Electrode Guidewire Tracking for Radiation-Free Catheter Navigation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing guide wires for cardiac catheterization are difficult to visualize accurately using fluoroscopy, leading to potential vessel damage and requiring excessive radiation exposure, while existing catheter navigation and mapping systems lack integration with guide wires for precise positioning.
Innovation Solution
A guide wire made of electrically conductive material with an uninsulated tip and optional secondary electrode, connected to a catheter navigation and mapping system, allowing real-time positional tracking and display on a monitor.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If fluoroscopy is used to visualize the guide wire, then the guide wire position can be observed, but radiation exposure increases and visualization precision is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the fluoroscopy-based mechanical/optical imaging system with an electrical field-based detection system. The guide wire is equipped with electrodes that detect electrical potentials generated by the heart's natural electrical activity, allowing visualization without ionizing radiation. This substitution of detection mechanism directly resolves the contradiction between visualization precision and radiation exposure.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the detection parameter from optical/radiological (fluoroscopy) to electrical (potential detection). By measuring electrical potentials along the guide wire using multiple electrodes, the system achieves precise positioning through electrical field interactions rather than radiation-based imaging, thereby eliminating radiation exposure while maintaining or improving visualization precision.
2Speed
If fluoroscopy is continuously activated for guide wire navigation, then real-time visualization is achieved, but radiation exposure and procedural time increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs periodic sampling of electrical potentials along the guide wire rather than continuous fluoroscopy activation. The electrodes continuously detect electrical signals, but the system processes and displays information at optimized intervals, providing real-time guidance while minimizing procedural time loss and eliminating cumulative radiation exposure from continuous fluoroscopy.
Solution Approach 2:
The guide wire system utilizes the heart's own electrical activity as the detection source, requiring no external radiation or additional energy input. The natural cardiac electrical potentials serve the dual purpose of both physiological function and positioning detection, eliminating the need for continuous fluoroscopy activation and reducing procedural time while maintaining real-time visualization capability.
3Measurement precision
If traditional guide wires are used, then the procedure is simple, but the guide wire cannot be precisely tracked by navigation systems
Solution Approach 1:
The patent divides the guide wire into multiple segments, each equipped with electrodes at specific intervals. This segmentation allows the navigation system to detect electrical potentials at multiple discrete points along the guide wire, enabling precise three-dimensional positioning and tracking. The segmented electrode arrangement provides detailed spatial information without requiring a completely redesigned guide wire structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The guide wire maintains its primary function of mechanical navigation while simultaneously serving as an electrical detection device through integrated electrodes. The same guide wire structure performs both mechanical guidance and electrical potential sensing, eliminating the need for separate tracking devices and minimizing additional complexity while achieving precise navigation system integration.
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
Enables precise, radiation-free visualization of the guide wire's position within the body, enhancing procedural accuracy and reducing radiation exposure.
Implementation Method 1
catheter mapping systems that are known to exist... determine the position of the uncoated region proximate the distal tip of the guide wire
Data Source
AI summary
A guide wire configured for use with existing catheter mapping and navigation systems. The guide wire is made of electrically conductive material and coated in an electrically insulating material. An uncoated region is provided near the guide wire's distal tip. This uncoated region forms a conductive path between the metallic components of the guide wire and the surrounding tissue. The uncoated region effectively becomes an electrode for use in prior art mapping and navigation systems. The mapping and navigation system determines the position of the uncoated region.