Medical Device Link.

TECHNOLOGY NEWS: IV COMPONENTS

The SiphonSafe valve is suited for IV therapy applications for neonates and pediatric patients or where accurate control of drug dosage is required.

To prevent liquid being siphoned from IV adminis­tration sets, antisiphon valves currently on the market typically have an opening pressure between 1.5 and 5.0 psi. Filtertek B.V. (Newcastle West, Co. Limerick, Ireland) has developed a check valve that offers the same safeguard at much lower pressure. The SiphonSafe valve has an opening pressure range of 35 to 78 cmWg, which is equivalent to 0.5 to 1.1 psi. The product may be beneficial for patients who are sensitive to increased pressure in their vascular system.

Antisiphon valves were developed in the mid-1990s in response to US FDA and ECRI warnings that free-flow protection had to be integrated into IV administration sets. Standard valves used in gravity-fed sets have a low opening pressure. By contrast, antisiphon valves require high opening pressure. This can create problems, especially when the valves are coupled with syringe pumps.

Syringe pumps need to generate enough pressure to overcome the pressure drop of the administration set before flow can occur. “Normally, pumps have occlusion alarms,” explains Filtertek product development engineer Kieran Costello. “If a certain pressure is reached in the set, the pump stops and an alarm sounds.” In order for the pump to operate properly with a conventional antisiphon valve, the occlusion alarm level must be increased. “Therefore, larger pressures are allowed to build up in the administration set,” says Costello. “This can become a problem for patients who are vulnerable to vascular injury or neonates and pediatric patients.” The high pressure also decreases the degree of control the practitioner has over fluid flow. This can be an issue for the administration of high-potency drugs, where precise dosage control is required.

Filtertek is currently assessing market interest in the valve. Several manufacturers of administration sets have tested the product and achieved positive results, according to the company.