| abstract |
An apparatus for arterial blood sampling and blood gas analysis, comprising a standard tubular member (14) open on one end with a bore or fitting (24) on the other end to accept a standard taper hypodermic needle (80), and a closure (78) adapted to fit the tubular member, which closure provides (a) a low resistance air escape while the tubular member is filling with blood and (b) a high resistance to the flow of blood. The tubular member may be a hypodermic syringe barrel, such as a plastic 1-cc tuberculin syringe barrel. The syringe is preferably closed by one of the following: (a) a porous air-permeable membrane impermeable to blood (78); (b) a resilient rubber plug (92) having a narrow slit cut through it from front to back, with a removable venting means (such as a cuprophane hollow fiber) (90) inserted into it to allow the air to escape; and (c) two or more sheets of plastic film, e.g., PET, (110, 112) placed across the tubular member such that a tortuous passage is formed and the sheets act as a one-way valve. The apparatus minimizes gas contamination by allowing small samples to be taken and can be manufactured inexpensively. |