A needle guide for an ultrasound guidance system. The needle guide may be included as part of a sterile kit for an ultrasound probe. The kit includes a shell and a sheath which form a sterile cover for the ultrasound probe. The needle guide is used to guide a needle into a body using the ultrasound probe.
1. A needle guide, comprising:
a support comprising a cradle configured to receive a needle shaft;
a finger rest;
a cover attached to the finger rest;
a flex member having a first end connected to the finger rest and a second end connected to the support, wherein the flex member is elastically deformable between the first end and the second end;
in a first position, the flex member is not elastically deformed and the cover projects toward the cradle;
in a second position, the flex member is elastically deformed between the first end and the second end, the cover covering the cradle;
wherein the flex member in the second position provides a restoring force, the restoring force naturally withdrawing the cover from the second position covering the cradle back to the first position uncovering the cradle; and
a cylindrical connector coupled to the support configured for being rotatably received;
and
wherein the needle guide is a one-piece molded part.
2. The needle guide of claim 1 , wherein the flex member is a beam with at least one bend.
3. The needle guide of claim 1 , further comprising a sterile shell assembly receiving the connector.
4. The needle guide of claim 1 , wherein the cover is a cantilever.
5. The needle guide of claim 1 , further comprising a position encoder of an ultrasonic probe connected to the connector.
6. The needle guide of claim 1 , wherein the spring is one of a compression spring, a torsion spring, or a tension spring.
7. A needle guide kit, comprising:
(i) a needle clip as defined in claim 1 ;
and
(ii) a shell rotatably received by the connector and configured for being coupled to an ultrasound probe.
8. The needle guide kit of claim 7 , the cradle including a surface and a ledge disposed at a first side of the cradle, wherein the surface includes flat surfaces formed at the first and second sides of the cradle.
9. The needle guide kit of claim 8 , wherein the cradle includes a notch comprising the ledge.
10. The needle guide kit of claim 9 , wherein an end of the cover is received in the notch when the cover is in the second position.
11. The needle guide kit of claim 7 , wherein the cover is maintained in the second position only when external pressure is applied to the finger rest.
12. The needle guide kit of claim 7 , wherein the member is a passage and the connector is receivable in the passage, the kit further comprising a sealing member in the passage or on the connector providing a sterility barrier.
13. The needle guide kit of claim 7 , wherein the shell has a cylindrical passage rotatably receiving the connector, and comprising a sealing member in the cylindrical passage or on the connector forming a sterility barrier with the shell.