Articulable Catheter Ends for Precise Valve Leaflet Cutting and Grasping
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing catheters and surgical devices face challenges in efficiently accessing and manipulating delicate anatomical structures, such as heart valve leaflets, due to limitations in flexibility, steerability, and the ability to perform precise procedures like cutting and grasping.
Innovation Solution
The development of an elongate catheter with multiple inner bodies made from shape memory materials or steerable mechanisms, allowing for controlled curvature and articulation, combined with electrosurgical and ultrasonic capabilities, enables precise manipulation and cutting of anatomical structures.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If existing catheters are used to access delicate anatomical structures, then the procedure can be performed with standard equipment, but the flexibility and precision for manipulating structures like heart valve leaflets is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The catheter is divided into multiple segments including an outer catheter body, inner bodies, and articulation mechanisms. Each segment can move independently to provide flexibility and precision control, allowing the distal end to articulate relative to the proximal end while maintaining overall catheter integrity.
Solution Approach 2:
The catheter incorporates dynamic articulation capabilities where the distal end can change its orientation and curvature in response to operator input. The inner bodies can slide within the outer catheter body to create controlled bends and articulations, enabling precise manipulation of delicate structures.
2Manufacturing precision
If standard catheters are used for cutting and grasping procedures, then the device design is simpler, but the ability to perform precise procedures on delicate anatomical structures is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The catheter employs a nested structure with inner bodies housed within the outer catheter body. The inner bodies can be advanced or retracted independently to control the articulation and positioning of the distal end, enabling precise cutting and grasping operations while maintaining a compact delivery profile.
Solution Approach 2:
The catheter allows for dynamic changes in its geometric parameters including curvature, articulation angle, and distal end orientation. These parameter changes are controlled through the relative movement of inner bodies within the outer catheter body, enabling precise positioning for cutting and grasping procedures.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the catheter is made more flexible to access delicate structures, then the ability to navigate complex anatomy is improved, but the control and stability for precise procedures may be reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The segmented catheter structure with separate outer and inner bodies allows different sections to have different mechanical properties. The outer catheter body provides overall flexibility for navigation, while the inner bodies provide controlled articulation and stability for precise procedures at the distal end.
Solution Approach 2:
The inner bodies act as intermediaries between the operator's control inputs and the distal end articulation. They transmit and amplify small movements at the proximal end into precise articulation changes at the distal end, maintaining control and stability even as the catheter navigates complex anatomy.
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
The catheter system provides enhanced flexibility and precision for procedures like cutting and grasping heart valve leaflets, facilitating minimally invasive surgeries with improved control and reduced tissue trauma.
Implementation Method 1
The first elongate inner body is made from a shape memory material or a steerable mechanism
Data Source
Figure 1A~1B
Figure 1C~1D
Figure 2A~2B
AI summary
The disclosure provides various embodiments of catheters having articulable ends that can be used for various procedures. Embodiments of methods are also provided that can be performed with catheters in accordance with the present disclosure.