WO2009126162A1

WO2009126162A1 - Apparatus for intraoperative administration of analgesia

Info

Publication number: WO2009126162A1
Application number: PCT/US2008/060003
Authority: WO
Inventors: Fred H. Geisler
Original assignee: Spinal Integration LLC
Current assignee: Spinal Integration LLC
Priority date: 2008-04-11
Filing date: 2008-04-11
Publication date: 2009-10-15
Anticipated expiration: 2010-10-11

Abstract

A guide conduit (50) for positioning a catheter for the delivery of analgesia to a target site during a surgical procedure. A thumb rest (58) on a first member (52) cooperates with a finger rest (80) on a second member (54) of the guide conduit to allow the surgeon to activate sliding disengagement of tongue (76) and groove (78) members to allow the guide conduit to be removed from the surgical site without dislodging the catheter. The sliding engaged length d is less than a distance D between a proximal surface (82) of the finger rest and a proximal surface (84) of the thumb rest along a longitudinal axis L when the guide conduit is in an engaged configuration so that the surgeon can pinch the thumb rest and finger rest together between an index finger (104) and thumb (106) to disengage the tongue and groove members.

Description

APPARATUS FOR INTRAOPERATIVE ADMINISTRATION OF ANALGESIA

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[001] United States Patent 7,195,614 describes a guide conduit for delivering analgesia to a target site during a spinal surgical procedure. FIG. 1 of the present application is a drawing from United States Patent Application Publication US 2007/0055204 Al which illustrates improvements to such a guide conduit to facilitate one hand operation of the device. Both patent 7,195,614 and publication US 2007/0055204 Al are incorporated by reference herein.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[002] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a prior art guide conduit in a disassembled configuration.

[003] FIG. 2 is a side elevational view of a guide conduit in accordance with the present invention in an assembled configuration.

[004] FIG. 3 is a side elevational view of the guide conduit of FIG. 2 as it is being grasped in a person's hands in preparation for disassembly.

[005] FIG. 4 is a side elevational view of the guide conduit of FIG. 3 showing how the tongue and groove elements are disengaged by pinching the thumb rest and finger rest between the thumb and index finger.

[006] Fig. 5 is a side elevational view of the guide conduit of FIG. 4 in a disassembled configuration.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[007] FIG. 1 illustrates an embodiment of a prior art guide conduit 10 capable of being manipulated in the one-handed fashion, as described in United States Patent Application Publication US 2007/0055204 Al. The guide conduit 10 is formed of a first member 2 cooperatively associated with a second member 4. The first member includes an elongated portion 6 joined to a delivery arm portion 8 by a bend region 10 defining a desired angle. A handle 12 formed at a proximal end 14 of the first member includes a palm rest section 16 and a thumb rest section 18. The elongated portion and delivery arm portion include a depression 20 suitable for receiving and guiding a catheter (not shown) to a surgical site as described in United States Patent Application Publication US 2007/0055204 Al. The second member includes an elongated portion 22 and a delivery arm portion 24 shaped to cooperate with the respective elongated portion and delivery arm portion of the first member for capturing the catheter within the depression in the first member when the first and second members are joined. The second member may include a protrusion 25 cooperable with the depression in the first member for defining the channel that receives the catheter.

[008] Cooperation between tongue 26 and groove 28 members formed on the first and second members respectively hold the first and second members together. One may appreciate that in other embodiments the tongue and groove members may have their respective positions reversed as to the first and second members. The tongue and groove members are illustrated as having generally rectangular cross-sections, although other shapes may be used in other embodiments. To join the first and second members together, a bottom side surface 30 of the second member is placed against a topside surface 32 of the first member with the two members at a position where the tongue and groove members do not interface. The two members are then slid relative to each other with the second member moving toward the distal end of the first member to bring the respective tongue and groove members into sliding engagement to join the first and second members together. The embodiment of FIG. 1 includes three mating sets of tongue and groove members, although in other embodiments a different number of sets may be used. Any other known geometry of sliding engagement mechanisms may be used between the first and second members to provide a connection between the first and second members when they are in one relative position, and to provide a disconnection when the first and second members are slid relative to each other to a second disengaged position.

[009] A first stop member 34 is formed on the first member. In this embodiment the first stop member is formed to be integral with the tongue member closest to the distal end 36 of the device, although in other embodiments the stop member may be formed separately. The stop member cooperates with a second stop member 38 on the second member, which in this embodiment is the groove member closest to the distal end, to limit the extent of movement of the second member toward the distal end of the first member. The interference between the stop members limits movement of the second member toward the distal end of the first member when the members are engaged, thereby preventing the delivery arm portion of the second member from pinching closed the depression in the distal end of the first member when the second member is slid onto the first member, thus ensuring free passage of a catheter there through.

[0010] In the prior art it was known to incorporate relatively short tongue and groove members, for example only about 0.5 cm or perhaps 0.25-1.0 cm in some embodiments, to limit the engaged length of the tongue and groove members. As described in United States Patent Application Publication US 2007/0055204 Al, this feature facilitates the separation of the joined members using only a single hand while the assembled guide conduit is held with the palm rest portion of the handle in the surgeon's palm and is secured by at least one of the middle, ring and little fingers. The index finger wraps around the distal side of a finger rest 40 formed at the proximal end of the second member, and the thumb rests against the proximal side of the thumb rest section of the handle. The first and second members may then be separated to release an enclosed catheter by pulling the finger rest with the index finger to slide the second member relative to the first member which is being held stationary by the palm and thumb. The optional thumb rest having a relatively flat area for contacting the thumb is useful for keeping the device from rotating within the palm as pressure is applied against the finger rest by the index finger. The second member is released from the first member after being slid beyond the engaged length of the tongue and groove members, which is within the range of motion of the index finger. Thus, an engaged length of the tongue and groove members may be limited to be no more than a distance of movement of the second member caused by the pulling motion imparted by the index finger while a person holds the guide conduit by the handle.

[0011] The present inventor has further enhanced the functionality of such a guide conduit device as illustrated in the guide conduit 50 of FIGs. 2-5. Guide conduit 50 includes a first member 52 cooperatively associated with a second member 54 which are illustrated in FIG. 2 in an assembled configuration. The first member includes an elongated portion 56 joined to a delivery arm portion 58 by a bend region 60 defining a desired angle. A handle 62 formed at a proximal end 64 of the first member includes a palm rest section 56 and a thumb rest section 58. The elongated portion and delivery arm portion include a depression (not shown) suitable for receiving and guiding a catheter (also not shown) to a surgical site as described in United States Patent Application Publication US 2007/0055204 Al.

[0012] Cooperation between tongue members 76 (hidden in FIGs. 2 and 3 but visible in FIGs. 4 and 5) and groove 78 members formed on the first and second members respectively hold the first and second members together, as described above. One may appreciate that in other embodiments the tongue and groove members may have their respective positions reversed as to the first and second members. The tongue and groove members are illustrated as having generally rectangular cross-sections, although other shapes may be used in other embodiments. The embodiment of FIGs. 2-5 includes three mating sets of tongue and groove members, although in other embodiments a different number of sets may be used. Other geometries of sliding joints between the first and second members may also be envisioned.

[0013] An engaged length of the tongue and groove members is illustrated as distance d in FIG. 2 and is defined as the linear distance of relative movement between the first and second members in the direction of the elongated portion longitudinal axis L over which the tongue and groove member remained engaged to prevent relative separation of the first and second members in a direction perpendicular to axis L. In other words, the engaged length of the tongue and groove members determines how far the finger rest 80 must be moved relative to the handle 62 in order to disengage the tongue and groove attachment to allow disassembly of the guide conduit 50. The engaged length depends upon the lengths of the tongue members 76 and groove members 78 and upon the location of any stop 74 that may limit full engagement there between.

[0014] The present inventor has discovered that it is advantageous for a surgeon to hold the handle of the guide conduit 50 with one hand during a surgical procedure, such as right hand 100 as shown in FIGs. 3-5, while using the other hand, such as left hand 102, to disengage the first and second members from each other. This is possible because the present inventor has innovatively sized the engaged length d of guide conduit 50, and further has specially positioned and sized the thumb rest 58 and finger rest 80 of guide conduit 50. In the present invention, the engaged length d is less than a distance D between a proximal surface 82 of the finger rest 80 and a proximal surface 84 of the thumb rest 58 along an axis L parallel to longitudinal axes of the respective elongated sections when the guide conduit 50 is in an engaged configuration, hi this manner, a surgeon or other person holding the handle 56 with one hand 100, as shown in FIG. 3, can pinch the thumb rest 58 and finger rest 80 together between his/her index finger 104 and thumb 106 of the other hand, as shown in FIG. 4, to disengage the tongue and groove members 76, 78 and to separate the second member 54 from the first member 52, as shown in FIG. 5 and for the purpose described in United States Patent 7,195,614. Control of the apparatus is enhanced during the sliding action when compared to prior art devices because the thumb 106 is maintained in contact with the thumb rest 58 during the entire sliding movement necessary to disengage the tongue and groove members 76, 78, and because finger 104 tends to urge the second member 54 downward against the first member 52 during the sliding operation while the first member 52 is being held securely by hand 100. Once the finger 104 and thumb 106 come together to firmly pinch the finger rest 80, as illustrated in FIG. 4, the second member 54 can be moved upward and away from the first member 52, as illustrated in FIG. 5, without disturbing the placement of the first member 52 or the associated catheter (not shown) from its position in the surgical wound. Thus, the present invention provides a geometry for improved control of a guide conduit device 59 during a surgical procedure with resultant accurate placement of a catheter.

[0015] While various embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described herein, it will be obvious that such embodiments are provided by way of example only. Numerous variations, changes and substitutions may be made without departing from the invention as claimed herein.

Claims

CLAIMS:The invention claimed is:

1. An apparatus for positioning a catheter for delivering analgesia to a target site during a surgical procedure, the apparatus comprising: a first member comprising a handle and a thumb rest proximate a proximal end, an elongated section extending away from the proximal end to a bend region, and a delivery arm portion extending from the bend region toward a distal end; a second member comprising a finger rest proximate the proximal end and an elongated section extending from the proximal end, the second member cooperating with the first member when attached thereto to define a channel for receiving a catheter; and a tongue member formed on a first of the first and second members and a groove member formed on a second of the first and second members, the tongue and groove members cooperating to secure the first and second members together when engaged; wherein an engaged length of the tongue and groove members is less than a distance between a proximal surface of the finger rest and a proximal surface of the thumb rest along an axis parallel to longitudinal axes of the respective elongated sections when the tongue and groove members are engaged, so that a surgeon holding the handle with one hand can pinch the thumb rest and finger rest together between an index finger and thumb of the surgeon's other hand to disengage the tongue and groove members and to separate the second member from the first member.

2. An apparatus for positioning a catheter for delivering analgesia to a target site during a surgical procedure, the apparatus comprising: a first member comprising a handle and a thumb rest proximate a proximal end, an elongated section extending away from the proximal end to a bend region, and a delivery arm portion extending from the bend region toward a distal end; a second member comprising a finger rest proximate the proximal end and an elongated section extending from the proximal end, the second member cooperating with the first member when attached thereto to define a channel for receiving a catheter; and a sliding engagement mechanism formed between the first and second members to secure the first and second members together when engaged; wherein an engaged length of the sliding engagement mechanism is less than a distance between a proximal surface of the finger rest and a proximal surface of the thumb rest along an axis parallel to longitudinal axes of the respective elongated sections when the sliding engagement mechanism is engaged, so that a person holding the handle with one hand can pinch the thumb rest and finger rest together between an index finger and thumb of the person's other hand to disengage the sliding engagement mechanism and to separate the second member from the first member.