catheter

Abstract

The present invention provides a means for a catheter with a curved tip that allows the curved portion to be shaped to a desired curve while also suppressing an increase in manufacturing costs. [Solution] A catheter whose tip can be bent by the tension of a wire 10 placed inside is provided, and which includes at least a wire passage tube 20 through which the wire 10 is inserted, and is configured to expose the tip of the wire 10 from the wire passage tube 20 to secure an exposed portion C. If the catheter is an electrode catheter equipped with a tip electrode 30, the exposed portion C of the wire 10 is provided between the tip electrode 30 and the wire passage tube 20. By designing the length of the exposed portion C (exposed length L) of the wire 10 appropriately according to the bending rigidity which varies as the material, shape, structure, etc. of the catheter components change, a catheter that achieves a desired bending configuration can be provided.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a catheter, and more particularly to a catheter capable of adjusting the curvature mode on the tip side of the catheter.

Background Art

[0002] In recent years, minimally invasive treatments using catheters have been actively performed on blood vessels, the heart, the urethra, etc. Among these, an electrode catheter is used by connecting a wire to an electrode provided at the tip and pulling this wire using an external operation unit or the like to bend the tip side of the catheter. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses that by dividing an operation wire tube through which a wire is inserted inside a catheter into a plurality of partial wire tubes, a catheter can be provided that can be bent so as to exhibit a smooth curve shape without bending in the middle.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] However, in the catheter described in Patent Document 1, various additional operations occur, such as the process of cutting the operation wire tube to a predetermined length to manufacture the partial wire tubes, the process of managing the partial wire tubes with different lengths, and the measures taken to fix the partial wire tubes at predetermined positions in the catheter assembly process. Therefore, it has been one of the factors increasing the manufacturing cost.

[0005] Therefore, the present invention aims to provide a means that enables the curved portion of a catheter, which has a curved portion at its tip, to be curved in a desired manner, while also suppressing an increase in manufacturing costs. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The present invention, made to solve the above problems, is a catheter whose tip can be bent by the tension of a wire placed inside, and is equipped with at least a wire passage tube through which the wire is inserted, with the tip of the wire exposed from the wire passage tube. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to the present invention, it is possible to obtain a catheter that can be curved to a desired shape while suppressing an increase in manufacturing costs. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0008] [Figure 1] A schematic diagram showing the internal structure of the catheter (electrode catheter) according to the present invention. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0009] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. [Examples]

[0010] <1> Overall structure The catheter according to the present invention will be described with reference to Figure 1. The catheter according to the present invention includes all types of catheters that are used by bending the tip portion of the catheter by the pulling action of a wire 10 provided inside the catheter. Furthermore, the lumen structure inside the catheter is not particularly limited. The catheter shown in Figure 1 is a single-lumen electrode catheter and comprises at least a handle A for the user to grasp and operate the catheter, and an insertion part B for insertion into the human body. The details of each part are explained below.

[0011] <2> Handle Handle section A is the part that the user grasps and uses. The handle portion A is a component having various internal structures depending on the intended use of the catheter, and is not particularly limited in this invention. In the catheter shown in Figure 1, the handle portion A is provided with an operating portion A1 for performing the pulling action of the wire 10, which will be described later.

[0012] <3> Insertion part Insertion part B is the part that is inserted into the human body for use. The insertion section B is a flexible, elongated member, and has various outer diameters and internal structures depending on the intended use of the catheter. The catheter shown in Figure 1 is assumed to be an electrode catheter, and is equipped with a tip electrode 30 located at the very tip of the insertion section B, and a ring electrode 40 located at a predetermined interval behind the tip electrode 30. One end of the wire 10 is connected to the tip electrode 30, and the other end of the wire 10 is connected to the operating part A1 provided on the handle part A, so that the wire 10 can be pulled by the user operating the operating part A1. In this invention, the curved portion B1 is defined as a portion of arbitrary length on the tip side of the insertion portion B that bends due to the tensile action of the wire 10.

[0013] <4> wire Wire 10 is a component used to bend the tip of the catheter. Wire 10 is located inside the handle part A and the insertion part B that constitute the catheter. By fixing one end of wire 10 to a predetermined position of the insertion part B and fixing the other end of wire 10 to the operation part A1 of the handle part A, wire 10 can be pushed out or pulled by the operation of the operation part A1. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, one end of wire 10 is fixed to the tip electrode 30 provided at the tip of the insertion part B.

[0014] <5>Wire passing tube The wire passing tube 20 is a member for inserting and passing the wire 10 provided inside the catheter. In the present invention, the wire passing tube is prepared as a member separate from the tube constituting the outer skin part of the catheter. In the present invention, the cross-sectional shape and material of the wire passing tube 20 are not particularly limited, and various members having flexibility can be used. In the present invention, the position on the rear end side of the wire passing tube 20 is not particularly limited, and it may be fixed within the bending part B1 or extended to the handle part A1 side. In the present invention, the wire passing tube 20 may also function as a member for protecting the wire 10 from various members inside the insertion part B (such as a leaf spring for exerting a restoring force against the bending operation and an auxiliary plate for adjusting the bending shape, which are not shown in FIG. 1).

[0015] <6>Ensuring the exposed part In the present invention, the tip side of the wire 10 is exposed from the wire passing tube 20, that is, a configuration is adopted in which an exposed part C of the wire 10 is provided between the tip electrode 30 and the wire passing tube 20. In the configuration provided with the exposed part C according to the present invention and the configuration in which the tip side of the wire 10 is completely inserted into the wire passing tube in the bending part B1, since the bending rigidity at an arbitrary position within the bending part B1 is naturally different, the bending mode (bending start position (starting end), bending shape, radius of curvature, etc.) of the bending part B1 when the wire 10 is pulled will also be different. Also, the bending mode of the bending portion B1 during the tension of the wire 10 will change depending on the length of the exposed length L in the exposed portion C.

[0016] <7>Summary According to the catheter of the present invention, at least one of the following described effects can be obtained. (1) Since there is no need for a processing step of dividing the wire insertion tube, the manufacturing cost can be reduced. (2) When assembling the catheter, there is no need to take measures to fix the plurality of divided wire insertion tubes at a predetermined position, so the manufacturing cost can be reduced. (3) By exposing the tip side of the wire from the wire insertion tube, the vicinity of the tip of the bending portion becomes easy to bend, and a usage method in which only the tip of the catheter is bent with a small radius of curvature becomes possible. (4) By appropriately designing a preferable exposed length for the wire according to the bending rigidity that varies at any time with changes in the materials, shapes, structures, etc. of the components of the catheter (main body tube, wire insertion tube, wire, leaf spring, auxiliary plate, etc.), a catheter with a desired bending mode can be provided.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0017] A: Handle portion A1: Operation portion B: Insertion portion B1: Bending portion C: Exposed portion 10: Wire 20: Wire insertion tube 30: Tip electrode 40: Ring electrode

Claims

1. A catheter whose tip can be bent by pulling a wire placed inside, The system includes at least a wire-passing tube through which the aforementioned wire is inserted, The tip of the wire is exposed from the wire passage tube, catheter.

2. The catheter is an electrode catheter equipped with a tip electrode located at the tip of the catheter, The tip of the wire is fixed to the tip electrode, The wire is exposed from the wire passage tube between the tip electrode and the wire passage tube. The catheter according to claim 1.

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