Sampling device for blood oxygenator

Claim 1

Blood oxygenating apparatus comprising means for continuously heating and oxygenating blood, said means including a blood inlet port, a blood outlet port for returning oxygenated blood to the patient via a patient return line, a mass transfer device, and means to remove air bubbles introduced into said blood inlet port, a sample supply line connected to said outlet port and having a diameter smaller than that of said patient return line and adapted to have a smaller flow through it than that through said patient return line, a sampling access device having an inlet connected to said sample supply line, a sampling port providing access for removal of blood flowing through said device, and an outlet port permitting continuous flow through said sampling device, a sample return line connected between said sampling device and said blood inlet port, and pumping means to cause the blood at said outlet port to have sufficient pressure to flow through said supply line, sampling device, and return line, said mass transfer device and said means to remove air bubbles including a membrane type fluid flow transfer device having an inflow port communicating with upper ends of channels defined by microporous membranes and an outlet port communicating with lower ends of said channels to result in downward flowing blood between microporous membranes within said membrane mass transfer device to detain bubbles introduced into said membrane device, and said pumping means maintaining the pressure on the blood side of said membranes sufficiently above that on said air side to cause substantially all accidentally introduced air bubbles to pass completely through said microporous membranes before being carried to the blood outlet port by the flow of blood.