ASSEMBLY AND KIT FOR MARKING TUBAL OSTIA
A method, apparatus, and kit for marking the opening between the fallopian tube and the uterus (tubal ostia) are provided. A marking dye provided in a marking assembly including a fluid dispenser coupled to a catheter having an open end and a guide wire. The catheter is inserted into the uterus and to a position adjacent the tubal ostia. When properly inserted, the fluid dispenser is activated to cause fluid to flow through the catheter and to the wall of the uterus to provide a mark. Once the mark is provided, endometrial ablation process can be provided in the uterus. The marks can then be used to guide the insertion of tubal occlusion devices.
The application claims priority to provisional application U.S. Ser. No. 60/589,112, filed Jul. 19, 2004, and is a divisional application of U.S. Ser. No. 11/184,197 filed on Jul. 19, 2005, both of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.
STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENTNot applicable.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONThe present invention is related to methods and apparatuses for marking anatomical features for medical procedures, and is more particularly directed to a method, apparatus, and kit for marking openings between the fallopian tubes and the uterus (tubal ostia).
Menorrhagia is a disorder caused by hormonal disturbances, uterine fibroids, polyps, or overgrowth of the uterine lining, and which results in heavy or prolonged bleeding during the menstrual period. One treatment for menorrhagia is to remove the endometrium, or lining of the uterus, through a process called endometerial ablation. In endometrial ablation, the endometrium is burned away, vaporized, or otherwise ablated using a tool such as a heat generating or cryoablation device. After treatment, the endometrium heals by scarring, which usually reduces or prevents uterine bleeding.
Many women who are candidates for endometrial ablation are also of childbearing age, and in some cases it is therefore either advisable or desirable to prevent pregnancy after or in conjunction with the endometrial ablation. If sterilization is an appropriate choice for the patient, a selective tubal occlusion can be provided in conjunction with the ablation procedure. Selective tubal occlusion consists of placing occlusive devices at the openings of the fallopian tubes (the tubal ostia) to block the tubes from the uterus. Tubal occlusion is a non-surgical procedure that is desirable because it provides a significantly faster recovery time than, for example, surgical tubal ligation. Furthermore, tubal occlusion can be provided concurrently with the endometrial ablation procedure, thereby increasing efficiency and limiting the invasiveness of the procedures.
While it is desirable to combine endometrial ablation and tubal occlusion into a single procedure, however, the endometrial ablation procedure frequently results in debris which remains in the uterine cavity after ablation, and further changes the uterine wall such that the appearance of the uterus is significantly different after ablation than it had been prior to ablation. Therefore, it can be difficult to locate the tubal ostia after ablation, rendering a proper insertion of the tubal occlusion devices difficult or impossible.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONThe present invention provides an assembly for marking tubal ostia. The assembly includes a marking dye, a fluid dispenser pre-filled with the marking dye, and a catheter sized and dimensioned for positioning in a uterus to extend to the tubal ostia. The catheter is coupled to the dispenser at a first end for receiving the dye from the dispenser and includes an opening at the second end for dispensing the dye. A guide wire is provided in the catheter for positioning the catheter adjacent the opening to allow marking the position of the tubal ostia with the marking dye.
The fluid dispenser can comprise a container which is formed integrally with the catheter, thereby limiting the number of components in the marking assembly and limiting the possibility of accidentally spilling the dye.
Alternatively, the catheter can be coupled to the fluid dispenser with an adapter suitable for this purpose, and a port seal can be coupled between the adapter and the catheter. The marking dye can be a methylene blue dye, and the catheter can be sized and dimensioned to be received in a hysteroscope.
The present invention also provides a method for marking tubal ostia. The method comprises filling a fluid dispenser with a biocompatible marking dye, coupling the dispenser to a catheter including an opening at each of a first and a second end and a guide wire, inserting the catheter into the uterus and positioning the first end of the catheter adjacent an opening between the fallopian tube and the uterus. When appropriately positioned, the fluid dispenser is activated to provide a flow of the marking dye through the catheter to mark the uterus wall adjacent the opening. This process can then be repeated to mark the second opening between the fallopian tube and the uterus.
After the marks are provided, an ablation device can be inserted into the uterus and activated to ablate the endometrium, and the first and second marks can be used to guide the insertion of a first and a second tubal occlusion device at the first and second tubal ostia.
In another aspect, the invention provides a kit for marking a tubal ostia including a fluid dispenser pre-filled with a methylene blue marking dye, and a catheter sized and dimensioned for positioning in a uterus and to extend substantially to the tubal ostia. The catheter is coupled to the fluid dispenser at a first end for receiving the methylene blue dye, and includes an open second end for dispensing the methylene blue dye. A guide wire is provided within the catheter such that the catheter is selectively positionable in the uterus with the second end adjacent the tubal ostia, and the fluid dispenser is selectively activated to cause the methylene dye to flow through the catheter to a wall of the uterus to mark the position of the tubal ostia. Instructions for marking the tubal ostia are included in the kit.
These and other aspects of the invention will become apparent from the following description. In the description, reference is made to the accompanying drawings which form a part thereof, and in which there is shown a preferred embodiment of the invention. Such embodiment does not necessarily represent the full scope of the invention and reference is made therefore, to the claims herein for interpreting the scope of the invention.
Referring now to the figures and more particular to
Referring now also to
Referring now to
After the tubal ostia 40 and 42 are appropriately marked, menorrhagia can be treated using an endometrial ablation procedure. To perform the endometrial ablation, an ablation tool such as a resectoscope with a loop or rolling ball electrode, radiofrequency source, laser beam, high electric voltage tool, microwave tool, or cryoablation tool can be inserted into the operative channel 30 of the hysteroscope 28, and used to treat the endometrium. Referring now to
Referring now to
Referring now to
In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the marking assembly 10 is provided as a kit for marking tubal ostia. The kit includes a marking assembly 10 comprising a fluid dispenser 12 pre-filled with marking dye 22. Preferably, the fluid dispenser 12 is either pre-assembled to or formed integrally with a catheter 16 with an internal guide wire 18 to limit required assembly. As described above, a cap 23 can be provided on the catheter 16 to limit spillage, or, if the fluid dispenser 12 is provided separately from the catheter 16, on the fluid dispenser 12. Preventing spillage by pre-filling the dispenser 12, reducing required assembly of components, and providing caps or covers is particularly important when using methylene blue dye as the marking dye 22, as methylene dye is particularly prone to staining surfaces.
Although the kit preferably includes a pre-assembled marking device 10, the fluid dispenser 12 can be provided disassembled from the catheter 16, and adapters can be included for assembling the fluid dispenser 12 to the catheter 16, as described with reference to
It should be understood that the methods described above are only exemplary and do not limit the scope of the invention, and that various modifications could be made by those skilled in the art that would fall under the scope of the invention. For example, various methods of combining a catheter and a fluid dispensing device will be apparent. Furthermore, while the dispenser is shown as having a specific actuator, squeeze bottles or other devices could also be used. Additionally, although the marking assembly has been shown and described for use in marking the tubal ostia for inserting tubal occlusion devices after endometrial ablation, it will be apparent that the marking assembly could also be used for marking various other locations in the uterus or other cavities, and used in conjuction with other procedures. To apprise the public of the scope of this invention, the following claims are made:
Claims
1. An assembly for marking one or more tubal ostium prior to endometrial ablation to enable a medical practitioner to locate the ostium after ablation and before the insertion of a tubal occlusion device, the assembly comprising:
- a marking dye;
- a fluid dispenser pre-filled with the marking dye;
- a catheter sized and dimensioned for positioning in a uterus to extend to a tubal ostium, the catheter being coupled to the dispenser at a first end for receiving the dye from the dispenser and including an opening at the second end for dispensing the dye to mark a position of the tubal ostium; and
- a guide wire provided in the catheter for guiding the catheter to the tubal ostium.
2. The assembly as recited in claim 1, wherein the marking dye is a surgical marking dye.
3. The assembly as recited in claim 1, wherein the marking dye is methylene blue.
4. The assembly as recited in claim 1, wherein the marking dye is indigo carmine.
5. The assembly as recited in claim 1, wherein the catheter is further sized and dimensioned to be received in a hysteroscope.
6. The assembly as recited in claim 1, further comprising an adapter for coupling the fluid dispenser to the catheter.
7. The assembly as recited in claim 6, further comprising a port seal coupled between the adapter and the catheter.
8. The assembly as recited in claim 1, wherein the fluid dispenser comprises a container formed integrally with the catheter.
9. The assembly as recited in claim 1, wherein the fluid dispenser is a syringe.
10. The assembly as recited in claim 1, wherein the catheter includes a diameter in a range extending substantially between 3 and 4 French.
11. The assembly as recited in claim 1 wherein the catheter has a length of substantially fifty centimeters.
12. A kit for marking a tubal ostium prior to endometrial ablation to identify the tubal ostium for insertion of a tubal occlusion device, the kit comprising:
- a fluid dispenser pre-filled with a marking dye;
- a catheter sized and dimensioned for positioning in a uterus and to extend substantially to the tubal ostium, the catheter being coupled to the fluid dispenser at a first end for receiving the marking dye and including an open second end for dispensing the marking dye;
- a guide wire provided within the catheter and extending substantially from the first end of the catheter to the second end of the catheter, wherein the catheter is selectively positionable in the uterus with the second end adjacent the tubal ostium, and the fluid dispenser is selectively activated to cause the marking dye to flow through the catheter to a wall of the uterus to provide a mark indicating the position of the tubal ostium on the wall; and
- instructions for marking the position of the tubal ostium on the wall of the uterus.
13. The kit as recited in claim 12 wherein the catheter is further sized and dimensioned to be received in a hysteroscope.
14. The kit as recited in claim 12 wherein the marking dye is a surgical marking dye.
15. The kit as recited in claim 12, wherein the surgical marking dye is at least one of an indigo carmine dye and a methylene blue dye.
16. The kit as recited in claim 12 further comprising at least one tubal occlusion device.
17. The kit as recited in claim 16, wherein the tubal occlusion device comprises a metal tubal occlusion coil.
18. The kit as recited in claim 12 wherein the fluid dispenser includes a container that is formed integrally with the catheter.
19. The kit as recited in claim 12, wherein the catheter includes a diameter in a range extending substantially between 3 and 4 French.
20. The kit as recited in claim 12, wherein the catheter has a length of substantially fifty centimeters.
21. The kit as recited in claim 12, wherein the instructions further include instructions for marking both of the tubal ostia, performing an endometrial ablation, locating the tubal ostia after the endometrial ablation and inserting the tubal occlusion devices at the tubal ostia.
Type: Application
Filed: Mar 30, 2012
Publication Date: Jul 19, 2012
Inventor: Thomas G. Howell (Faribault, MN)
Application Number: 13/435,164
International Classification: A61M 5/178 (20060101);