US 11,701,494 B2
Catheter insertion systems
Cameron Dezfulian, Pittsburgh, PA (US); William W. Clark, Wexford, PA (US); Ehsan Qaium, Pittsburgh, PA (US); and Dennis Wist, Pittsburgh, PA (US)
Assigned to University of Pittsburgh—Of the Commonwealth System of Higher Education, Pittsburgh, PA (US)
Appl. No. 16/623,611
Filed by University of Pittsburgh—Of the Commonwealth System of Higher Education, Pittsburgh, PA (US)
PCT Filed Jul. 5, 2018, PCT No. PCT/US2018/040952
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Dec. 17, 2019,
PCT Pub. No. WO2019/010330, PCT Pub. Date Jan. 10, 2019.
Claims priority of provisional application 62/529,962, filed on Jul. 7, 2017.
Prior Publication US 2020/0206471 A1, Jul. 2, 2020
Int. Cl. A61M 25/06 (2006.01); A61M 25/09 (2006.01)
CPC A61M 25/0606 (2013.01) [A61M 25/09041 (2013.01); A61M 2205/273 (2013.01); A61M 2205/3538 (2013.01); A61M 2205/3553 (2013.01); A61M 2205/3653 (2013.01); A61M 2205/581 (2013.01); A61M 2205/582 (2013.01); A61M 2205/583 (2013.01); A61M 2205/6027 (2013.01)] 18 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A catheter insertion system, comprising:
a disposable catheter unit comprising a needle, a guidewire passing through the needle, and a deployable catheter disposed over the needle; and
a detection unit coupled to the catheter unit, the detection unit comprising circuitry electrically coupled to the needle and to the guidewire such that the needle acts as a first electrode and the guidewire acts as a second electrode, the detection unit being configured to measure resistance between the guidewire and the needle while the catheter unit is inserted into a patient and configured to determine an anatomical space within which an end portion of the catheter unit is located within the patient based on the measured resistance; and
wherein a portion of the guidewire within the needle is coated with an electrically insulating material, and an end of the guidewire is left bare.