Expandable Chamber Anchoring for Electrosurgical Ablation Devices
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing electrosurgical ablation devices face challenges with limited-use components like needles becoming dull or deformed after repeated use, making them difficult to position and operate effectively, and there is a need for improved anchoring and visibility during procedures.
Innovation Solution
An electrosurgical ablation device with a reusable handle and a limited-use needle that includes an expandable chamber anchored by a fluid source, which locks the device to tissue and enhances visibility under ultrasound imaging.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a limited-use needle is used for repeated ablation procedures, then the needle can be reused multiple times, but the needle becomes dull, bent, or deformed making it difficult to place and operate
Solution Approach 1:
The device is divided into a reusable handle assembly and a replaceable needle component. The needle can be replaced when dull or deformed, while the handle assembly with the expandable chamber mechanism is reused. This segmentation allows maintenance of high positioning accuracy by replacing degraded needles while preserving the functional chamber system.
Solution Approach 2:
The expandable chamber is positioned and prepared in advance on the handle assembly before needle insertion. Once the needle is placed in target tissue, the chamber is expanded to anchor the entire assembly, securing the needle position before the ablation procedure begins. This preliminary anchoring ensures positioning accuracy is maintained throughout the procedure.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the surgical instrument is made movable to accommodate patient movement, then the instrument can adapt to patient respiration and muscular-skeletal movement, but the instrument shifts position during the ablation procedure
Solution Approach 1:
The expandable chamber provides a dynamic anchoring solution. When expanded, it creates friction and mechanical interlocking with the tissue to prevent instrument shift. The chamber can be inflated or deflated as needed, allowing the system to adapt to tissue movement while maintaining stable positioning during the critical ablation phase.
3Reliability
If the chamber is expanded to anchor the device to tissue, then the device is locked in position, but the expansion mechanism adds complexity to the device structure
Solution Approach 1:
The expandable chamber uses pneumatic or hydraulic principles to achieve anchoring. Fluid pressure is applied to inflate the chamber, creating expansion forces that lock the device to tissue. This approach provides reliable anchoring through a relatively simple mechanism compared to mechanical expansion systems, reducing overall device complexity while maintaining high anchoring stability.
4Reliability
If fluid is delivered to the chamber to expand it, then the chamber provides anchoring and ultrasound visibility, but the fluid delivery system requires additional components and setup
Solution Approach 1:
The fluid delivery system serves multiple functions: it expands the chamber for anchoring and simultaneously provides ultrasound visibility enhancement. By using the same fluid pathway for both purposes, the design avoids adding separate systems for each function, thereby reducing overall complexity while achieving reliable anchoring and imaging visibility.
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 expandable chamber effectively anchors the device to tissue, preventing movement during procedures and improving visibility under ultrasound, allowing for precise and stable tissue ablation while maintaining the needle's position despite patient movement.
Implementation Method 1
The fluid source enables the delivery of a fluid to the chamber causing the chamber to expand
Implementation Method 2
The expandable chamber improves visibility of the surgical instrument and the limited-use component, such as a needle, under ultrasound imaging, e.g., ultrasonography, due to the hyper- or hypo-echoic enhancement offered from the fluid used
Data Source
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Figure 5~7A
AI summary
A surgical instrument is provided including a handle assembly, a shaft electrically coupled to the handle assembly and extending therefrom, an electrode assembly electrically coupled to the shaft for transmitting energy to tissue to treat tissue, and a chamber defined in the shaft and positioned proximal a distal end thereof and configured to selectively expand. The expansion of the chamber anchors the surgical instrument to the tissue.