A system detects extravasation or infiltration by segregating active components that drive a passive sensor for economical single use. A receiving antenna of the passive sensor receives a transmitted signal comprising RF electromagnetic power. A first circuit transmits a first portion of the received signal through a body portion. A sensor detects a resultant signal from the body portion. A second circuit combines a reference signal comprising a second portion of the received signal with the resultant signal so as to define an output signal. A transmit antenna transmits the output signal to a receiver.

A fluid management system for moving bodily fluid accumulated due to ascites, pleural effusion or pericardial effusion is provided including an implantable pump coupled to an inflow catheter, an outflow catheter, and optionally an anti-clog catheter. The fluid management system facilitates removal of fluid from a body region, such as the peritoneum, pleural cavity or pericardial sac, where drainage is desired to another body region, such as the urinary bladder or the peritoneal cavity. The system includes clog resistant mechanisms such as clog resistant catheters and/or programmed routines for cycling fluid through inlet catheters in predetermined time intervals and/or responsive to sensed conditions to minimize the risk that inlet catheters become clogged due to, for example, tissue ingrowth and/or solid objects within accumulated fluid.

A portable insulin pump can utilize readings from a sensor incorporated into an infusion set used with the pump to deliver insulin to a patient to determine if the infusion set is or is likely to become dislodged from the patient. Readings from the sensor that are inconsistent with expected readings or a range of expected readings can indicate that the infusion set has become dislodged from the patient.

A hand-held device is provided for precisely positioning a needle tip at a desired target position into a non-homogeneous material, including a blood vessel. The hand-held device includes a casing hand-held by an operator, a shaft extending along a longitudinal axis and carrying the needle, the shaft mounted in the casing and coupled to the casing to move as a single piece therewith along the longitudinal axis. The hand-held device further includes a sensor unit to provide signals indicative of a physical characteristic of the material wherein the needle tip has to be inserted, and a control unit configured to determine, based on the signals received from the sensor unit, whether the needle tip has reached the target position and to operate a decoupling unit to decouple the shaft and the needle from the casing or to operate an actuating unit to actively move the shaft relative to the casing.

Methods and devices are provided for reducing a diabetic patient's foreign body immune response, including infusion site-loss and/or occlusion. Such foreign body responses are associated with the treatment of the diabetic patient where the treatment requires subcutaneous implantation of a foreign body, such as a cannula or catheter. In certain embodiments of the invention, a response-inhibiting agent is administered to a patient at the site of cannula/catheter insertion, thereby facilitating delivery of insulin to the diabetic patient and mitigating site-loss and/or occlusion over a period of time.

A portable machine for arterial embalming includes a tank assembly and a control assembly. The control assembly includes a fluid pressure gauge fluidly connected to a fluid output of a syringe vessel assembly of the tank assembly; a fluid injection tube fluidly connected to the fluid pressure gauge and configured for injection into the human cadaver body; a motor connected to a push rod that is connected to the syringe vessel assembly, wherein the motor drives the push rod to actuate the syringe vessel assembly to produce a flow of fluid from the tank assembly to the fluid pressure gauge; and a motor speed controller connected for varying a speed of the motor and for varying a maximum fluid pressure measured by the fluid pressure gauge, and, in turn, pressure filtration of fluid entering the human cadaver body.

Systems and methods for controlling fluid delivery via a manually administrable medication container to a patient through a fluid delivery pathway are provided. The systems and methods described herein incorporate rules-based clinical decision support logic to drive a flow control valve within a flow pathway based on a determination of whether or not an IV fluid connected to an input port on the pathway is appropriate for patient administration by considering such factors as patient-specific clinical circumstances, current medical orders, and accepted delivery protocols. Related apparatus, systems, methods and articles are also described.

An apparatus for regulating the concentration of glucose in the blood of a person includes: at least one glucose sensor that is arranged to measure the glucose concentration of the person, for example in the interstitial fluid or blood; a pump for selectively introducing at least one substance influencing the blood glucose levels into the body of the person, for instance by at least one cannula or catheter to be inserted into the body of said person, and a control for controlling said at least one substance influencing the blood glucose levels to be introduced to the person based on data received from said glucose sensor. Said apparatus includes at least one further sensor that is arranged to monitor a further characteristic of the person. The at least one further sensor may include an accelerometer, a heart rate sensor, a temperature sensor, a pH sensor, a ketone sensor, a GPS receiver, and/or a skin resistance sensor.

A drug delivery system having a drug delivery device and an associated sensor is provided. The sensor can be associated with a sensing site on user. The drug delivery device can be positioned over the sensor in any rotational position and can be associated with an infusion site on the user. The close positioning of the sensor and the drug delivery device allows data from the sensor to be relayed to the drug delivery device and then on to a remote control device. Further, the drug delivery device can be replaced at the end of its duration of use, which is shorter than the duration of use of the sensor, without disturbing the sensor. Subsequent drug delivery devices can then be used with the sensor while allowing each corresponding infusion site to be changed, thereby providing more efficient operation of the drug delivery system.

A portable insulin pump can utilize readings from a sensor incorporated into an infusion set used with the pump to deliver insulin to a patient to determine if the infusion set is or is likely to become dislodged from the patient. Readings from the sensor that are inconsistent with expected readings or a range of expected readings can indicate that the infusion set has become dislodged from the patient.