A medical
catheter assembly including a removable inner sleeve. In one embodiment, the
assembly is a low profile
percutaneous endoscopic
gastrostomy (PEG) device and comprises a body, a clamp, a
feeding tube, a cap and an inner sleeve
assembly. The body includes a base portion and a sleeve portion, the base portion being dimensioned to engage the
skin of a patient and having a transverse bore, the sleeve portion extending upwardly from the base portion and having a longitudinal slot aligned with the transverse bore and a transverse slot intersecting the longitudinal bore. The clamp, which is slidably mounted on the base portion and across the transverse slot of the sleeve, comprises a plate having a transverse opening. The transverse opening has a wide region and a narrow region, the two regions being alternately alignable with the longitudinal bore to open and to close, respectively, the
feeding tube. The
feeding tube has a distal end adapted to be anchored to the inside of a patient and a proximal end inserted up through the base portion and the sleeve portion, including the transverse opening of the clamp situated within the sleeve, and then inverted over the top edge of the sleeve. The cap is then mounted on top of the sleeve so as to secure the inverted end of the
catheter to the exterior of the sleeve. The cap is provided with an opening through which access to the
catheter may be gained. An inner sleeve, sized to engage the inside surface of the feeding tube, is removably inserted through the cap and the feeding tube, the inner sleeve having a proximal end to which a tubular fitting is secured. Food and / or medications are dispensed to the patient through the fitting and the inner sleeve and, in this manner, prevent clogging of the feeding tube.