Ablation Catheter Balloon With Integrated Electrodes
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current ablation catheters with balloons struggle to completely isolate arrhythmia trigger regions, requiring additional spot ablation with metallic electrodes, prolonging procedures and increasing patient and physician burden.
Innovation Solution
An ablation catheter system with a balloon incorporating an in-balloon electrode, temperature sensor, and a front portion electrode, allowing for both balloon ablation and spot ablation without catheter replacement, featuring a circuit switching mechanism to prevent unintended heat generation and detect impedance changes for safe treatment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Area of stationary object
If a balloon ablation catheter is used to heat and ablate myocardial tissue, then wide-range ablation can be achieved, but the trigger region cannot be completely isolated and additional spot ablation is required
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines both balloon ablation functionality and spot ablation functionality into a single catheter device. The balloon structure provides wide-range ablation capability while metallic electrodes are integrated onto the balloon surface to enable precise spot ablation when needed, eliminating the requirement for separate catheter interventions.
Solution Approach 2:
The catheter is designed with multi-functionality, serving both as a balloon ablation device for extensive tissue treatment and as a spot ablation device using metallic electrodes for targeted arrhythmia trigger regions. This universal design allows the single device to address both the wide coverage need and the precision isolation requirement.
2Reliability
If additional spot ablation is conducted with a metallic electrode catheter after balloon ablation, then complete isolation can be achieved, but operation time is prolonged
Solution Approach 1:
By integrating both balloon and metallic electrode functionalities into one catheter, the patent eliminates the time-consuming process of removing the balloon catheter and inserting a separate metallic electrode catheter. Both ablation modes can be performed during a single catheter intervention, significantly reducing total procedure time.
3Measurement precision
If a metallic electrode catheter is used for spot ablation, then precise contact with target region is possible, but physician technique requirement increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the balloon catheter structure with integrated metallic electrodes, allowing physicians to utilize the balloon's stability and positioning capabilities while accessing spot ablation functionality. This integration reduces the manipulation difficulty compared to using a separate metallic electrode catheter, as the balloon portion provides structural support and easier positioning.
4Reliability
If dotted ablation is performed with metallic electrode, then ablation line can be formed, but spaces between ablated regions may remain causing recurrence
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines balloon ablation capability with integrated metallic electrodes, allowing physicians to first perform balloon ablation for wide coverage to ensure complete isolation, then use the integrated spot ablation function for any specific trigger regions. This eliminates the risk of spaces between ablated regions while maintaining procedural efficiency through a single catheter intervention.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables efficient, safe, and time-saving ablation procedures by allowing wide-range tissue ablation with uniform balloon heating and selective spot ablation without catheter replacement, reducing complications and procedural burden.
Implementation Method 1
heating the liquid for heating by a radio-frequency current supplied from a radio-frequency generator to ablate the entire myocardial tissue contacting the surface of the balloon
Implementation Method 2
an in-balloon electrode and an in-balloon temperature sensor arranged in an interior of the balloon, and a front portion electrode and a front portion temperature sensor attached to a front area
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3
Figure 4(A)~4(B)
AI summary
In order to perform balloon ablation and spot ablation by one ablation catheter without exchanging an ablation catheter body at the time of treatment by catheter ablation, an ablation catheter (1A, 1B) with a balloon is provided with a catheter shaft (3), a balloon (2) which is mounted to the front end side in the longitudinal direction of the catheter shaft, a lumen (5) which communicates with the balloon from the end face on the back end side in the abovementioned longitudinal direction, an in-balloon electrode (10, 37) and an in-balloon temperature sensor (11) which are disposed in the balloon, and a front end electrode (14) and a front end temperature sensor (15) which are mounted in a front end region including the end face on the front end side in the abovementioned longitudinal direction.