Dual-Sided Cardiac Coagulation Device for Transmural Lesion Formation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional methods for creating complete lesion patterns in atrial tissue during atrial fibrillation surgery face challenges such as inconsistent tissue contact, convective cooling, and difficulty in precisely targeting soft tissue regions while avoiding nearby structures, leading to incomplete lesions and increased procedural complexity.
Innovation Solution
The use of a method and device that apply electromagnetic energy to both endocardial and epicardial surfaces of the heart to create a contiguous lesion pattern without dissecting pericardial reflections, allowing for improved access and visualization, and minimizing trauma to the patient.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Temperature
If conventional thermal ablation systems are used to create curvilinear lesions, then energy can be applied to atrial tissue, but convective cooling from blood flow produces a heat sink that prevents consistent transmural lesion formation
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies energy from both the endocardial surface (internal dimension) and epicardial surface (external dimension) to create lesions. By delivering energy from two opposite directions simultaneously, the system overcomes the heat sink effect of convective cooling at the endocardial surface, ensuring consistent transmural lesion formation despite blood flow cooling.
2Reliability
If endocardial coagulation lesions are created using intravenous catheters, then atrial tissue can be coagulated, but the physician cannot easily visualize the ablation site and procedural complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines endocardial and epicardial access approaches into a unified system. By integrating both internal (intravenous catheter) and external (epicardial pad) energy delivery methods, the system achieves complete transmural coagulation while simplifying the overall procedure through coordinated dual-sided energy application rather than requiring complex single-sided approaches.
3Manufacturing precision
If epicardial coagulation is performed with pericardial reflection dissection, then complete bi-atrial lesion patterns can be created, but significant manipulation of tissue structures and procedural time are required
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary positioning and alignment of the epicardial pad and intravenous catheter before energy delivery. By pre-establishing the correct geometric relationship between the two energy sources and the target tissue, the system achieves complete bi-atrial lesion patterns without requiring time-consuming pericardial reflection dissection or intra-procedural tissue manipulation.
4Reliability
If energy is applied to create complete lesion patterns, then electrical impulse propagation can be blocked, but inconsistent tissue contact causes variability in energy transmission
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies energy with different characteristics from each access point tailored to the local tissue conditions. The intravenous catheter delivers energy directly to the endocardial surface with controlled contact, while the epicardial pad provides distributed energy from the external surface. This localized optimization of energy delivery at each interface ensures consistent energy transmission and complete electrical block despite varying tissue contact conditions.
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
This approach enables the creation of effective, contiguous lesion patterns across both cardiac surfaces, reducing the risk of complications and procedural time, while maintaining the structural integrity of the heart and avoiding damage to surrounding tissues.
Implementation Method 1
a coagulation device... applying energy (including but not limited to radiofrequency, D.C., microwave, laser or other thermal modalities) to prevent wavelets or electrical signals/impulses
Implementation Method 2
applying electromagnetic energy to both endocardial and epicardial surfaces of the heart to create a contiguous lesion pattern
Implementation Method 3
convective cooling on the opposite surface of the atrium... blood flowing along the endocardium removes heat thus producing a larger gradient between temperature immediately under the electrodes along the epicardium and that the temperature at the endocardium
Data Source
AI summary
Methods and devices described herein facilitate improved treatment of body organs.