Elastic Catheter Coupler Preventing Component Slippage
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Solution Overview
Problem
Intravascular access systems face challenges with inadvertent slippage between catheter components during navigation, leading to procedural delays and potential patient harm, especially in acute stroke treatments, due to the need for single-handed manipulation and pinching which can lose the desired assembled configuration.
Innovation Solution
A coupler system with a unitary elastic body and movable wings that can be affixed to catheter components to maintain locked engagement, allowing for easy manipulation and preventing slippage by providing a secure clamp mechanism that can be locked or unlocked as needed.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If single-handed manipulation and pinching are used to manipulate catheter components, then ease of operation is improved, but reliability deteriorates due to inadvertent slippage between components
Solution Approach 1:
A coupler device is introduced as an intermediary component between the inner catheter and outer catheter. The coupler includes a first engagement feature that interfaces with the inner catheter and a second engagement feature that interfaces with the outer catheter, thereby mediating the connection between the two catheters and preventing direct slippage while maintaining ease of manipulation
Solution Approach 2:
The coupler is designed to be nested within the lumen of the outer catheter while simultaneously engaging the inner catheter. This nesting arrangement allows the coupler to maintain the relative positions of the inner and outer catheters without interfering with the single-handed manipulation capability
2Reliability
If coupler is used to prevent slippage between catheter components, then reliability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The catheter system is segmented into distinct functional components: the inner catheter, the outer catheter, and the coupler. The coupler itself is segmented into a body portion and engagement features, allowing each component to be optimized independently while maintaining overall system reliability without excessive complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The coupler includes elastic biasing elements that automatically maintain engagement between the catheter components without requiring additional active control mechanisms. The elastic portions self-adjust to maintain reliable connection, reducing the need for complex control systems
3Reliability
If coupler with elastic portions is used to maintain locked engagement, then reliability is improved, but ease of operation deteriorates due to increased grip force requirement
Solution Approach 1:
The coupler incorporates elastic portions that dynamically adjust to the engagement requirements. The elastic biasing elements automatically adapt to maintain reliable engagement while allowing the wings to be manipulated with reasonable force, creating a dynamic balance between reliability and ease of operation
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 coupler system reduces slippage and delays in vascular navigation, improving procedural efficiency and patient outcomes by maintaining the relative positions of catheter components during movement through the vasculature.
Implementation Method 1
The at least one coupler includes a unitary elastic body with at least one slot configured to receive and retain the proximal extension and the flexible elongate body
Data Source
AI summary
An intravascular access system for facilitation of intraluminal medical procedures within a vasculature including an outer catheter having a tubular distal portion having a lumen and a proximal extension without a lumen; an inner catheter having a flexible elongate body; and at least one coupler configured to be affixed to at least a portion of the proximal extension and at least a portion of the flexible elongate body to accommodate different relative positions between the outer catheter and the inner catheter during movement of the inner and outer catheters through the vasculature. The at least one coupler has a unitary elastic body with at least one slot configured to receive and retain the proximal extension and the flexible elongate body. Related devices, systems, and methods are provided.