Claims
- 1. An apparatus for guiding insertion of an endotracheal tube into the trachea of the patient while ventilating the patient, said apparatus comprising:
a tubular guide to direct insertion of an endotracheal tube through the guide into a patient's trachea; said guide having a curved distal portion for insertion into a patient's mouth and hypopharynx to a position above the patient's larynx, and a proximal end extending out of the patient's mouth; and a second lumen extending along the guide to supply air/oxygen into the patient's lungs through the larynx.
- 2. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising a guide cap removably insertable onto the proximal end of the guide, said guide cap having:
a guide cap passageway extending through the guide cap; and a one-way valve allowing anesthetic to be introduced through the guide cap passageway and guide during insertion of the guide into the patient's mouth and hypopharynx, but substantially preventing the escape of patient secretions through the guide during resuscitation of the patient, said guide cap being removable from the guide to allow insertion of the endotracheal tube through the guide.
- 3. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the second lumen extends along a lateral portion of the guide.
- 4. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising a face mask to cover a patient's mouth having a face mask port to receive the guide, and a ventilation port allowing a flow of air/oxygen into the face mask to resuscitate the patient.
- 5. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein the guide further comprises a annular ring within the proximal end of the guide forming a seal around the endotracheal tube.
- 6. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein air/oxygen is delivered through the second lumen at a flow rate of approximately 1 to 20 liters per minute.
- 7. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the guide is substantially J-shaped.
- 8. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising a third lumen extending along the guide for measurement of the concentration of carbon dioxide in the patient's airway.
- 9. An apparatus for guiding insertion of an endotracheal tube into the trachea of the patient while ventilating the patient, said apparatus comprising:
a substantially J-shaped tubular guide to direct insertion of an endotracheal tube through the guide into a patient's trachea; said guide having a curved distal portion for insertion into a patient's mouth and hypopharynx to a position above the patient's larynx, and a proximal end extending out of the patient's mouth; a second lumen extending along a lateral portion of the guide to supply air/oxygen into the patient's lungs through the larynx; and a third lumen extending along the opposing lateral portion of the guide to sample gas within the patient's airway for analysis.
- 10. The apparatus of claim 9 further comprising a carbon dioxide monitor to measure the concentration of carbon dioxide in the patient's airway via the third lumen.
- 11. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein air/oxygen is delivered through the second lumen at a flow rate of approximately 1 to 20 liters per minute.
- 12. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein the guide is substantially J-shaped.
- 13. An apparatus for guiding insertion of an endotracheal tube into the patient's trachea while ventilating the patient, said apparatus comprising:
a tubular guide having a curved distal portion for insertion into a patient's mouth and hypopharynx to direct insertion of an endotracheal tube into the patient's trachea; a fiber optic probe insertable through an endotracheal tube; a stabilizer removably attachable to the fiber optic probe, said stabilizer having dimensions sufficiently large to push the endotracheal tube forward as the fiber optic probe is advanced along the guide and into the patient's trachea; and a second lumen extending along the guide to supply air/oxygen into the patient's lungs through the larynx.
- 14. The apparatus of claim 13 further comprising an endotracheal tube cap removably attachable to proximal end of the endotracheal tube having a passageway to receive the fiber optic probe.
- 15. The apparatus of claim 14 wherein the passageway of the endotracheal tube cap has an inside diameter smaller than the stabilizer.
- 16. The apparatus of claim 13 wherein the stabilizer comprises a flexible tube having a C-shaped cross-section.
- 17. The apparatus of claim 13 wherein the fiber optic probe is an endoscope probe and wherein said stabilizer can be attached to any point along the length of the endoscope probe.
- 18. A method for resuscitating a patient and guiding insertion of an endotracheal tube into the patient's trachea comprising:
inserting a tubular guide into a patient's mouth and hypopharynx, said guide having a curved distal portion shaped to allow insertion of an endotracheal tube through the guide into a patient's trachea, said guide further having a second lumen extending along the guide; inserting the fiber optic probe into an endotracheal tube; advancing the fiber optic probe and endotracheal tube so that the endotracheal tube advances along the guide and into the patient's trachea; supplying air/oxygen via the second lumen into the patient's lungs while advancing the endotracheal tube and fiber optic probe; removing the guide from the endotracheal tube; removing the fiber optic probe from the endotracheal tube; and ventilating the patient through the endotracheal tube.
- 19. The method of claim 18 further comprising the steps of:
attaching a stabilizer at a desired position on the fiber optic probe; and inserting the fiber optic probe into the endotracheal tube until the stabilizer abuts the proximal end of the endotracheal tube.
- 20. The method of claim 19 wherein the stabilizer is attached to the fiber optic probe at a location so that the distal tip of the fiber optic probe extends beyond the distal tip of the endotracheal tube.
- 21. The method of claim 19 further comprising the steps of:
attaching a removable cap to the proximal end of the endotracheal tube prior to insertion of the fiber optic probe, said cap having a passageway to receive the fiber optic probe with an inside diameter larger than the stabilizer; and removing the cap from the endotracheal after the fiber optic probe is removed from the endotracheal tube and prior to ventilating the patient through the endotracheal tube.
- 22. The method of claim 18 wherein air/oxygen is supplied through the second lumen at a flow rate of approximately 1 to 20 liters per minute.
RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] The present application is a continuation-in-part of the Applicant's co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/707,350, filed on Nov. 6, 2000, which is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/411,610, filed on Oct. 1, 1999, which is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/974,864, filed on Nov. 20, 1997, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,964,217, issued on Oct. 12, 1999, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/607,332, filed on Feb. 26, 1996, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,694,929, issued on Dec. 9, 1997.
Continuations (1)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
08607332 |
Feb 1996 |
US |
Child |
08974864 |
Nov 1997 |
US |
Continuation in Parts (3)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
09707350 |
Nov 2000 |
US |
Child |
09767272 |
Jan 2001 |
US |
Parent |
09411610 |
Oct 1999 |
US |
Child |
09707350 |
Nov 2000 |
US |
Parent |
08974864 |
Nov 1997 |
US |
Child |
09411610 |
Oct 1999 |
US |