Surgery – Instruments – Cutting – puncturing or piercing
Patent
1996-07-29
1998-05-26
Lewis, William
Surgery
Instruments
Cutting, puncturing or piercing
A61B 1732
Patent
active
057557330
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates generally to a lancet assembly or a pricking device such as a finger pricking device which wounds skin to permit the collection of a small amount of blood. More specifically, the invention is directed to such an assembly which easily ensures sterility of the lancet before its use, which is also disposable which is easily produced and which is conveniently used.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Various lancet assemblies or finger-pricking devices are commercially available to hospitals, clinics, doctors' offices, and the like, as well as to individual consumers. Such devices include a lancet body which comprises a sharp-pointed member or a sharp-edged member, namely a pricking member (such as a blade-like member or a needle-like member) that is used to make a quick puncture or incision of the patient's skin in order to provide a small outflow of blood. Various tests may be employed using only small amounts of blood so that blood flowing from such a wound or puncture is normally sufficient for these tests.
Such lancet assemblies are typically sterilized beforehand when they are produced, and they have to be maintained in a sterile condition before use to ensure that the lancet is not contaminated by its surrounding environment. In addition, in order to prevent the lancet from wounding a user of the assembly or any other object around the user upon contact of the pricking member therewith during handing the assembly, the pricking member generally should not be unnecessarily exposed.
After using of the assembly, sufficient care must be taken by the user to avoid being punctured by a used lancet assembly. The risks in handling used lancets are greatly increased due to present day concerns regarding communicable diseases transmitted through body fluids such as blood. The lancet assembly must be carefully handled until it is properly disposed. Advances have been made in recent years to increase safety in handling such used devices. For example, pricking devices are currently available which include a single shot firing mechanism having the features of automatic ejection and retraction of the blade edge tip from and into the assembly.
One such lancet assembly, for example, is shown in Danish Design Patent No. MR 0933 (granted on Oct. 1, 1992) or its counterpart U.S. Pat. No. 5,439,473. The Danish Design Patent lancet assembly is a self-contained device that includes a lancet structure, which includes a unitary ejector (projector or injector) and lancet element, used in combination with a holder (or a protective sheath or sleeve). The lancet structure is contained in the holder after use. The disclosures of the Danish Design Patent and the U.S. Patent are incorporated herein with the reference for all purposes.
The Danish Design Patent lancet assembly is commercially available from Modulohm A/S (Denmark) under a trade name of Vitrex, of which structure and a working principles are schematically shown in FIGS. 1 to 7, wherein
FIG. 1 shows a lancet assembly 10 before its use wherein a lancet structure 14 is incorporated into a holder 16;
FIG. 2 schematically shows a schematic front view of the lancet assembly in FIG. 1 wherein only the holder 16 is shown in a cross-sectional view so as to clarify a condition of the lancet structure 14 in the holder 16;
FIG. 3 schematically shows a schematic front view which is similar to the view shown in FIG. 2 wherein the lancet structure 14 is further depressed into inside of the holder 16 from the condition shown in FIG. 2;
FIG. 4 schematically shows a schematic front view which is similar to the view shown in FIG. 2 wherein the lancet structure 14 is being ejected for its use;
FIG. 5 schematically shows a schematic front view which is similar to the view shown in FIG. 2 showing the lancet structure 14 after use;
FIG. 6 schematically shows an exploded perspective view of the lancet structure 14 which is used for the lancet assembly shown in FIGS. 1 to 5 before a blade 44 has been mounted; and
FIG. 7 schematically shows a perspec
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Lewis William
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