Electrically Enhanced Vessel-Lumen Retrieval for Clot Retention
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current medical procedures for removing obstructions from body lumens, such as clots from blood vessels, face challenges including the risk of dislodging fragments that can cause further blockages and complications, particularly in tortuous anatomy, and inefficient methods for adhering clots to retrieval devices.
Innovation Solution
The use of an interventional element with electrodes and a current generator to positively charge the element, improving clot adhesion through controlled electrical charge distribution, using conductive materials and insulative coatings to enhance mechanical engagement and reduce the number of retrieval attempts.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a stent is used to mechanically push or drag the clot through the vasculature, then blood flow can be restored and the procedure is easy to perform, but the clot may dislodge or fragment during retrieval, especially in tortuous anatomy and at bifurcations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the purely mechanical stent-dragging system with an electrostatic adhesion system. Electrod eles on the retrieval device create an electric field that generates electrostatic forces to hold the clot, substituting mechanical friction and friction-based retention with field-based retention that is more reliable in tortuous anatomy
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the physical parameter of clot retention from mechanical friction to electrostatic force. By applying voltage to electrodes on the retrieval device, the system creates an electric field that generates electrostatic attraction between the electrodes and the clot material, fundamentally changing how the clot is held during retrieval
2Reliability
If multiple retrieval attempts are made to ensure complete clot removal, then complete obstruction removal can be achieved, but the procedural duration increases and the risk of dislodging fragments increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies electrostatic adhesion before attempting clot retrieval to ensure the clot is securely held from the beginning. The electric field is established in advance to prevent dislodgement during navigation through tortuous anatomy, eliminating the need for multiple corrective attempts
3Reliability
If the stent is expanded against or enmeshed within the clot to improve retention, then clot adhesion is enhanced, but the device complexity and difficulty of manipulation increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces complex mechanical expansion and enmeshment mechanisms with a simpler electrostatic field generation system. Instead of requiring the device to be expanded or manipulated mechanically to increase surface area contact, the system uses electrodes that generate an electric field effective at much smaller scales, simplifying the device structure
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from three-dimensional mechanical contact (stent expansion, enmeshment) to a field-based interaction that operates in the electromagnetic dimension. The electric field extends through space without requiring physical contact or expansion, adding a new dimensional approach to clot retention
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
Enhances clot adhesion to the interventional element, reducing the risk of dislodgement and improving the efficiency of clot removal, thereby minimizing secondary strokes and procedural duration.
Implementation Method 1
the current generator is configured to apply a direct current to the one or more electrodes, thereby positively charging the interventional element and adhering the clot material to the interventional element
Data Source
AI summary
Retrieval of material from vessel lumens can be improved by electrically enhancing attachment of the material to a medical device. The device can include an elongate core member having a distal portion configured to be intravascularly positioned at a treatment site within a blood vessel lumen, and an interventional element connected to the distal portion of the elongate core member. The interventional element includes a body that is expandable from a first configuration to a second configuration and an electrically conductive radiopaque marker coupled to the body. An electrically conductive lead has a distal portion electrically coupled to the radiopaque marker and a proximal portion configured to be electrically coupled to a current source.