Patent attributes
A suction control valve for a closed system suction catheter has a housing with an inlet bore and an outlet bore inclined at an angle to the inlet bore and opening into the bore via an aperture. A valve member comprises a rod member and a manually actuable plate extending longitudinally in an external channel along the housing between two walls. The rod member supports a resilient sleeve and its forward end is urged, by a spring, to engage a tapered seal within the housing forwardly of the aperture, thereby blocking flow through the valve. The valve is opened by sliding the plate rearwardly so that the valve member moves rearwardly of the aperture. A locking cap can be twisted to prevent movement of the valve member from its closed position.