Back flush valve for one-way flush of drainage catheters

摘要

A valve apparatus is provided that comprises a housing with a passageway formed therethrough and a seal assembly. The housing has an access port with a bore formed therein that is configured to be in fluid communication with the passageway. The seal assembly is configured to automatically seal and unseal the passageway in the housing in response to a medical device being attached to the access port. The seal assembly has an open position where the passageway of the housing is capable of having fluid flow therethrough and a closed position in which the fluid flow through the passageway is interrupted. The seal assembly is configured to automatically move between the open position and the closed position. The seal assembly is biased into the normally open position. The seal assembly also has a hole formed therethrough which communicates with the bore in the access port and provides an opening to the passageway of the housing when the seal assembly is in the closed position. The seal assembly comprises a seal and a biasing mechanism. The seal is sized and configured to be movably disposed in the bore of the access port. The seal has a substantially cylindrical shape. The biasing mechanism comprises a resilient flexible member configured to cooperate with the seal so as to urge the seal into the open position. The seal and the resilient flexible member are configured to cooperate so as to urge the seal into the open position.