High-Temperature Superconducting Coil for Magnetically-Guided Feeding Tube Application

The placement of a gastro-intestinal feeding tube is a critical procedure for patients in intensive care, especially burn victims. Using traditional nonguided methods, this placement can take up to 15 h, because X-ray confirmation is needed to make sure that the tube has first cleared the lungs and then entered the intestine via the pyloric valve. Syncro Medical Corporation has developed and patented a magnetically guided tube using a large, 2.5-kg hand-held permanent magnet, which guides a small permanent magnet on the tip of the feeding tube stylet. An electronic reed switch is also used to determine the position of the feeding tube. Using this new process, intestinal feeding tube placement can be accomplished in 15 min. Syncro Medical has been working with Youngstown State University to develop a high-temperature superconducting electromagnet for this application, because this can be easily turned on and off during the placement procedure. Results from high-temperature superconducting coil testing for Phase I of this project are included in this paper.