation site, a first distal end, and a second distal end, said first distal end extending distally further from the proximal end than the second distal end and said second distal end being closer to the proximal end than to the first distal end; a first lumen at least partially defined by a wall for passing blood through the body extending between said first distal end and said proximal end adapted to fluidly communicate with the patient; a second lumen at least partially defined by the wall for passing blood through the body extending between said second distal end and said proximal end adapted to fluidly communicate with the body independently of the first lumen; and at least one aperture on said body communicating with said first lumen, wherein the distance from the first distal end to the aperture is a first length, the distance from the second distal end to the aperture is a second length, and the distance from the first distal end to the second distal end is a third length, wherein the first length is greater than the third length and the first length is at least three times greater than the second length; said catheter body having a continuous outer surface surrounding said first and said second lumens along at least a portion of said body distal of said aperture; wherein at a location where the distance between the first and second lumens is smallest, only a single wall extends between the first and second lumens at least at the second distal end.