Surgical aspirators are used to remove fluids from the body of the patient. A surgical aspirator typically includes a tip that is inserted into a surgical site, wound, or other bodily orifice. The tip is generally elongated in shape and may include a handle or grip section to facilitate using the aspirator. The proximal end of the tip is connected to a tube that is connected to a suction pump that provides suction to the tip. The distal end of the aspirator tip is inserted into the patient and has one or more openings into which gases, fluids, and materials may flow.
Pieces of tissue and other debris may be suspended in the fluids and can clog the aspirator. Openings in the tip of the aspirator where the fluid first enters the device are particularly vulnerable to clogging. One solution to this problem involves covering the distal end of the aspirator tip with a sleeve formed with a plurality of small holes that prevent the tissue from reaching the opening of the aspirator tip while allowing the fluid being evacuated to flow into the sleeve through the holes. However, if the holes in the sleeve become clogged, suction is no longer distributed uniformly among the remaining unclogged holes. This condition may cause too much suction in a particular area that may pull surrounding tissue into the holes of the sleeve causing injury to the patient.
One solution to this problem involves including additional orifices in the tip near the connection between the sleeve and tip. Because these additional orifices are spaced from the wound, bodily orifice, or surgical site the additional orifices are less likely to become clogged with tissue or debris. However, these orifices are vulnerable to being obstructed by the hands or fingers of the user of the aspirator. These orifices may also be obstructed or blocked by resting the aspirator tip and sleeve combination against another object such as the patient's body, a table, or dressings surrounding the surgical site.
Therefore, a need exists for improved surgical aspirator tip and sleeve combinations that allow air flow into the interior of the sleeve that is independent of the inflow of gases, fluids, and materials through the small holes in the sleeve.