Medical devices and methods of use

1. A method of disassembling a system exposed to a bodily fluid of a subject, the system including an ultrasound probe, a steerable shaft, and a handle assembly, comprising:

providing a handle assembly, a steerable sheath that has been exposed to a bodily fluid environment of a subject, and an ultrasound probe that has been exposed to the bodily fluid environment of the subject, the handle assembly in operable communication with the steerable sheath and the ultrasound probe, the handle assembly including a handle body with an outer surface that can be gripped by a user, a first actuator adapted to be moved relative to the handle body, and a second actuator adapted to be moved relative to the handle body, the steerable sheath having a distal deflectable region that is in operable communication with at least one pull wire, wherein the first actuator is in operable communication with the pull wire such that actuation of the first actuator relative to the handle body causes deflection of the distal deflectable region, and wherein the second actuator is adapted to be rotated relative to the handle body and is also adapted to be moved axially relative to the handle body, and wherein the second actuator is in operable communication with the ultrasound probe such that axial movement of the second actuator relative to the handle body causes axial movement of the ultrasound probe relative to the distal end of the steerable sheath, and such that rotation of the second actuator relative to the handle body causes rotation of the ultrasound probe relative to the distal end of the steerable sheath,

the ultrasound probe having a distal portion that includes an ultrasound transducer, the distal portion extending further distally than a distal end of the steerable sheath and having an outer dimension greater than a dimension of a lumen of the steerable sheath in which the probe is disposed, the ultrasound probe further including a flexible circuit strip, the flexible circuit strip comprising an insulating substrate, a plurality of conductive traces disposed on and extending along the insulating substrate, a portion of each of the plurality of conductive traces covered by an insulation member, and a portion of the plurality of conductive traces not covered by the insulation member, the portion of the plurality of conductive traces that are not covered by the insulation member defining a probe contact, the probe contact electrically coupled to an electrical contact on a printed circuit board of the system;

electrically disconnecting the probe contact from the electrical contact on the printed circuit board of the system;

moving the ultrasound probe distally relative to the steerable sheath and out of the distal end of the steerable sheath;

cleaning at least a portion of the ultrasound probe, the portion comprising a region of the ultrasound probe that, prior to the moving step, does not extend outside of the steerable shaft and optionally comprises a region that, prior to the moving step, was disposed within the handle assembly; and

after the cleaning step, electrically coupling the probe contact to either the printed circuit board of the system or a different printed circuit board.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the ultrasound probe comprises a plurality of flexible circuit strips, each of the plurality of flexible circuit strips comprising an insulating substrate, a plurality of conductive traces disposed on and extending along the insulating substrate, a portion of each of the plurality of conductive traces covered by an insulation member, and a portion of the plurality of conductive traces not covered by the insulation member, the portion of the plurality of conductive traces that are not covered by the insulation member defining a probe contact.

3. The method of claim 1 , further comprising, before the moving step, releasing the ultrasound probe from a releasably secured engagement with a handle assembly component.

4. The method of claim 3 , wherein releasing the ultrasound probe from the releasably secured engagement with the handle assembly component comprises releasing the probe from the releasably secured engagement with the handle assembly component that is in direct or indirect operable communication with the second actuator.