Assembly of devices, and a kit, for use in replacement gastrostomy tube therapy, consisting of: 1) a Replacement Gastrostomy Tube status device comprising an evaluation module able to trigger an alarm that indicates the inflation status of a retention balloon; 2) a temporary distal “tip” structure for use in centering the Replacement Gastrostomy Tubes in vivo; and 3) a gastrostomy tube comprising a mesh latticework structure to increase the structural integrity of the Replacement Gastrostomy Tubes; and/or a pH sensor measuring acidity of fluid at distal tube opening. The module/unit comprises a battery powered, visual light, auditory signal or network-connected communication to convey the retention balloon's inflation status. The temporary distal “tip” structure includes various tapers, with minimal distal area, to facilitate placement of the Replacement Gastrostomy Tube via a self-centering function, in which the tip is chemically or mechanically released into a digestive tract, or withdrawn externally after a Replacement Gastrostomy Tube is positioned in vivo.

A stabilization device for a low-profile feeding device may include a pad and a stabilizer body. The low-profile feeding device may have a tube, an external bolster, and an internal bolster. The pad may include an opening extending from a top surface to a bottom surface thereof and configured for receiving the tube therethrough. The stabilizer body may be fixedly attached to the top surface of the pad and configured for extending over the external bolster. The stabilizer body may include a cavity configured for receiving a base portion of the external bolster therein, an opening extending from the cavity to a top surface of the stabilizer body and configured for allowing access to an access port of the external bolster, and a slit extending from the top surface toward a bottom surface of the stabilizer body and from the opening to a first end of the stabilizer body.

The invention disclosed herein is a method for progressive dilation of living tissue with a gastrostomy tube reinsertion device. In one aspect, the gastrostomy tube reinsertion device has multiple dilators to open collapsed soft tissue within the gastrostomy tube tract. Such device is useful for reinserting a gastrostomy tube into the previously defined tract in a human body, even after partial closure of the tract and gastrostomy tube insertion site. In another aspect, the present invention provides the method or steps for reinserting a gastrostomy tube into a patient.

The present invention relates to a connector assembly for coupling a tube to a base of a catheter device, the connector assembly comprising a connector element having a channel and being configured to be coupled at a first end to the tube, a revolving lock having an opening for accommodating the connector element and being configured to engage with the connector element thereby enabling a free rotation around a rotation axis, a hub having a tubular channel and being configured to be attached to the base, wherein a second end of the connector element is configured to be at least partially inserted into the tubular channel of the hub, wherein the revolving lock is configured to be releasably locked with the hub, and wherein the rotation of the connector element is configured to be decoupled from the locking mechanism between the revolving lock and the hub.

A device for snugging a balloon of a catheter against an inner wall of an intra-corporeal lumen or surface serviced by the catheter includes a hollow column having a top end and a bottom end, forming a throughway sized to accommodate a tube of the catheter, and a flange extending from the bottom end of the hollow column generally perpendicularly to length of the hollow column. A slit is formed in the hollow column and the flange through which the hollow column is connectable to the tube of the catheter. The catheter is tugged to contact the balloon to the inner wall of the lumen, and the device is fixed to the tube of the catheter atop the skin of a body serviced by the catheter to tension pressure of the balloon against the inner wall.

There is provided feeding tubes including an electromagnetic sensor including a sensor body comprising a core positioned at a distal end of the sensor lumen, and a wire extending along the length of the feeding tube, wherein an RF induced heating of the feeding tube in an MRI environment is below 5 degrees.

Disclosed is a system for administrating fluids to a patient, such as an infant. The system comprises a container that defines a drip chamber, a source of nutritive fluid fluidically communicating with the drip chamber, and a tube connecting the drip chamber to the gastric cavity of a patient, the chamber including a membrane that is gas-permeable but that is resistant to fluid passage. The system allows fluids to be introduced to the patient and for gastric gases to be released while they are resistant to the leak and spillage.

The invention disclosed herein is a gastrostomy tube reinsertion device. The present invention provides a dilation device for dilating the gastrostomy tube tract in living tissues. In one aspect, the gastrostomy tube reinsertion device comprises multiple dilators to open collapsed soft tissue within the gastrostomy tube tract. Such device is useful for reinserting a gastrostomy tube into the previously defined tract in a human body, even after partial closure of the tract and gastrostomy tube insertion site. In another aspect, the present invention provides the method or steps for reinserting a gastrostomy tube into a patient.

One or more techniques and/or systems are disclosed for a gastrojejunostomy tube (G-J tube) with a replaceable balloon portion. An example G-J tube can comprise a connection point that is appropriately disposed distally from the balloon portion. The connection can be used to detach a proximal portion from a distal portion of the G-J tube; and a replacement proximal portion can be attached, and the G-J tube can be moved to the desired location. The example G-J tube can comprise a jejunal tube, a gastric tube, and a balloon tube, respectively sized to dispose the distal opening in an appropriate location in the target patient. The proximal portion can comprise at least the balloon tube, the port of the gastric tube, and the port of the jejunal tube.

A gastrostomy or nasogastric tube venting unit has a containment vessel for measuring fluids expelled with gastric gas before, during, after, or independent from feeding. The venting unit is particularly well-suited for pediatric or extremely weak patients who have difficulty producing sufficient pressure to expel gas through a fluid-filled feeding tube, including babies weighing less than 2000 grams. The venting unit includes a handle for suspending from an IV pole, a car or infant seat, stroller, a coat hook, or other support structures that might be used for travel. The containment vessel has a splash guard in the form of mesh material or screen covering or molded within the upper opening of the vessel, and can be capped temporarily for ease of transportation. The cap can be reopened when the patient is secured in a car seat or other means for travel, so that venting can resume. The splash-guard screen prevents spilling, spraying or splashing of liquids when gastric contents are explosively expelled along with gas.