Tourniquet cuff with improved pneumatic passageway

Abstract

A tourniquet cuff has minimal flow restrictions within its pneumatic passageway under normal operating conditions, has a substantially reduced likelihood of partial or complete obstructions or interruptions of the pneumatic passageway under foreseeable operating conditions, can indicate exposure of the cuff to external agents that are capable of affecting the integrity of the pneumatic passageway before use, and can be manufactured economically.

1 . A tourniquet cuff comprising: 
 an inflatable bladder having a width dimension at a port location and a length dimension sufficient for encircling a patient's limb at a desired location;    a port attached to the bladder at the port location and releasably connectable to a tourniquet instrument, wherein the port includes a pneumatic passageway that enables the inflatable bladder to communicate pneumatically with the connected tourniquet instrument; and    an indicator applied to the cuff and reactive to an agent that is capable of affecting the integrity of the pneumatic passageway and for producing an indication if the agent reaches a predetermined level.    
   
   
       2 . The apparatus as described in  claim 1  wherein the agent to which the indicator reacts is a predetermined sterilizing agent and wherein the indication is a change of color.  
   
   
       3 . The apparatus as described in  claim 1  wherein the indication is remotely detectable by a tourniquet instrument.  
   
   
       4 . The apparatus as described in  claim 1  wherein the indicator is carried on the port.  
   
   
       5 . The apparatus as described in  claim 1  wherein the port is formed from a blend of thermoplastic material and the indicator.  
   
   
       6 . The apparatus as described in  claim 1  wherein the indication is perceptible by a user.  
   
   
       7 . The apparatus as described in  claim 1  wherein the agent to which the indicator reacts is water.  
   
   
       8 . The apparatus as described in  claim 1  wherein the agent to which the indicator reacts is exposure to a temperature above a predetermined level.  
   
   
       9 . The apparatus as described in  claim 1  wherein the agent is capable of affecting the integrity of the inflatable bladder.  
   
   
       10 . A tourniquet cuff having an improved pneumatic passageway, comprising: 
 an inflatable bladder having a bladder length sufficient for encircling a patient's limb at a desired location,    port tubing communicating pneumatically with the inflatable bladder and having a port tubing end, a port tubing length and a substantially cylindrical outer surface that contains a pneumatic passageway of predetermined cross-sectional area along the port tubing length and through the port tubing-end, and    a port connector configured for establishing a pneumatic connection between the port tubing and a tourniquet instrument, wherein the pneumatic connection established by the port connector has a cross-sectional area that is not less than the predetermined cross-sectional area of the pneumatic passageway.    
   
   
       11 . The apparatus as described in  claim 10  wherein the port connector receives the port tubing end and wherein the connector is attached to the outer surface of the port tubing near the port tubing end by an attachment means having a strength sufficient to maintain the attachment to the outer surface in the presence of a force along the port tubing length in a direction away from the connector that is greater than a maximum force anticipated during surgical use.  
   
   
       12 . The apparatus as described in  claim 10  wherein the port connector is a predetermined shape formed on the outer surface of the port tubing near the port tubing end and wherein the shape is adapted to be received by a tourniquet instrument connector of the tourniquet instrument to establish the pneumatic connection.  
   
   
       13 . A tourniquet cuff having an improved pneumatic passageway, comprising: 
 an inflatable bladder having a bladder width and having a bladder length sufficient for encircling a patient's limb at a desired location,    a port communicating pneumatically with the bladder and including port tubing, wherein the port tubing is formed of thermoplastic material having a substantially cylindrical outer surface, a port tubing length greater than the bladder width, a bladder end and a port tubing end, wherein the port tubing contains a pneumatic passageway between the bladder end and the port tubing end, and wherein the passageway has a predetermined non-circular cross-sectional shape.    
   
   
       14 . The apparatus as described in  claim 13  wherein the port tubing includes a ridge adjacent to the pneumatic passageway that extends from the bladder end to the port tubing end.  
   
   
       15 . The apparatus as described in  claim 13  wherein the port tubing includes a plurality of ridges adjacent to the pneumatic passageway that extend from the bladder end to the port tubing end.  
   
   
       16 . The apparatus as described in  claim 13  and including a port connector that is non-releasably bonded to the outer surface of the port tubing near the port tubing end and wherein the connector is adapted for connection to a tourniquet instrument to establish a gas-tight passageway between the bladder and the instrument.  
   
   
       17 . A tourniquet cuff having an improved pneumatic passageway, comprising: 
 a first layer having a width dimension, a length dimension and a sealing surface,    a second layer having a width dimension, a length dimension and a sealing surface positioned against the sealing surface of the first layer and sealed around a perimeter to form an inflatable bladder within the perimeter,    a port having a bladder sealing flange sealed to the first layer sealing surface around the flange to establish a pneumatic passageway from a distal port end outside the first layer through the port and into the bladder along a channel formed in the flange.    
   
   
       18 . The apparatus as described in  claim 17  and including a plurality of parallel channels formed in the flange to establish a plurality of pneumatic passageways through the flange.  
   
   
       19 . The apparatus as described in  claim 17  wherein the port further contains a normal channel of predetermined cross-sectional area extending through the flange and into the bladder in a direction normal to the first layer and wherein the pneumatic passageway into the bladder further includes the normal channel when the second layer is not in contact with the flange.  
   
   
       20 . A tourniquet cuff having an improved pneumatic passageway, comprising: 
 a first layer of flexible thermoplastic material having a first layer sealing surface,    a second layer of flexible thermoplastic material having a second layer sealing surface facing the first layer sealing surface,    a perimeter seal establishing a gas-tight seal between the first layer sealing surface and the second layer sealing surface around a predetermined perimeter to form an inflatable bladder within the perimeter seal, wherein the perimeter seal includes a bead protruding into the inflatable bladder and having a bead thickness greater than a predetermined bead thickness to separate the first sealing surface from the second sealing surface, thereby establishing a bladder pneumatic passageway near the bead.    
   
   
       21 . The apparatus as described in  claim 20  and including a port having a bladder sealing flange of predetermined thickness and predetermined circumference sealed to the first layer sealing surface around the circumference and passing through the first layer to establish a port passageway from a distal port end outside the first layer through the port and into the bladder near the edge of the bladder sealing flange along a channel formed in the port seal flange.