The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Feb. 28, 1989
Filed:
Mar. 06, 1987
Spencer P Thornton, Nashville, TN (US);
Rodger W Williams, Nashville, TN (US);
Alcon Laboratories, Inc., Fort Worth, TX (US);
Abstract
A hypotraumatic injection needle having substantially no cutting edges is described. The injection needle has a beveled surface with the furthermost end of the beveled surface removed and rounded to form the needle tip. All edges on the tip and beveled portion of the needle are rounded and smoothly polished. The needle tip has a low profile, with the slope of the beveled portion being less than twenty degrees. These features allow the needle to penetrate easily by means of blunt dissection of tissue, rather than cutting tissue. The injection needle is particularly useful for posterior peribulbar or retrobulbar anesthesia in connection with ophthalmic surgery. The injection needle has a 'ski-tip' effect, guiding the tip of the needle away from the beveled side. This effect, along with the absence of cutting edges, significantly reduces the hazards associated with ophthalmic surgical injections, such as inadvertent cutting of the eyeball or optic nerve. A preferred embodiment of the needle is indexed to indicate the side of the needle which is away from the beveled side.