Abstract: A powdered pharmaceutical inhaler (2) includes a source of pressurized gas (4), a pharmaceutical transfer assembly (104) and a mouthpiece assembly (106). The pharmaceutical transfer assembly includes a pharmaceutical reservoir (172, 174) containing undivided supplies of at least one pharmaceutical (173, 175). Quantities of the pharmaceutical are transferred from the pharmaceutical reservoir to an entrainment region along a flow path (188) through the inhaler by one or more dosing members (120-128). By using multiple reservoirs with different pharmaceuticals, a variable dose can be simultaneously inhaled in a single application. An auxiliary ambient air flow path (238) can be used to surround the pressurized gas flow path at the exit of the inhaler. A view port (184) can be used to visually inspect the entrainment region for the presence and amount of pharmaceutical to be inhaled.

Abstract: An improved automatically disabled handgun (2) is of the type having a handle assembly (10) extending from a barrel/receiver assembly (8), the handgun normally carried in a holster (150). One or more switches (190; 144, 82) are depressed by the user grasping the handle to enable the handgun to be fired. Release of the handgun, such as by dropping the handgun, releases the switch(es) to automatically temporarily disable the handgun.

Abstract: A safety syringe adapter (4) has a hollow body (26) sized to house a cartridge-needle unit (6) to which a carrier (24) is fixed. The cartridge-needle unit and carrier therewith are movable from a use position, with the needle tip (58) exposed, to a safe disposal position, with the needle tip within the body. A stem assembly (28) has an elongate stem (60) and a coaxial tubular stem extension (64) and is movable to a post-injection position, at which the stem extension becomes secured to the carrier. Pulling the stem assembly proximally causes the cartridge-needle unit to move to its safe-disposal position so the needle tip is within the body for safe disposal.

Abstract: An atomizing inhaler (2) includes a body (4) having a hollow interior (10) with an elastomeric barrier (22) at the tip (6) of the body. The elastomeric barrier has a slit (104) formed through the barrier. A pressurized liquid inhalant is atomized as it is forced out through the slit into the ambient environment in mist or smaller sized drops. The body includes a spring-biased piston (40) which moves within a cylinder (32). The cylinder and piston together define a variable volume container (33). The volume of the variable volume container varies according to the position of the piston within the cylinder. The liquid in the variable volume container is pressurized by the piston and flows through the slit in the barrier. The invention is broadly directed to an atomizer which uses an elastomeric barrier having a slit formed therein so that applying pressurized liquid to one side of the barrier causes the pressurized liquid to atomize as passes through the slit to mist or smaller sized drops.

Abstract: A one-piece disposable syringe system is disclosed including a conventional syringe having a glass barrel that is prefilled with a measured dose of pharmaceutical and a syringe support and disposal jacket that is adapted to hold the syringe in an injection mode to facilitate the administration of an injection of the pharmaceutical from the barrel and surround the syringe in a disposal mode to form a compact package and thereby facilitate the safe handling and disposal of the syringe while avoiding an accidental needle stick and the possible spread of contagious disease. The syringe support and disposal jacket has lower and upper body members that are rotatably connected together by an integral living hinge.

Abstract: A compact, single-use stylus applicator is disclosed having a dry medication (e.g. a dehydrated topical astringent disinfectant that is adapted to treat acne and has been reduced to crystalline form by lyophilization) stored in a first chamber. A liquid diluent is stored in a second chamber. Fluid communication between the first and second chambers is blocked by a barrier. By compressing the second chamber, a corresponding hydraulic pressure is generated in the diluent which defeats the fluid blocking integrity of the barrier. Accordingly, the diluent in the second chamber is introduced under pressure to the dry medication in the first chamber to rehydrate and activate the acne medication. The reconstituted multi-constituent liquid medication is absorbed by a stylus-shaped swab so as to be applied directly to a tissue area as a topical treatment for acne or other skin disorders.

Abstract: A unitary syringe assembly including a diluent syringe and a jell syringe stores and enables convenient transport of isolated components required for injection. A valve is placed between the two syringes. Immediately before required injection, the valve is opened and intermixing injection and reception of the diluent and jell between the two syringes occurs to thoroughly intermix the diluent and jell. The valve aperture size is selected to provide viscous resistance by the jell until thorough mixing has occurred to provide the user with a tactile indication of sufficient mixing. Upon complete mixing, a needle is attached and injection occurs. Paired side-by-side unitary syringes are utilized with an interconnecting mixing manifold with injection occurring from one syringe only to enable higher needle injection pressure.

Abstract: A hand-held inhalation responsive nebuliser by which a nebulised air stream is created for quick and efficient delivery of a fluid medication to the respiratory tract of a patient through the deep lung. The nebuliser includes a normally open electrical switch and a rotatable trigger ring extending laterally across an air flow path through which a supply of non-medicated ambient air is drawn during inhalation by the patient. The ambient air supply drawn through the nebuliser causes the trigger ring to rotate into contact with and close the electrical switch, whereby a piezoelectric disk is energized to vibrate an emitter mesh. A metered volume of fluid medication delivered to the emitter mesh from a pre-filled medication cartridge is accelerated and pulled through the mesh as a fine mist of fluid droplets to form a nebulised medication plume. The nebulised medication plume is mixed in the mouthpiece of the nebuliser with the supply of non-medicated ambient air to create the nebulised air stream.

Abstract: A variable proportion dispenser (2c) includes a housing (12c) which houses two pharmaceutical cartridges (6b). A reciprocating drive assembly includes drive stems (36c) extending from the pistons (46b) of each cartridge, a limit guide (76c) removably mounted to the housing, and a sliding body (66e, 300) mounted to the housing through the limit guide. Two one-way drivers (326) and threaded dosage adjusters (60c) are carried by the sliding body. Each one-way driver drives the drive stem into the cartridge through a drive surface to provide a range of dose selections. The user can thus control the amount and proportion of each pharmaceutical dispensed during each delivery stroke for each dispensing cycle. The housing is separable from the remainder of the dispenser, preferably using a cartridge release assembly (302), to allow spent cartridge to be replaced.

Abstract: A pill press (2), allowing the user to personally press pills (78) of a desired dose, includes a housing (4) having an interior (14) within which a supply of powdered pharmaceutical (36) is contained and a pill cavity form (22) mounted to the housing. Powdered pharmaceutical is transferred to the pill forming cavity (46) of the pill cavity form according to the dose desired. A manually operated pill ram (48) is used to compress the powdered pharmaceutical within pill forming cavity to create the pill. The pill ram is then withdrawn from the pill forming cavity and the pill is automatically ejected from the pill press through a pill outlet (82) formed in the housing by an ejector rod (56).

Abstract: An obturator (2) includes a hollow housing (4) with an obturator barrel (6) extending therefrom. The tip (172) of the obturator has a cutting element (40) and a safety shield (46). The safety shield is automatically rotatable from a cutting position, with the blade exposed, to a safe, locked position, with the blade shielded, when the blade has passed through the tissue layer being pierced. The safety shield can be unlocked and returned to the cutting position using a rearming device (128, 274) mounted to the housing at the proximal end of the obturator.

Abstract: A dispenser for receiving and dispensing oral solid drugs from prior art a blister pack singulates and dispenses oral solid drugs. The dispenser for the blister pack includes a cylindrical cage defining at least one recess for keying to one or more of the blisters of the blister pack, the cage having a sufficient cylindrical dimension to permit the blister pack to be wrapped around the cage in a cylindrical disposition. A cylindrical dispenser container having a cylindrical inside dimension sufficient to receive the outside cylindrical diameter of the blister pack as disposed over the cage receives the cage and wrapped blister pack. This cylindrical container defines through the cylindrical side wall a dispensing window having a dimension sufficient to permit an oral solid drug dispensed from the blister pack to pass through the dispensing window. A rotational rachet successively registers to the dispensing window discrete blisters from the blister pack.

Abstract: A disposable safety syringe has a needle shuttle slidably located within a main syringe barrel. The shuttle has a pair of outwardly extending guide tabs which engage a guide slot formed in the barrel wall. The upper end of the needle shuttle is configured to accept a luer lock needle assembly and has a downwardly extending spike used to penetrate the septum of an ampoule mounted in the barrel. A sleeve and rod assembly are mounted in the barrel below the ampoule and can be used to translate the ampoule from a suspended shipping position to an injecting position in which the septum is penetrated by the spike. The sleeve and rod assembly is removed after use, the spent ampoule is withdrawn and the needle shuttle is maneuvered downwardly by means of the guide tabs to a locking position in which the needle assembly is housed within the barrel for safe disposal.

Abstract: An appendage interface assembly, such as a hand grip assembly (2) or a foot pedal assembly (120), is used with an exercise machine to reduce skeletal misalignment problems while increasing the muscle working benefits of the exercise. The assembly includes an assembly support (4, 122) securable to the exercise machine. A hand grip (22) or foot pedal (128) is pivotally mounted to the assembly support for movement about three orthogonal axes (26, 28, 30; 134, 174, 176). The foot pedal is mounted using a universal or ball joint (130). With the hand grip assembly, a yoke (12) is pivotally mounted to the assembly support, a hand grip support (16) is pivotally mounted to the yoke, and a hand grip (22) is pivotally mounted to the hand grip support by first, second and third pivots (14,18,24) for movement about the three axes. The hand grip or foot pedal can pivot freely or with a drag force hindering the pivotal motion or, if great enough, locking the hand grip or foot pedal to a fixed orientation.

Abstract: A hand held syringe has a stationary handle and a moving handle to enable both stored and transported pharmaceuticals to be mixed and injecting the mixed pharmaceuticals under high pressure immediately after mixing through a long needle to a site interior of the body. The syringe is provided for squeeze grip at the stationary and moving handles between fingers and palm and includes a jell storage chamber side-by-side with a diluent storage chamber. Upon initial compression of the handles towards one another against a spring bias, the diluent discharges to the jell mix chamber along a one way path. At the same time, a handle actuated piston with loosely fitting O-ring in the jell mix chamber moves through the jell and introduced diluent effecting mixing movement by allowing the jell and diluent to flow between the piston and jell chamber sidewalls. Flow occurs from the jell chamber by the piston to an expansible chamber delimited by a floating seal.

Abstract: A device (2) used to transfer the liquid contents (156) of a glass ampule (8) to a vial (10) includes a telescoping ampule body (12, 14) defining a collapsible, substantially air-tight region (22) within which the ampule is housed, which collapses when one part (12) is threaded onto the other part (14). This collapse increases the pressure within the collapsible region housing the ampule. The ampule is broken within the region, such as at the end of the collapsing of the telescoping members by snapping off the tip (64) of the ampule and breaking the base (48, 53) of the ampule. When used with a vial, a vial (10) is mounted to the ampule body via a vial body (80, 92). A vial spike (120) passes through the vial septum (128). The ampule body and the vial body defines a flow path (74, 100) between the vial spike and the ampule region. Once the flow path is open, the liquid from the ampule within the region flows along the flow path and into the vial because of the pressure created within the region.

Abstract: A trocar (2) includes a hollow body (4) defining a path between its proximal and distal ends with an obturator assembly (6) positioned along the path. The tip (34, 36) of the obturator assembly has a cutting element (38). A novel gas sealing assembly (114) seals the path along the trocar body and includes first and second sealing elements (122) each movable laterally, typically radially, along a linear path between a sealing position, to seal the path when an object, such as an obturator barrel (14), is not positioned along the path, and an object passing position, when an object is positioned along the path. The gas sealing assembly also includes a flexible, elastic, conical element (144) with a hole (158) at its tip and raised ridges or rings (164) along its inner surface (154), for sealing the path when an object is positioned along the path.

Abstract: A dual direction check valve which facilitates the connection of an IV fluid line to the proximal end of a hypodermic needle that is used to make a veni puncture so that a patient may be infused with fluid from an IV medication bag, or the like. What is more, the check valve is adapted to reliably block the backflow of blood through the needle during the interconnection and start-up of the IV system. A resilient valve core formed from an elastomeric material has a peripheral sealing surface extending therearound. The check valve is closed to fluid flow in both directions when the sealing surface of the valve core mates against a complementary peripheral sealing surface which surrounds the valve core. The check valve is opened to fluid flow in both directions when an axial pushing force (e.g. generated by a Luer lock fitting) is applied to the valve core, whereby the valve core is compressed and the sealing surface thereof is separated from its complementary sealing surface to establish a gap therebetween.

Abstract: A trocar (2) includes a hollow body (4) defining a path between its proximal and distal ends with an obturator assembly (6) positioned along the path. The tip (34, 36) of the obturator assembly has a cutting element (38). A novel gas sealing assembly (114) seals the path along the trocar body and includes at least three interleavened elastomeric sealing elements (124) which seal the path when an object, such as an obturator barrel (14), is not positioned along the path. The gas sealing assembly also includes a flexible, elastic, conical element (136) with a hole (158) at its tip and raised ridges or rings (164) along its inner surface (154) for sealing the path when an object is positioned along the path.