Blood Pathogen Removal via Imaging and Venting
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current treatments for bacteremia, such as the use of antibiotics, are not effective for many patients with bloodstream infections caused by pathogens like E. coli and Candida auris, leading to severe conditions like sepsis.
Innovation Solution
An apparatus that identifies and locates pathogen cells in blood using imaging and venting them to a sump, repeatedly processing blood over time to reduce pathogen cell counts.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If antibiotics are used to treat bacteremia, then pathogen cells in the bloodstream should be killed, but the treatment is not successful for many patients with bloodstream infections
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and removes pathogen cells from the bloodstream using a physical filtration system. The blood is circulated through a device with filters that physically capture and remove pathogen cells, bypassing the need for chemical antibiotics and directly reducing the pathogen load in the bloodstream.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary filtration device between the patient's bloodstream and the external environment. This device acts as a mediator that selectively captures pathogen cells while allowing blood plasma and other components to pass through, providing a mechanical solution to the treatment failure of antibiotics.
2Reliability
If a filtration system is used to remove pathogen cells, then pathogen cell count decreases, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the blood processing function into multiple stages: filtration stage to capture pathogen cells, collection stage to accumulate removed cells, and disposal stage to eliminate collected pathogens. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized independently and simplifies the overall system architecture.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent designs a multi-functional device that combines filtration, cell collection, and monitoring capabilities in a single apparatus. The same device can process different types of blood samples and adapt to various patient conditions, reducing the need for multiple separate systems and thereby reducing overall complexity.
3Reliability
If blood is continuously processed to reduce pathogen cells, then treatment effectiveness improves, but the loss of time for each processing cycle increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements continuous blood circulation and pathogen removal through the filtration device. Instead of batch processing, the system continuously filters blood as it circulates through the device, maintaining constant pathogen removal activity and reducing total treatment time while improving effectiveness.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent performs preliminary identification and capture of pathogen cells as blood enters the filtration system. By detecting and removing pathogens early in the processing sequence, the system prevents pathogen proliferation and reduces the overall treatment duration required to achieve therapeutic levels.
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus for locating and venting pathogen cells in blood. A cassette has a plurality of thin holding chambers that are filled with blood drawn from a patient. A light source illuminates each of the holding chambers and passes light to an underlying sensor array such that the cells in the blood produce shadow images of the cells in the sensor array. A processor performs pattern recognition to identify and locate the pathogen cells by use of an image library. After the pathogen cells are located, a pump is operated to move the identified cells to a processing zone. When each identified cell reaches the processing zone, a control voltage is generated to open a valve to vent the identified pathogen cells. The pump refills the cassette holding chambers, returns the processed blood to the patient, and the procedure is repeated for a treatment time period.