Apparatus and method for vascular access

Abstract

In an aspect, embodiments of the invention relate to the effective and accurate placement of intravascular devices such as central venous catheters, in particular such as peripherally inserted central catheters or PICC. One aspect of the present invention relates to vascular access. It describes devices and methods for imaging guided vascular access and more effective sterile packaging and handling of such devices. A second aspect of the present invention relates to the guidance, positioning and placement confirmation of intravascular devices without the help of X-ray imaging. A third aspect of the present invention relates to devices and methods for the skin securement of intravascular devices and post-placement verification of location of such devices. A forth aspect of the present invention relates to improvement of the workflow required for the placement of intravascular devices.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . An auscultation system comprising:
 one or more sound sensitive elements;   a sound processor in communication with the one or more sound sensitive elements; and   an information output device in communication with the sound processor.   
     
     
         2 . The system of  claim 1  wherein the sound processor is configured such that a plurality of auscultation devices can be synchronized to provide acoustic triangulation for accurate detection of an endovascular sound source. 
     
     
         3 . A guiding method for endovascular devices comprising the steps of:
 positioning one or more sound sensitive elements on a patient's chest;   inserting a sound emitting endovascular device into the patient's vasculature;   emitting sounds from the endovascular device; and   detecting the sounds from the emitting step with the sound sensitive elements.   
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 3  wherein the emitting step is performed continuously, intermittently or on demand. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 3  wherein the sound intensity measured in the detecting step is used to estimate the distance between the sound emitting endovascular device and the one or more sound sensitive elements. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 3  further comprising: triangulating the sounds from the detecting step to locate the sound emitting endovascular device with respect to the one or more sound sensitive elements. 
     
     
         7 . A method to locate an endovascular device comprising an ultrasound sensor using one or more transcutaneous ultrasound systems, comprising the steps of:
 introducing an endovascular member containing an ultrasound sensor into the vasculature of a body;   sending and receiving ultrasound waves in the vasculature using the ultrasound sensor;   placing one or more transcutaneous ultrasound systems on the patient's body;   detecting the interference between the endovascular ultrasound device and the transcutaneous ultrasound systems using either the endovascular sensor or with any of the transcutaneous systems; and   notifying the user when interference has been detected such the user becomes aware of the presence of the endovascular device in the field of view of the transcutaneous systems.   
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 7  wherein the endovascular device is configured to emit ultrasound signals. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 7  wherein the endovascular device is configured to receive ultrasound signals. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 7  wherein the transcutaneous ultrasound system is configured to emit ultrasound signals. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 7  wherein the transcutaneous ultrasound system is configured to receive ultrasound signals. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 7  wherein the transcutaneous ultrasound system is configured as an ultrasound imaging scan head connecting to an ultrasound imaging system. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 7  wherein the information in the detecting step from several transcutaneous ultrasound systems is used for triangulating and/or locating the endovascular ultrasound sensor. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 7  wherein the endovascular ultrasound device is connected to the one or more transcutaneous system such as to allow synchronization of transmitting and receiving ultrasound waves in the same region of the body.