Washington Patent of the Month – April 2021
Certain needles are used in aspiration procedures – where the plunger is drawn back after insertion to see if any blood returns into the syringe. They are used when collecting samples from target tissues like tumors. However, if the activation force is too great, these needles are prone to deflecting or buckling. Spiration, Inc. has designed a new aspiration needle which uses a handle to control the activation force.
The needle design uses a retractable needle which is retracted within a sheath when in the deactivated position. After activating the device, the needle extends out of the sheath. The user activates the needle by applying pressure to the handle – this pushes the needle out of the sheath and into the target tissue for aspiration. The needle is designed so that if the force applied is too great, a section of the needle disengages and prevents further force from moving the needle. The needles themselves are also designed to buckle, if needed, in predesigned ways to reduce the force without breaking. These protective measures for controlling the force of the needle help to ensure the tip does not break during use.
The needle actuator is made of shaft portion and handle portion. The actuator and needle are connected by a passive release mechanism. The user activates the needle by applying pressure to the handle portion. This handle portion prevents too much force from being applied.
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