US Patent Issued to ICU Medical International on June 23 for "Tracheostomy tubes and their manufacture" (British Inventors)

ALEXANDRIA, Va., July 15 -- United States Patent no. 12,661,469, issued on June 23, was assigned to ICU Medical International Ltd. (Ashford, Great Britain).

"Tracheostomy tubes and their manufacture" was invented by Neil Steven Veasey (Ashford, Great Britain), Christopher John Woosnam (London), Andrew Thomas Jeffrey (Marsh, Great Britain) and Timothy Bateman (Hythe, Great Britain).

According to the abstract* released by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office: "The neck flange 3 of a tracheostomy tube is of a soft plastics such as silicone and has neck tie or suture openings 35 at opposite ends reinforced to prevent damage to the flange. The openings are reinforced by tubular inserts 38 of a harder plastics. The patient end of each insert has ...