External Cardiac Pressuriser for Percutaneous Ventricular Assist
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current cardiac assist devices for ventricular systole either require invasive surgery, pose risks of infection and thrombotic complications, or fail to effectively enhance cardiac output, making them inadequate for clinical use, especially for patients with acute or chronic heart failure.
Innovation Solution
A cardiac assist device comprising a pressuriser and driver that applies localized pressure to the external wall of a ventricle, optimizing blood ejection fraction without the need for a pump within the cardiovascular system, utilizing a pressuriser with an expandable member and a cardiac event timing sensor to synchronize pressure cycles with the cardiac cycle, allowing percutaneous delivery and minimizing surgical intervention.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a pump is implanted within the cardiovascular system to assist ventricular function, then cardiac output can be improved, but the device requires significant surgery and poses risks of infection and thrombotic complications
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the pump function from the cardiovascular system by placing the pump outside the body. The pump is connected to the heart via minimal invasive access points, eliminating the need for implantation within the circulation system. This resolves the contradiction by maintaining cardiac output assistance while removing the device from the bloodstream to prevent infection and thrombotic complications.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an external pump as an intermediary device that assists ventricular function without being part of the cardiovascular system. The pump acts as a mediator between the ventricle and the circulatory system, providing mechanical assistance through controlled pressure application while avoiding direct implantation risks.
2Productivity
If intravenous inotropic agents are administered to improve ventricular pumping, then cardiac output can be increased, but myocardial oxygen demand increases risking catastrophic arrhythmia
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the chemical mechanism of inotropic agents with a mechanical system. Instead of using drugs that increase myocardial oxygen demand to enhance contraction, an external pump provides mechanical assistance to the ventricle. This substitution eliminates the harmful metabolic effects while achieving the same goal of improved cardiac output.
3Productivity
If a pressuriser applies pressure to the external wall of the ventricle to improve ejection fraction, then cardiac function is enhanced, but the device must be precisely synchronized with the cardiac cycle
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs feedback control by using sensors to detect cardiac cycle events (such as ECG signals or pressure waveforms) and automatically adjusting the pump operation timing. This feedback mechanism ensures precise synchronization of pressure application with the cardiac cycle, optimizing ejection fraction enhancement while managing the complexity through automated control.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary action by pre-synchronizing the pump operation with detected cardiac events. The control system identifies cardiac cycle phases in advance and prepares the pressure application timing, ensuring optimal assistance during systole without requiring complex real-time adjustments during each cardiac cycle.
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 device significantly improves cardiac ejection fraction by 10-20%, providing symptom relief and improved outcomes for patients with cardiac output deficits, while avoiding the risks associated with traditional implantable pumps and surgeries.
Implementation Method 1
the pressuriser is adapted to be able to apply localised pressure to only the external wall of one ventricle
Data Source
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AI summary
A device for providing assistance to ventricular systole, the device comprising a pressuriser and a driver, wherein the pressuriser is adapted to be able to apply localised pressure to only the external wall of one ventricle, or a portion thereof, and the driver is operatively linked to the pressuriser so as to be able to drive a cycle of increased and decreased pressure applied by the pressuriser. The invention also relates to a method of implanting the device and a method of treating cardiac pump failure in which the device is used.