Continuous Braided Tissue Anchor for Chordal Repair
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current tissue anchors for medical procedures lack seamless integration and varying braid patterns that enhance physical properties for specific uses, such as chordal repair and valve treatments, leading to suboptimal performance in securing anatomical structures and implanted devices.
Innovation Solution
The development of continuous, integral implantable tissue anchors with braided tether and anchor portions that have varying braid patterns and profiles, including sections with different pick counts and cross-sectional shapes, to provide enhanced physical properties and tissue ingrowth, allowing for secure anchoring and adjustable configurations for medical procedures like chordal repair and valve treatments.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If tissue anchors use traditional separate components (pledget and tether), then assembly and customization are easier, but integration and seamless connection are compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the previously separate pledget and tether components into a single integrated braided structure. The anchor portion and tether portion are continuously braided together, eliminating the need for separate components and their associated interfaces, thereby achieving seamless integration and improved reliability.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention uses composite braided structures where the anchor portion and tether portion are formed from compatible materials that can be continuously braided together. This composite approach allows different sections of the same structure to have optimized properties while maintaining seamless integration.
2Ease of manufacture
If uniform braid pattern is used throughout the anchor and tether, then manufacturing is simpler, but physical properties are not optimized for specific uses
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies different braid patterns to different sections of the anchor and tether based on their specific functional requirements. The anchor portion may have a braid pattern optimized for tissue engagement and anchoring strength, while the tether portion has a pattern optimized for flexibility and load transmission, achieving local optimization of physical properties.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention varies braiding parameters such as pick count, braid angle, and filament arrangement along the length of the anchor and tether. These parameter changes allow the structure to exhibit different mechanical properties in different regions, optimizing performance for specific uses while maintaining manufacturability through a systematic variation approach.
3Strength
If higher pick count is used in braided sections, then resistance to elongation and bending is improved, but manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies higher pick count braiding only in specific sections where enhanced resistance to elongation and bending is required, such as the anchor portion, while using lower pick count in sections requiring flexibility, such as the tether portion. This localized application of complexity achieves strength optimization without unnecessarily increasing overall manufacturing complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention systematically varies the pick count parameter along the length of the anchor and tether, using higher values where strength is critical and lower values where flexibility is needed. This controlled parameter change allows optimization of mechanical properties while maintaining manageability in the braiding process.
4Reliability
If braid pattern is designed to encourage tissue ingrowth, then biological integration is improved, but structural integrity may be compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The patent incorporates braid patterns with varying open structures in specific regions to encourage tissue ingrowth, while maintaining denser, more intact braided structures in regions where structural integrity is critical. This localized differentiation allows the anchor to promote biological integration where needed while preserving mechanical strength where required.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention uses composite braided structures that combine different material properties and structural densities within the same component. This allows regions with higher porosity for tissue ingrowth to coexist with regions with higher density for structural integrity, achieving both biological and mechanical performance goals.
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 braided tissue anchors offer improved resistance to elongation and bending, enhanced tissue ingrowth, and adjustable configurations, enabling secure anchoring and effective treatment of heart valve dysfunction, chordal repair, and valve annuloplasty procedures with reduced trauma and improved durability.
Implementation Method 1
The tether portion and the anchor portion are continuously braided with one another
Implementation Method 2
the braiding pattern varies to exhibit enhanced physical properties according to expected use
Implementation Method 3
the anchor portion is thermally treated to bond the individual braid filaments together
Implementation Method 4
at least part of the anchor portion is characterized by a braid pattern configured to encourage tissue ingrowth
Data Source
AI summary
The invention relates to tissue anchor in medical procedures. More specifically the invention relates to a tethered anchor. Tethered anchor including a tether portion and an anchor portion that are continuously braided with one another, the tether portion extending continuously from the anchor portion; and the anchor portion having a greater width than a width of the tether portion.