A medical drainage device for draining air or fluid from a body cavity is described for its use in treating a subject suffering from pneumothorax and/or pleural effusion. The device comprises a tube or a catheter-over-needle for receiving air or fluid from the body cavity and one or more fixation systems for preventing inadvertent dislodging of the needle and/or catheter during the draining procedure. A woven semi-flexible catheter coated with antithrombic agents is used for reducing kinks and clogs. The device may be used for draining air and/or fluid from a plurality of types of body cavities and is particularly suitable for uses in military and/or emergency settings.

A coaxial draining tube, particularly for chest draining systems, includes an inner tube, which has a first opening, and an outer tube, which has a second opening. The inner tube is enclosed within the outer tube and has a smaller diameter than the second opening of the outer tube. The first and second tubes are mutually coupled by way of a supporting component and include one or more holes adapted to allow the passage of air from the chest cavity to the first opening of the inner tube and one or more holes adapted to allow the passage of liquids from the chest cavity to the second opening of the outer tube. The one or more holes are provided in the portion of the coaxial draining tube that is intended to be inserted in the chest cavity of a patient.

A chest drainage system, including a circulation assembly having an intake for taking fluid into the system and an exhaust for exhausting fluid out of the system. An intake flow device is configured to selectively control fluid flow through the intake and an exhaust flow device is configured to selectively controlling fluid flow through the exhaust. The circulation assembly has a first configuration and a second configuration such that transitioning between the first and second configurations during operation of the circulation assembly displaces at least a portion of fluid within the system with fluid from outside the system via the intake and the exhaust. A sensor is arranged in fluid communication with the fluid within the system and configured to detect a concentration of a reference fluid in the fluid in the system.

A thoracic drainage system having a drainage catheter that is adapted to be inserted in the pleural space of a patient in order to drain air and/or liquids that are present in the pleural space, and a drain tube, which is connected to the drainage catheter by a connector component. The drainage catheter includes longitudinally extended channels which are open radially toward the outside of the drainage catheter and at least one port for the drainage of the liquids, in which the open channels merge. The drainage catheter includes a port having at the distal end, a drainage catheter and radial holes. The drain tube has a first outflow port which is connected, by the connector component, to the at least one port and a second outflow port which is connected, by the connector component, to the port for the drainage of the air.

A low-cost and simple-to-use system and method to facilitate a prophylactic pleural lavage protocol at the time of thoracostomy tube placement for traumatic hemothorax in order to reduce the need for secondary intervention for the management of retained hemothorax. The invention may be used in conjunction with existing chest tubes and be administered at the time of initial chest tube placement, and continued at the bedside (by a bedside nurse) over the duration of chest drainage, as necessary. The system includes an operator device that semi-automatically administers a pleural lavage protocol consisting of saline instillation, and suction to slow the clotting process, prevent “gelling” of blood, and maintain drainability.

A body cavity drainage device includes a drainage tube with a distal end configured for insertion into the body cavity of a patient, a fluid outlet at a proximal end of the drainage tube; and an activation apparatus coupled to the drainage tube between the proximal end of the drainage tube and the distal end of the drainage tube. The activation apparatus may be configured to alter a position of the distal end of the drainage tube in response to an input at a control device of the activation apparatus, and a first portion of the drainage tube extending from the activation apparatus toward the distal end may be at least substantially coaxial with a second portion of the drainage tube extending from the activation apparatus toward the proximal end. Methods relate to forming a body cavity drainage devices.

The present invention relates to systems and methods for monitoring impedance from a sensor in the chest of a subject to determine the status of lung inflation or presence of pneumothorax in the subject, the presence of pulmonary edema, the status of regional lung ventilation, and the status of cardiac contractility.

A device for clearing obstructions from a medical tube, such as a chest tube, is disclosed in various embodiments. In embodiments, the device features a clearance member that is formed to match a cross-section of a medical tube. Still further, the clearance member can have a plurality of branches, each branch configured to clear a respective lumen in a partitioned region of a medical tube. In this manner, the clearance member may clear obstructions from individual lumens of the partitioned region of the medical tube. Device for actuating a clearance member to clear obstructions within a medical tube are also disclosed. Methods of clearing a medical tube of obstructions are also disclosed.

A method and system of and for securing a lumen or catheter, after placement in a patient, to prevent unwanted removal or dislodgement of the lumen or catheter caused by patient movement and/or further medical interventions such as cardiopulmonary chest compressions, electrical defibrillation, surgical procedures, and the like. The method and system comprising simple and sterile materials that preclude the use of excessive suturing and ineffective ad-hoc methods with tape and gauze. The catheter is secured by a rubber on plastic frictional force and will resist external forces while preventing the tube structure from bending and subsequent occlusion. The device can be comfortably attached to the patient in all of the anatomical locations typically targeted for large catheter installment. The method of securement is rapid and requires only a single personnel to handle the device and the catheter tube simultaneously.

An automatic pump-based fluid management system, as described herein, comprises an intercostal pump that is, generally, a resiliently flexible bulb having an inlet and an outlet. The inlet is attached to a first tube that extends from the intercostal pump to a first area of a patient's body, for example, the patient's pleural cavity. The outlet is connected to a second tube that extends from the intercostal pump to a second area of a patient's body, for example, the patient's peritoneal cavity. In use, the intercostal pump is placed between a first rib and a second rib in a patient. The intercostal pump operates by being successively compressed and decompressed between the first and second ribs as the patient breaths.