Adjustable Glaucoma Drainage Implants for Noninvasive Flow Control
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current glaucoma treatments require invasive procedures for adjusting fluid flow after implantation, which can lead to complications such as hypotony and are costly and time-consuming, while existing devices lack the ability to adjust fluid flow without additional surgeries.
Innovation Solution
Implantable devices with adjustable flow control assemblies using shape memory materials and actuation elements that can be remotely actuated to change fluid resistance through lumens, allowing incremental adjustments without invasive procedures.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If traditional glaucoma treatment devices are used, then fluid flow can be controlled, but adjustment requires invasive procedures that cause complications and require additional surgeries
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces traditional mechanical adjustment mechanisms requiring invasive surgical procedures with a magnetic actuation system. External magnetic fields interact with magnetic particles or shape memory materials within the device to adjust flow control, eliminating the need for additional surgeries and reducing patient complications while maintaining precise fluid flow regulation capability
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces magnetic particles or shape memory materials as intermediary substances within the flow control assembly. These intermediaries respond to external magnetic fields to modify the flow resistance through lumens, enabling non-invasive adjustment of fluid flow characteristics without direct mechanical intervention or additional surgical procedures
2Ease of operation
If traditional glaucoma treatment devices are used, then fluid flow can be controlled, but adjustment procedures are costly and time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces time-consuming surgical adjustment procedures with rapid magnetic actuation. External magnetic fields can be applied to adjust flow control parameters in minutes or seconds without requiring surgical room time, anesthesia, or post-procedural recovery, dramatically reducing the time loss for patients and healthcare systems
Solution Approach 2:
The device is pre-configured with magnetic particles or shape memory materials during manufacturing, enabling all future adjustments to be made non-invasively. This preliminary preparation eliminates the need for invasive adjustment procedures later, saving both time and resources while maintaining full adjustability of the device
3Duration of action of stationary object
If traditional glaucoma treatment devices are used, then initial fluid flow control is achieved, but device longevity is limited due to need for additional surgeries
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extends device longevity by replacing invasive adjustment mechanisms with magnetic actuation. The flow control assembly can be adjusted multiple times non-invasively throughout the device lifetime, eliminating wear from mechanical components and avoiding complications from repeated surgeries, thereby extending the functional life of the implant
Solution Approach 2:
The device incorporates self-contained magnetic particles or shape memory materials that enable the flow control assembly to adjust itself in response to external magnetic fields. This self-service capability eliminates the need for external mechanical intervention or additional surgical procedures, extending device longevity while minimizing patient exposure to surgical complications
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 precise regulation of fluid flow in the eye, reducing the need for additional surgeries and minimizing complications, thereby extending device longevity and improving patient convenience and safety.
Implementation Method 1
the flow control element comprises a shape memory material and an actuation assembly configured to drive movement of the flow control element in response to applied energy
Implementation Method 2
a lumen extending between an inflow port positionable within an anterior chamber and an outflow port positionable within an outflow location
Data Source
AI summary
The present technology is directed to implantable medical devices for draining fluid from a first body region to a second body region. Some embodiments of the present technology provide adjustable devices that are selectively titratable to provide various levels of therapy. For example, the adjustable devices can have a drainage element with a lumen extending therethrough, a flow control element, and an actuation assembly. The actuation assembly can drive movement of the flow control element to change a dimension of and/or a flow resistance through the lumen, thereby increasing or decreasing the relative drainage rate of aqueous from an eye. In some embodiments, the actuation assembly and the flow control element together operate as a ratchet mechanism that can selectively move the flow control element between a plurality of positions and lock the device in a desired configuration until further actuation of the actuation assembly.