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Scabbard Research, Inc.

innovators of medical and dental products.

scabbardThe Butterfly Trap is a disposable plastic cylinder filled with an adhesive rubbery material. It retains the Butterfly Needle that is pressed into it for disposal. It is a complementary product for the Needle Scabbard, and is held in position by the tube of the  Scabbard. Note that the Butterfly may not be used again after insertion into the Trap since the needle bore is thereby plugged with the adhesive rubbery material. This plug also serves to prevent dripping of contaminated blood onto the floor or worktops near the operator or patient. The Butterfly Trap is effective with Huber, Angiocatheters, and standard syringes.

Nosocomial infections occur in the most modern and well run hospitals; tuberculosis, particularly, is an increasingly serious and worrisome problem. Standard universal precautions, stringently followed, such as disinfecting procedures, high tech air flow and filtration systems, protective and disposable uniforms, shoe coverings, gloves, and makes, are frequently inadequate defenses against airborne microorganisms. Staph and strep infections are still rampant in the hospital setting.

One source of the problem, the handling of sharp pointed devices for vascular procedures, should be investigated more closely. These include blood drawing, chemotherapy injections, biopsies, etc. All procedures involving syringes, butterflies, and angiocatheters are likely contributors to the ongoing contamination general surgical patient, are being infected.

Used needles, transported uncapped even a short distance from the site of injection or phlebotomy procedure to the sharps disposal container, can drip, scattering droplets of blood which quickly dry and become airborne throughout the facility.

Randomly placed petri dishes covered with culture media or using blood from animals that have been made radioactive can be used to test and verify this assertion.

To prevent the dripping, the cannula must be blocked immediately after use. OSHA and the Joint Committee on Hospital Accreditation ruled in 1988 that needles can be recapped only if the operator can do so with one hand or with the use of an engineered device that is operated by one hand. This is to prevent the health care person from sticking themselves with contaminated needles, during the recapping procedure, the needle is ready to penetrate the hand moving towards it.

Protective sliding sheaths still allow blood dripping and require two handed operation. It is generally accepted by medical experts, that so-called "safety needles" are not safe: To fulfill OSHA's mandate to prevent accidental needle sticks during disposal and to help solve the problem of airborne infections, a device called the "Scabbard" can be used. It holds the original needle cap in readiness and will enable the operator to recap the needle immediately at the injection site in a simple one-handed movement The recapped needle can then be carried in safety, without dripping to the disposal container. Butterflies, winged catheters, and long angiocatheters, can be safely covered using a "Butterfly Trap," a variation of the Scabbard that holds a needle-proof hard cartridge instead of a needle cap. The plastic cartridge is filled with an adhesive rubbery, fluorescent red material which serves to retain the needle that is placed into it, blocking the needles contents and thereby preventing dripping. The bright red fluorescent material serves as a good target for the insertion of the needle by the operator.

According to an independent evaluation laboratory maintained by a military unit  of the United States, the Needle Scabbard and Butterfly Trap are the most highly recommended designs to help solve the problems of accidental sticks and drips. The simplicity of sterilization and case of use, along with their one handed operation contribute to their acceptance.

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Advantages & Instructions

  • The Butterfly may not be used again after insertion into the Trap since the needle bore is thereby plugged with the adhesive rubbery material.
  • Immediate clocking of dripping Butterfly needle prevents contamination of table tops, floor and other surfaces.
  • Protects health care worker from accidents, since sharp point is covered
  • The infusion set and Butterfly Trap are disposed of together.

innovators of medical and dental products
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