Patent Grant
11173267
The present disclosure relates to an adjustable tracheostoma valve and heat and moisture exchanger.
This section provides background information related to the present disclosure which is not necessarily prior art.
Loss of nasal function as a result of laryngectomy can result in functional changes to tracheal bronchial mucosa and lung function. These changes are due to dry cool air replacing the warm humid air which was provided by the function of the nose. A total laryngectomy surgery also results in a decreased resistance which has effect on lung function. These functional changes can result in an increase in mucus production, an increase in coughing, and an increase in chest infections.
Daily use of a heat and moisture exchanger (hereinafter HME) reduces loss of heat and moisture from the tracheal and bronchial mucosa and lungs, and provides the lungs with increased resistance. This warm, humidified and filtered air helps keep the mucosa from drying out and the increased resistance keeps the alveoli of the lungs from collapsing resulting in better lung function.
An adjustable tracheostoma valve (ATSV), is a vital component in tracheoesophageal voice restoration following total laryngectomy. Commonly referred to as a “Hands-free valve” it eliminates the need to cover the stoma with a thumb or finger to produce voice. The hands-free valve closes automatically when sufficient air pressure through the valve causes the valve to close and redirect the exhaled air through the voice prosthesis in order to allow the user to produce voice.
This section provides a general summary of the disclosure, and is not a comprehensive disclosure of its full scope or all of its features.
An adjustable tracheostoma valve includes a housing having a first opening that is adapted to open to a tracheostoma and a second opening that opens to ambient. The housing includes a lower housing portion defining the first opening and an upper housing portion movably attached to the lower housing portion and defining the second opening. A closure member is disposed in the housing and adapted to close the second opening. A flexible membrane includes a first region connected to the closure member and a plurality of spiral shaped legs extending from the first region and connected to the housing. The upper and lower housings are axially adjustable relative to one another to adjust an amount of air flow through the valve that would cause closure of the closure member. A heat and moisture exchanger is disposed in the housing between the first opening and the second opening.
Further areas of applicability will become apparent from the description provided herein. The description and specific examples in this summary are intended for purposes of illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure.
The drawings described herein are for illustrative purposes only of selected embodiments and not all possible implementations, and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure.
Corresponding reference numerals indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views of the drawings.
Example embodiments will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings.
Example embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough, and will fully convey the scope to those who are skilled in the art. Numerous specific details are set forth such as examples of specific components, devices, and methods, to provide a thorough understanding of embodiments of the present disclosure. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that specific details need not be employed, that example embodiments may be embodied in many different forms and that neither should be construed to limit the scope of the disclosure. In some example embodiments, well-known processes, well-known device structures, and well-known technologies are not described in detail.
The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular example embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting. As used herein, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” may be intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. The terms “comprises,” “comprising,” “including,” and “having,” are inclusive and therefore specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof. The method steps, processes, and operations described herein are not to be construed as necessarily requiring their performance in the particular order discussed or illustrated, unless specifically identified as an order of performance. It is also to be understood that additional or alternative steps may be employed.
When an element or layer is referred to as being “on,” “engaged to,” “connected to,” or “coupled to” another element or layer, it may be directly on, engaged, connected or coupled to the other element or layer, or intervening elements or layers may be present. In contrast, when an element is referred to as being “directly on,” “directly engaged to,” “directly connected to,” or “directly coupled to” another element or layer, there may be no intervening elements or layers present. Other words used to describe the relationship between elements should be interpreted in a like fashion (e.g., “between” versus “directly between,” “adjacent” versus “directly adjacent,” etc.). As used herein, the term “and/or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items.
Spatially relative terms, such as “inner,” “outer,” “beneath,” “below,” “lower,” “above,” “upper,” and the like, may be used herein for ease of description to describe one element or feature's relationship to another element(s) or feature(s) as illustrated in the figures. Spatially relative terms may be intended to encompass different orientations of the device in use or operation in addition to the orientation depicted in the figures. For example, if the device in the figures is turned over, elements described as “below” or “beneath” other elements or features would then be oriented “above” the other elements or features. Thus, the example term “below” can encompass both an orientation of above and below. The device may be otherwise oriented (rotated 90 degrees or at other orientations) and the spatially relative descriptors used herein interpreted accordingly.
With reference to
With reference to the cross-sectional views of
With reference to
The upper housing 16 includes a cylindrical wall 50 having an outer surface with a pair of screw thread recesses 52a, 52b that are adapted to engage the pair of lugs 38a, 38b on the interior surface of the cylindrical wall 30 of the lower housing 14. The upper housing 16 includes a domed shape upper end 54 that defines the second opening 20. A handgrip flange 56 is connected to an upper portion of the cylindrical wall 50.
With reference to
The closure member 22 is in the form of a disk that can be formed from various materials. The closure member 22 is connected to a center region 60 of the flexible membrane 24, best shown in
It should be noted that the flexible membrane 24 can take on various other forms and can be mounted to the lower housing 14 using different techniques. In an alternative embodiment, as shown in
It is noted that the closure member 22 can be eliminated and, as shown in
In operation, the tracheostoma valve 10 is mounted with the first opening 18 disposed against a user's neck over top of a tracheostoma. As air is inhaled and exhaled through the tracheostoma valve 10, humidifier filter 26 reduces loss of heat and moisture to the environment. In addition, as sufficient air pressure is generated by exhalation through the tracheostoma valve 10, the closure member 22 can be caused to close off the second opening 20 to redirect the exhaled air through the voice prosthesis in order to allow the user to produce voice. Because different patients breathe at different air velocities, the tracheostoma valve 10 can be adjusted to the patient's comfort level by adjusting the position of the upper housing 16 relative to the lower housing 14 and reducing or extending the distance between the closure member 22 and the second opening 20.
The foregoing description of the embodiments has been provided for purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the disclosure. Individual elements or features of a particular embodiment are generally not limited to that particular embodiment, but, where applicable, are interchangeable and can be used in a selected embodiment, even if not specifically shown or described. The same may also be varied in many ways. Such variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the disclosure, and all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the disclosure.
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| 20200188620 A1 | Jun 2020 | US |
