Blunt-Cap Tissue Anchor Delivery for Atraumatic Transcatheter Cardiac Surgery
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Solution Overview
Problem
The risk of causing damage to blood vessels and other anatomical structures during transcatheter cardiac surgeries due to the sharp tips of tissue anchors necessitates the development of atraumatic delivery methods.
Innovation Solution
A tissue anchor is delivered within a tube with a blunt cap, allowing it to be advanced through a tube with a blunt cap that becomes an anchor head after anchoring, using a driver to secure the anchor to tissue while the cap is detached from the tube.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a tissue anchor with a sharp tip is advanced transvascularly, then the tissue anchor can be effectively delivered to the anatomical site, but the sharp tip may cause damage such as nicks or punctures to blood vessels
Solution Approach 1:
A delivery catheter is introduced as an intermediary device that guides and protects the tissue anchor during transvascular advancement. The catheter allows the sharp-tipped anchor to be delivered through blood vessels while minimizing direct contact between the anchor tip and vascular tissue, thus preventing nicks or punctures.
Solution Approach 2:
The delivery catheter is advanced to the anatomical site and positioned appropriately before the tissue anchor is deployed. This preliminary positioning ensures that the anchor is delivered through a controlled pathway that avoids damage to blood vessels and surrounding tissues.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If a blunt cap is used to protect the tissue anchor during delivery, then damage to blood vessels is prevented, but the anchor cannot be directly advanced through the cap
Solution Approach 1:
The delivery system is divided into distinct functional segments: a protective blunt cap for advancement through blood vessels, and a separate tissue anchor with a sharp tip for engagement with tissue. The anchor is released from the catheter at the target site, allowing the sharp tip to effectively engage tissue without the constraints of the blunt cap during the anchoring phase.
Solution Approach 2:
The system transitions dynamically from a protective configuration during delivery to an active anchoring configuration. The tissue anchor is designed to be released from the delivery catheter at the anatomical site, enabling it to advance through the blunt cap and engage tissue effectively once the protective barrier is no longer needed.
3Stability of the object's composition
If the blunt cap remains attached to the tube after anchoring, then the delivery system remains intact, but the cap cannot serve as the anchor head
Solution Approach 1:
The blunt cap is extracted from the delivery catheter at the anatomical site, allowing it to be repositioned and serve as the anchor head. This separation enables the cap to fulfill its dual purpose: protecting the anchor during delivery and then serving as the visible anchor head that secures the tissue.
Solution Approach 2:
The blunt cap is designed with multi-functionality: it serves as a protective cover during transvascular delivery, then becomes the anchor head that provides the visible and functional anchoring element. This eliminates the need for separate components and simplifies the overall system.
Data Source
AI summary
A tissue anchor includes a sharp tissue-engaging element and a driving interface which is fixed with respect to the tissue-engaging element. A tube has a blunt cap reversibly attached to and covering a distal end of the tube, and is transluminally advanceable in a distal direction toward an anatomical site within a subject. A driver, while engaged with the driving interface of the tissue anchor, is configured to drive the tissue-engaging element through the blunt cap and into tissue at the anatomical site, such that the blunt cap becomes an anchor-head of the tissue anchor, secured to the tissue by the tissue-engaging element. Other embodiments are also described.