An apparatus such as a suction instrument includes a position sensor proximate to a distal tip of a malleable shaft. A sensor wire couples the position sensor to a processor of an image guided surgery system such that signals generated by the position sensor can be interpreted to determine the position of the surgical instrument. The malleable shaft includes a malleable outer shaft and a flexible inner tube. The flexible inner tube includes a primary lumen that can provide suction, fluid, or various deployable surgical tools, and an inner lumen that holds the sensor wire. Protected within the inner lumen, the sensor wire runs the length of the shaft and exits the inner lumen and passes through a slot in the outer shaft to reach the position sensor. A heat shrink cover wraps the distal tip, sealing the components together and providing an opening suitable for suction.

A wound therapy system includes a single conduit fluidly connecting a wound site to a. removed fluid canister. A negative pressure circuit is defined by the wound site, the conduit, the removed fluid canister and tubing extending between the removed fluid canister and a pneumatic pump that applies negative pressure to the negative pressure circuit. A method of operating the wound therapy system includes profiling and benchmarking pressure decay within the negative pressure circuit against previous and/or expected pressure decay to identify any new or sudden anomalies that occur during the operation of the wound therapy system. The wound therapy system may additionally alert a user to such anomalous operation of the wound therapy system and/or identify and alert a user to an underlying cause (e.g, blockage and/or leak, etc.) that is responsible for the anomalous readings.

A chest drainage system includes a collection device and a fluid pathway configured to extend from the collection device to a patient. A pressure source is configured to selectively provide sub-atmospheric pressure to the fluid pathway. The system is configured to introduce sub-atmospheric pressure from the pressure source at a substantially constant target pressure and at a dynamic pressure that varies from the target pressure. A method is also disclosed for draining a pleural cavity of a patient. The method involves applying dynamic pressure to the pleural cavity of a patient by changing sub-atmospheric pressure applied to the patient such that the patient's pleura moves without any or limited patient activity, thus facilitating removal of loculated fluid from the pleural cavity. The method may involve the use of the chest drain system.

An airway assist device and methods of making and using an airway assist device to assist in opening an airway or removing fluid or material obstructing an airway of a subject.

A pneumatic cross-connect proportional valve provides the capability to calibrate pressure and vacuum sensors in a surgical cassette associated with a surgical console. Calibration of non-invasive pressure and vacuum sensors in a cassette by utilizing a proportional cross-connect to pressurize the lines with set pressure or vacuum the lines with set vacuum and measure the response of respective sensors in the cassette. The use of proportional pressure may be used along with other clearing methods to clear material clogging the aspiration channel pathways and tubing of the surgical system. Utilize the cross-connect functionality to more rapidly pressurize the aspiration line upon detection or prediction of a post occlusion surge, thereby reducing the pressure difference between the surgical field, the eye chamber, and aspiration line which may prevent, for example, a surge of fluid out of the anterior chamber of the eye.

Embodiments of negative pressure wound therapy systems and methods are disclosed. In one embodiment, a system includes a wound dressing, negative pressure source, switch, and control circuitry. The switch can include an actuator that toggles states of first and second pairs of contacts in response to a user input. The control circuitry can supply negative pressure with the negative pressure source when the state of the first pair of contacts is a first state and the state of the second pair of contacts is a second state, and the control circuitry can disable supply of negative pressure with the negative pressure source when the state of the first pair of contacts is not the first state or the state of the second pair of contacts is not the second state.

Methods of assembling a manifold for a medical waste collection system. A flapper valve unit is secured to a head of a cap. A filter element is positioned within a shell. Basket hands of the filter element are fitted between first pairs of ribs of the cap skirt. Fingers of the shell are fitted between second pairs of ribs of the cap skirt. The cap is secured to the shell to cover an open distal end of the shell. A drip stop is secured to the proximal end base of the shell to seat within the outlet opening. Ears may be fitted through holes defined by the flapper valve unit and cap holes defined by the cap so as to snap lock to the head of the cap. The hub of the flapper valve unit may be compressed with the ears snap locked to the head of the cap.

A system includes (i) a solenoid valve, positioned between a handle of a probe, and an aspiration line coupled with the handle for aspirating fluids from the probe, the solenoid valve includes at least a solenoid coil and a plunger movable by the solenoid coil, (ii) a sensor, positioned between the handle and the aspiration line and configured to produce a signal indicative of a fluid metric in the aspiration line, and (iii) a controller, configured to identify, based on the signal, a vacuum surge in the aspiration line, and, in response to identifying the vacuum surge, to apply at least one current to the solenoid coil to selectively move the plunger between a first position and a second position, and to selectively maintain the plunger in the first position and the second position.

A tubeset module includes one or more elements of a negative pressure wound therapy (“NPWT”) system, such as a valve, a calibrated leak, a pressure sensor, etc. The tubeset module may communicate with a controller of the NPWT system via a communications interface provided by the tubeset module. The communication between the tubeset module and the controller may be used to fully automate one or more processes involving the operation of the components of the NPWT system included in the tubeset module, allowing the NPWT system to, e.g. estimate a wound site volume, estimate a volume of fluid to be instilled, monitor wound healing progression, etc. without requiring any user interaction or involvement. The tubeset module may be defined by one or more housing elements. The tubeset module may be incorporated into any of the tubing, fluid canister, wound dressing and/or therapy device housing components of the NPWT system.

A wound therapy system includes a dressing sealable over a wound and defining a wound space between the dressing and the wound, tubing fluidly communicable with the wound space, and a canister fluidly communicable with the tubing. The canister, the tubing, and the dressing define a sealed space that includes the wound space. The wound therapy system also includes a therapy unit coupled to the canister. The therapy unit includes a sensor configured to measure a pressure in the sealed space, a valve positioned between the sealed space and a surrounding environment and controllable between an open position and a closed position, and a control circuit. The control circuit is configured to control the valve to alternate between the open position and the closed position to allow airflow through the valve, receive measurements from the sensor, and determine a volume of the wound space based on the measurements.