Patent Application
20210307595
The present disclosure relates generally to hygiene for medical instruments, more particularly to, a disposable cover for avoiding contamination of an endoscope.
Endoscopes are medical instruments generally used for visual inspection of internal body organs or tissues. The most common use of the endoscope is to visually inspect a digestive track. Typically, an endoscope includes parts like, a control body (or operating part), a light guide tube, an insertion tube, an endoscope connector and so forth. In use, the insertion tube is inserted into the digestive track to visually inspect the digestive track. Typically, after the use, the insertion tube is mainly washed and disinfected. The process of washing and disinfecting requires time and effort, which may affect the working efficiency of the endoscope.
Conventionally, disposable covers for the insertion tube are known in the art, which may be disposed after the use thereof, to address the above stated problem. However, parts like the control body or nearby parts of the control body, i.e. connecting parts of the light guide and insertion tubes are equally prone to contamination, because an endoscopist operates the endoscope by primarily using the said parts. Further, as stated above, the washing and disinfecting process is mainly carried out for the insertion tube, which may cause contamination of the control body or parts near to the control body. Although, the entire endoscope can be washed and disinfected to avoid such contamination, however, this may require considerable time and effort, which may adversely affect the working efficiency of the endoscope.
In light of the foregoing discussion, there exists a need to overcome the aforementioned drawbacks associated with the contamination of endoscope.
Various embodiments of the present disclosure provide a disposable cover for avoiding contamination of an endoscope.
In an embodiment, a disposable cover for avoiding contamination of an endoscope is disclosed. The disposable cover includes an elongate hollow body configured to enclose at least a portion of the endoscope. The elongate hollow body includes a first opening configured at a first end portion of the elongate hollow body, a second opening configured at a second end portion of the elongate hollow body, and an intermediate body portion extending between the first and second end portions. The disposable cover also includes at least one attachment means arranged on each of the first and second end portions.
In another embodiment, a disposable cover for avoiding contamination of an endoscope is disclosed, and the disposable cover includes an elongate hollow body configured to enclose at least a portion of the endoscope. The elongate hollow body includes a first opening configured at a first end portion of the elongate hollow body, a second opening configured at a second end portion of the elongate hollow body, and an intermediate body portion extending between the first and second end portions. The elongate hollow body is made of an elastic biocompatible material allowing the elongate hollow body to be removably arranged on at least the portion of the endoscope.
In yet another embodiment, a disposable cover for avoiding contamination of an endoscope is disclosed, and the disposable cover includes an elongate hollow body configured to enclose at least a portion of the endoscope. The elongate hollow body includes a first opening configured at a first end portion of the elongate hollow body, a second opening configured at a second end portion of the elongate hollow body, and an intermediate body portion extending between the first and second end portions. The disposable cover also includes a zipper arranged along a length of the elongate hollow body, wherein the zipper is operable to allow the elongate hollow body to enclose at least the portion of the endoscope.
Other aspects and example embodiments are provided in the drawings and the detailed description that follows.
For a more complete understanding of example embodiments of the present technology, reference is now made to the following descriptions taken in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:
The drawings referred to in this description are not to be understood as being drawn to scale except if specifically noted, and such drawings are only exemplary in nature.
In the following description, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present disclosure. It will be apparent, however, to one skilled in the art that the present disclosure can be practiced without these specific details.
Reference in this specification to “one embodiment” or “an embodiment” means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present disclosure. The appearance of the phrase “in an embodiment” in various places in the specification is not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment, nor are separate or alternative embodiments mutually exclusive of other embodiments. Moreover, various features are described which may be exhibited by some embodiments and not by others. Similarly, various requirements are described which may be requirements for some embodiments but not for other embodiments.
Moreover, although the following description contains many specifics for the purposes of illustration, anyone skilled in the art will appreciate that many variations and/or alterations to said details are within the scope of the present disclosure. Similarly, although many of the features of the present disclosure are described in terms of each other, or in conjunction with each other, one skilled in the art will appreciate that many of these features can be provided independently of other features. Accordingly, this description of the present disclosure is set forth without any loss of generality to, and without imposing limitations upon, the present disclosure.
Referring now to the drawings,
In an example, the elongate hollow body 102 may be a hollow cylindrical structure. Typically, the elongate hollow body 102 is a hollow elongate structure having either a uniform or a non-uniform diameter (or structural dimensions). For example, the first and second end portions 112, 116 of the elongate hollow body 102 may be diametrically smaller as compared to a diameter of the intermediate body portion 118. Alternatively, the first and second end portions 112, 116 and the intermediate body portion 118 may include a same diameter.
In an exemplary embodiment, the elongate hollow body 102 includes a length from about 20 to about 40 centimeters. It will be appreciated that the length of the elongate hollow body is primarily constituted by a length of the intermediate body portion 118. Additionally, the elongate hollow body 102 may include a diameter from about 5 to about 15 centimeters.
In an embodiment, the elongate hollow body 102 is made of a biocompatible material. For example, the elongate hollow body 102 may be made of one of a biocompatible plastic, a biocompatible rubber, a biocompatible fabric or any combination thereof. Typically, the elongate hollow body 102 is a sheet or a layer of such biocompatible martial, which is foldable in nature. In another embodiment, the elongate hollow body 102 may be made of a non-biocompatible material, such as a sheet of non-biocompatible plastic or fabric.
The disposable cover 100 also includes at least one attachment means arranged on each of the first and second end portions 112, 116. According to an embodiment, the disposable cover 100 includes a similar attachment means arranged on each of the first and second end portions 112, 116. For example, the at least one attachment means includes a first attachment means 120 arranged on each of the first and second end portions 112, 116. In an embodiment, as shown in
Referring now to
Referring now to
According to an embodiment, the elastic biocompatible material of the elongate hollow body 302 is a biocompatible rubber. Additionally, the elastic biocompatible material may include a combination of a biocompatible rubber with one of a biocompatible fabric or a biocompatible plastic. Alternatively, the elongate hollow body 102 may be made of a flexible non-biocompatible material. Typically, the elongate hollow body 302 is made of stretchable (of flexible) material (which may be biocompatible or non-biocompatible) that can be stretched for being snugly fitted over at least the portion of the endoscope.
According to an embodiment, the elongate hollow body 302 may include a length from about 20 to about 40 centimeters. Furthermore, the elongate hollow body 302 may include a diameter from about 5 to about 15 centimeters. Moreover, the elongate hollow body 302 may either include a uniform or a non-uniform diameter (or structural dimensions) along a length of thereof.
Referring now to
According to an embodiment, the elongate hollow body 402 is made of one of a biocompatible plastic, a biocompatible rubber, a biocompatible fabric or any combination thereof. Alternatively, the elongate hollow body 402 may be made of a non-biocompatible material, such as non-biocompatible plastic or rubber. Further, the elongate hollow body 402 may include a length from about 20 to about 40 centimeters. Moreover, the elongate hollow body 402 may include a diameter from about 5 to about 15 centimeters. Additionally, the elongate hollow body 402 may either include a uniform or a non-uniform diameter (or structural dimensions) along a length of thereof.
Referring now to
In will be appreciated that, while using the disposable cover 300 of
In will be appreciated that, while using the disposable cover 300 of
In will be further appreciated that, while using the disposable cover 400 of
Embodiments of the present disclosure substantially eliminate or at least partially address the aforementioned problems in the background and provide a disposable cover for avoiding contamination of an endoscope. The disposable cover of the present disclosure enables in keeping the endoscope away from any possible contamination, which may occur when the endoscope is used for any diagnostic procedure. The disposable cover enables in primarily enclosing or covering the control body (or operating part) and some other parts of the endoscope while the endoscope is in use, and after the diagnostic procedure is over, the disposable cover is removed from the endoscope for disposal thereof. Further, the disposable cover of the present disclosure enables in reducing overall time and effort that is generally required for cleaning and disinfecting the endoscope after use. This may help in improving working efficiency of the endoscope. Additionally, the disposable cover of the present disclosure can be conveniently used in conjunction with any endoscope sheath or cover that is used as protective cover.
The embodiments illustrated and described herein as well as embodiments not specifically described herein but within the scope of the aspects of the invention constitute an exemplary disposable cover for avoiding contamination of an endoscope.
The benefits and advantages described above may relate to one embodiment or may relate to several embodiments. The embodiments are not limited to those that solve any or all of the stated problems or those that have any or all of the stated benefits and advantages.
Aspects of any of the examples described above may be combined with aspects of any of the other examples described to form further examples without losing the effect sought.
The above description is given by way of example only and various modifications may be made by those skilled in the art. The above specification, examples and data provide a complete description of the structure and use of exemplary embodiments. Although various embodiments have been described above with a certain degree of particularity, or with reference to one or more individual embodiments, those skilled in the art could make numerous alterations to the disclosed embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of this specification.
