The present invention relates to swabs for collection of specimens from patients.
Various swabs have been developed in the past for collecting biological samples from patients. The specimen collection swab according to the present invention enhances, inter alia, swab functionality and/or operation.
In one embodiment, a swab includes a stick having a handgrip section and a tip section. The tip section includes a plurality of lobes arranged axially along a longitudinal axis of the stick. More particularly, the lobes include a first lobe located at a distal end of the stick and at least one second lobe axially offset from the first lobe. The diameter of the first lobe is smaller than the diameter of the second lobe. Fibers are attached to the tip section for collecting a specimen from an anatomical cavity of a patient.
In another embodiment, a swab includes a stick having a swab tip and is provided with a stop plate which can be removably attached to the stick. The stick is provided with a plurality of mounting areas positioned along a longitudinal axis of the stick. The stop plate can be attached to any one of the mounting areas so as to adjust the extent to which the swab tip can be inserted into an anatomical cavity of a patient.
In one embodiment, a swab includes a stick having a handgrip section and a tip section. The tip section includes a plurality of lobes arranged axially along a longitudinal axis of the stick. The plurality of lobes include a first lobe located at a distal end of the stick and a second lobe axially offset from the first lobe. Fibers are attached to the tip section for collecting a specimen from an anatomical cavity of a patient.
In one embodiment, the plurality of swabs further include a third lobe axially offset from the second lobe away from the distal end of the stick.
In one embodiment, the first and second lobes are positioned adjacent to each other, while the second and third lobes are positioned adjacent to each other.
In one embodiment, the first, second and third lobes include first, second and third diameters, respectively. The first diameter of the first lobe is smaller than the second diameter of the second lobe, while the second diameter of the second lobe is smaller than the third diameter of the third lobe.
In one embodiment, the first and second lobes are connected to each other such that a first tapered section is formed between the first and second lobes, while the second and third lobes are connected to each other such that a second tapered section is formed between the second and third lobes.
In one embodiment, the plurality of lobes cooperate to form a snowman shape.
In one embodiment, the first and second lobes are spaced from each other, while the second and third lobes are spaced from each other.
In one embodiment, the first and second lobes are arranged relative to each other such that a first extended area having a reduced diameter is formed between the first and second lobes. In one embodiment, the second and third lobes are arranged relative to each other such that a second extended area having a reduced diameter is formed between the second and third lobes.
In one embodiment, a stop plate is configured to be removably attached to the stick for inhibiting insertion of the tip section into the cavity beyond a predetermined distance.
In one embodiment, the stick includes a plurality of mounting areas provided along the longitudinal axis of the stick. In one embodiment, the stop plate includes a slot and an opening configured for receiving each of the plurality of mounting areas of the stick such that the stop plate can be removably mounted to a selected one of the plurality of mounting areas of the stick.
In one embodiment, each of the plurality of mounting areas of the stick includes a plurality of protrusions, which are arranged along a circumference of a corresponding one of the plurality of the mounting areas of the stick, and a plurality of indentations, each of which is positioned between an adjacent pair of the plurality of protrusions.
In one embodiment, the stop plate includes a plurality of protrusions arranged on the stop plate along at least a portion of a circumference of the opening. In one embodiment, when one of the plurality of mounting areas of the stick is inserted into the opening, each of the plurality of protrusions of the stop plate is positioned in a corresponding one of the plurality of indentations of the one of the plurality of mounting areas.
In one embodiment, the opening is located adjacent a center of the stop plate. The slot communicates with the opening so as to allow passage of each of the plurality of mounting areas of the stick into the opening.
In another embodiment, a swab assembly comprising a swab having a stick, which includes a handgrip section and a tip section, and fibers, which are attached to the tip section for collecting a specimen from an anatomical cavity of a patient. The swab assembly also includes a stop plate configured to be removably attached to the stick at a preselected location for inhibiting insertion of the tip section into the cavity beyond a distance determined by the preselected location of the stop plate on the stick.
In one embodiment, the stick of the swab assembly includes a plurality of mounting areas provided along a longitudinal axis of the stick between the tip section and the handgrip section. In one embodiment, the stop plate of the swab assembly includes a slot and an opening configured for receiving each of the plurality of mounting areas of the stick such that the stop plate can be removably mounted to a selected one of the plurality of mounting areas of the stick.
In one embodiment, the plurality of mounting areas of the stick of the swab assembly includes a plurality of protrusions, which are arranged along at a circumference of a corresponding one of the plurality of the mounting areas of the stick, and a plurality of indentations, each of which is positioned between an adjacent pair of the plurality of protrusions.
In one embodiment, the stop plate of the swab assembly includes a plurality of protrusions arranged on the stop plate along at least a portion of a circumference of the opening. In one embodiment, when one of the plurality of mounting areas of the stick is inserted into the opening, each of the plurality of protrusions of the stop plate is positioned in a corresponding one of the plurality of indentations of the one of the plurality of mounting areas.
In another embodiment, a method of using a swab is provided. The swab has a stick, which includes a handgrip section and a tip section, and fibers, which are attached to the tip section. The method includes the steps of removably attaching a stop plate to the stick at a predetermined location; and inserting the tip section into an anatomical cavity of a patient for collecting a specimen from the patient, whereby the distance by which the tip section can be inserted into the cavity is limited by the stop plate.
In one embodiment, the stick of the method includes a plurality of mounting areas provided along a longitudinal axis of the stick between the tip section and the handgrip section. The stop plate includes a slot and an opening configured for receiving each of the plurality of mounting areas of the stick such that the stop plate can be removably mounted to a selected one of the plurality of mounting areas of the stick.
In one embodiment, each of the plurality of mounting areas of the stick of the method includes a plurality of protrusions, which are arranged along at a circumference of a corresponding one of the plurality of the mounting areas of the stick, and a plurality of indentations, each of which is positioned between an adjacent pair of the plurality of protrusions. The stop plate of the method includes a plurality of protrusions arranged on the stop plate along at least a portion of a circumference of the opening. When one of the plurality of mounting areas of the stick is inserted into the opening, each of the plurality of protrusions of the stop plate is positioned in a corresponding one of the plurality of indentations of the one of the plurality of mounting areas.
In the drawing figures, which are not to scale, and where like reference numerals indicate like elements throughout the several views:
Embodiments are now discussed in more detail referring to the drawings that accompany the present application. In the accompanying drawings, like and/or corresponding elements are referred to by like reference numbers.
Various embodiments are disclosed herein; however, it is to be understood that the disclosed embodiments are merely illustrative of the disclosure that can be embodied in various forms. In addition, each of the examples given in connection with the various embodiments is intended to be illustrative, and not restrictive. Further, the figures are not necessarily to scale, and some features may be exaggerated to show details of particular components (and any size, material and similar details shown in the figures are intended to be illustrative and not restrictive). Therefore, specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in the art to variously employ the disclosed embodiments.
Subject matter will now be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, which form a part hereof, and which show, by way of illustration, specific example embodiments. Subject matter may, however, be embodied in a variety of different forms and, therefore, covered or claimed subject matter is intended to be construed as not being limited to any example embodiments set forth herein; exemplary embodiments are provided merely to be illustrative. Among other things, for example, subject matter may be embodied as methods, devices, components, or systems. The following detailed description is, therefore, not intended to be taken in a limiting sense.
Throughout the specification and/or claims, terms may have nuanced meanings suggested or implied in context beyond an explicitly stated meaning. Likewise, the phrase “in one embodiment” as used herein does not necessarily refer to the same embodiment and the phrases “in another embodiment” and “other embodiments” as used herein do not necessarily refer to a different embodiment. It is intended, for example, that covered or claimed subject matter include combinations of example embodiments in whole or in part.
In general, terminology may be understood at least in part from usage in context. For example, terms, such as “and”, “or”, or “and/or,” as used herein may include a variety of meanings that may depend at least in part upon the context in which such terms are used. Typically, “or” if used to associate a list, such as A, B, or C, is intended to mean A, B, and C, here used in the inclusive sense, as well as A, B, or C, here used in the exclusive sense. In addition, the term “one or more” as used herein, depending at least in part upon context, may be used to describe any feature, structure, or characteristic in a singular sense or may be used to describe combinations of features, structures or characteristics in a plural sense. Similarly, terms, such as “a,” “an,” or “the,” again, may be understood to convey a singular usage or to convey a plural usage, depending at least in part upon context. In addition, the term “based on” may be understood as not necessarily intended to convey an exclusive set of factors and may, instead, allow for existence of additional factors not necessarily expressly described, again, depending at least in part on context.
With reference to
The stick 16 also includes a tip section 20 located at a distal end of the stick 16 opposite the handgrip section 18. The tip section 20 is sized and shaped for insertion into an anatomical cavity of a patient for the purpose of collecting a specimen from the cavity. In one embodiment, the tip section 20 is configured for insertion into a nasal cavity for collecting a nasal fluid sample from one or more areas in the nasal cavity (e.g., from one or more of the inferior turbinate, middle turbinate, superior turbinate areas). In other embodiments, the tip section 20 is designed for collecting samples from other parts of the patient's body, such as the throat. In one embodiment, the tip section 20 and/or the stick 16 are made to be flexible such that the swab 12 can conform to the contours of a cavity into which it is inserted. The stick 16 can be made from any suitable material, such as plastic, thermoplastic, nylon fibers, nylon, polyester, polyester fibers, etc.
In one embodiment, the tip section 20 of the stick 16 includes a plurality of lobes 22a, 22b, 22c (see
The swab 12 also includes a plurality of fibers F (shown in broken line representation in
Still referring to
With reference to
Now referring to
As discussed above, the swab 12 is used for collecting a sample from an anatomical cavity (e.g., a nasal cavity) of a patient. The amount of insertion of the swab 12 into the cavity is determined by selectively attaching the stop plate 14 to one of the mounting areas 28a-28c of the stick 16 (see, e.g.,
In one embodiment, the mounting areas 28a-28c are configured so as to make the swab 12 suitable for substantially universal use for patients of all ages (e.g., adults, children and babies). For instance, when obtaining a sample from an adult, the swab 12 can be used without installing the stop plate 14 on the stick 16 or installing it to the mounting area 28c. Alternatively, when the swab 12 is used for obtaining a sample from a child, the stop plate 12 may be installed to the mounting area 28a or the mounting area 28b, depending on the child's size and age. In one embodiment, the lengths from the distal end of the tip section 20 to the mounting areas 28a-28c are about 15.3 mm, about 20.1 mm and 25.5 mm, respectively. In other embodiments, different lengths may be utilized, and/or additional mounting areas may be added to provide additional mounting locations for the stop plate 14.
In one embodiment, the stop plate 14 is removably attached to a selected one of the mounting areas 28a-28c (e.g., the mounting area 28a in the embodiment shown in
In certain embodiments, the stop plate 16 can be removably attached to the stick 16 of the swab 14 in a number of different ways. For instance, the opening 38 of the stop plate 14 and each of the retaining areas 28a-28c of the swab 12 can be provided with mating or matching polygonal shapes such that each of the retaining areas 28a-28c can be snap-fitted into the opening 38 of the stop plate 14 and such that the stop plate 14 is inhibited from rotating relative to the stick 16. Alternatively, a magnetic mechanism may be utilized for attaching the stop plate 16 to the stick 16.
With reference to
In one embodiment, the tip section 120 of the stick 116 includes a plurality of lobes 122a, 122b, 122c (see
In one embodiment, the swab 112 may be provided with a mounting section similar to the mounting section 26 of the swab 12 shown in
In one embodiment, the swab 112 includes a plurality of fibers attached to the tip section 120 of the stick 116. The fibers can be attached to the tip section 120 in any conventional manner, such as a flocking process. In one embodiment, the overall outer shape of the fibers generally corresponds to that of the underlying tip section 120. In other embodiments, the overall outer shape of the fibers is different from that of the underlying tip section 120.
With reference to
In one embodiment, the tip section 220 of the stick 216 includes a plurality of lobes 222a, 222b, 222c (see
In one embodiment, the swab 212 may be provided with a mounting section similar to the mounting section 26 of the swab 12 shown in
In one embodiment, the swab 212 includes a plurality of fibers attached to the tip section 220 of the stick 216. The fibers can be attached to the tip section 220 in any conventional manner, such as a flocking process. In one embodiment, the overall outer shape of the fibers generally corresponds to that of the underlying tip section 220. In other embodiments, the overall outer shape of the fibers is different from that of the underlying tip section 220.
It will be understood that the embodiments described herein are merely exemplary and that a person skilled in the art may make many variations and modifications without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. All such variations and modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.
This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 63/125,917 filed Dec. 15, 2020, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference for all purposes.
Number | Date | Country | |
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63125917 | Dec 2020 | US |