Anesthetic syringe with a nerve detector

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10506929-B2
Application number	US-201715497869-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 26, 2017
Priority date	Apr 26, 2017
Publication date	Dec 17, 2019
Grant date	Dec 17, 2019

Abstract

An anesthetic syringe comprising a nerve detector and an illuminated indicator. The nerve detector is configured to receive a radiative energy from a nerve in a tissue and send a signal to the illuminated indicator. The illuminated indicator shows a direction to move the syringe to a tissue location proximal to the nerve for injecting a local anesthetic drug. The syringe may accommodate a standard drug cartridge and may provide manual or automatic movement of a plunger.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An anesthetic syringe comprising:
a hollow syringe barrel with a needle mount extending outwards from a first end of the hollow syringe barrel;
a plunger extending from a second end of the hollow syringe barrel and slidably moveable within the hollow syringe barrel; the plunger having a piston-engaging tip extending into the hollow syringe barrel;
a first illuminated indicator directly attached to an exterior part of the hollow syringe barrel or mounted to an arm directly attached to the exterior part of the hollow syringe barrel;
a transmitter configured to emit an emitted radiative energy onto a nerve;
a nerve detector directly attached to the first illuminated indicator or directly attached to a second exterior part of the hollow syringe barrel, the nerve detector configured to receive an incoming radiative energy from the nerve;
a spectrometer attached to and in direct contact with an interior side of the hollow syringe barrel,
wherein the spectrometer is configured to detect blood in an aspirate;
a second illuminated indicator on an exterior side of the hollow syringe barrel and electrically connected to the spectrometer to indicate if blood has been detected during aspiration; and
wherein the first illuminated indicator is electrically connected to the nerve detector and is configured to receive a signal from the nerve detector and indicate at least one direction to move the anesthetic syringe to deliver an anesthetic injection proximal to the nerve,
wherein the incoming radiative energy is not visible light and is not an electric field, and
wherein the first illuminated indicator comprises:
a first display panel mounted to a first arm, the first arm directly attached to the exterior part of the hollow syringe barrel, and
a second display panel mounted to a second arm, the second arm directly attached to the exterior part of the hollow syringe barrel.

2. The anesthetic syringe of claim 1 wherein the nerve detector is directly attached to the first illuminated indicator.

3. The anesthetic syringe of claim 1 wherein the transmitter is directly attached to the first illuminated indicator.

4. The anesthetic syringe of claim 1 which does not have an ultrasonic transmitter.

5. The anesthetic syringe of claim 1 wherein the first illuminated indicator is slidably and/or pivotally attached to the hollow syringe barrel.

6. The anesthetic syringe of claim 1 wherein the nerve detector comprises two or more photodetectors.

7. The anesthetic syringe of claim 1 , wherein the first display panel comprises at least 625 LEDs.

8. The anesthetic syringe of claim 1 , wherein the arms are removably attached to the exterior part of the hollow syringe barrel.

9. The anesthetic syringe of claim 1 , wherein the first display panel is positioned outwards from the first end of the hollow syringe barrel and shaped with a hole or a slot to accommodate a needle attached and extending outwards from the needle mount, the needle traversing the first display panel through the hole or the slot.

10. The anesthetic syringe of claim 1 , wherein the first display panel and the second display panel are positioned outwards from the first end of the hollow syringe barrel and are shaped to accommodate a needle attached and extending outwards from the needle mount.

11. The anesthetic syringe of claim 1 , wherein the incoming radiative energy is electromagnetic radiation.

12. A method of administering a nerve block to a nerve in a patient with the anesthetic syringe of claim 1 , the method comprising:
emitting the emitted radiative energy to the nerve by the transmitter;
receiving the incoming radiative energy from the nerve by the nerve detector;
indicating a direction to move the anesthetic syringe to a location of a tissue proximal to the nerve by the first illuminated indicator;
moving the anesthetic syringe to the location of the tissue proximal to the nerve; and
inserting a needle mounted onto the needle mount of the anesthetic syringe into the location of the tissue proximal to the nerve, wherein the anesthetic syringe is loaded with a drug cartridge comprising an anesthetic drug; and
performing an anesthetic injection of the anesthetic drug.

Assignees

• Univ Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal

Inventors

• Almoumen Saud Abdullah

Classifications

• A61M19/00

  Local anaesthesia (syringes therefor A61M5/00); Hypothermia (A61M5/42 takes precedence; cooling blood in a bypass of the arterial system A61M1/36) · CPC title

• A61B5/40

  Detecting, measuring or recording for evaluating the nervous system (for sleep A61B5/4806; for anaesthesia A61B5/4821; for pain A61B5/4824) · CPC title

• A61B5/0075 Primary

  by spectroscopy, i.e. measuring spectra, e.g. Raman spectroscopy, infrared absorption spectroscopy (A61B5/0071 takes precedence) · CPC title

• A61M5/3134

  characterised by constructional features of the distal end, i.e. end closest to the tip of the needle cannula · CPC title

• A61B5/0068

  Confocal scanning · CPC title