Flexible Tissue Modification Device for Spinal Decompression
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current minimally invasive surgical techniques for treating spinal stenosis are invasive, cause significant tissue damage, and often require spinal fusion, leading to long-term morbidity and reduced spinal function.
Innovation Solution
Development of flexible tissue modification devices with a plurality of blades on rungs that are flexibly connected, allowing for precise tissue modification and decompression within the spinal foramen, using a guidewire-based system for minimally invasive access and tensioning to modify tissue without significant bone removal.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional open surgical techniques are used for spinal stenosis treatment, then complete tissue removal and decompression can be achieved, but significant tissue damage and invasion occur
Solution Approach 1:
The surgical procedure is divided into multiple sequential steps: percutaneous access, dilator placement, guide wire insertion, and finally the flexible rasping device with multiple cutting elements. This segmentation allows gradual tissue removal with minimal initial invasion, resolving the contradiction between complete removal and tissue preservation
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs a flexible rasping device with a thin, flexible body that can navigate through small percutaneous access points. The flexible construction allows the device to conform to spinal anatomy while delivering cutting action, enabling complete tissue decompression through minimal invasion
2Object-affected harmful factors
If minimally invasive techniques are used, then tissue damage is reduced, but the ability to modify certain tissues (bone, ligament) in confined spaces is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The rasping device features a flexible body that can dynamically adjust its shape and orientation within the confined spinal space. The flexible construction allows the device to navigate complex anatomical paths and position cutting elements precisely against bone and ligament surfaces, maintaining full tissue modification capability despite minimal access
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a new dimension of flexibility to the surgical instrument, allowing it to operate in three-dimensional confined spaces through a two-dimensional percutaneous access point. The flexible rasping device can bend, rotate, and conform to the spinal anatomy, enabling effective tissue modification in areas previously inaccessible to minimally invasive tools
3Object-affected harmful factors
If small-diameter tools are used in confined surgical spaces, then invasion is reduced, but direct visualization of the tissue being modified is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The flexible rasping device is designed to be self-guiding through the percutaneous access path, using its own flexibility to navigate to the target site without requiring extensive external visualization. The device's construction allows it to follow the path established by the guide wire and dilators, making the system self-sufficient in navigating to the treatment site
4Object-affected harmful factors
If current minimally invasive tools are used to shave bone or ligament tissue, then invasion is minimized, but the precision and effectiveness of tissue contouring is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The rasping device incorporates multiple segmented cutting elements along its flexible body, with each element capable of independent contact with the tissue surface. This segmentation allows progressive, controlled removal of bone and ligament tissue, achieving precise contouring through sequential cutting action rather than requiring a single large instrument
Solution Approach 2:
The patent utilizes changes in the physical parameters of the cutting elements, including their size, shape, and distribution along the flexible body. These parameter variations allow the device to adapt to different tissue types and anatomical locations, achieving precise tissue contouring while maintaining minimal invasion through the same flexible platform
Data Source
AI summary
Described herein are elongate devices for modifying tissue having a plurality of flexibly connected rungs or links, and methods of using them, including methods of using them to decompress stenotic spinal tissue. These devices may be included as part of a system for modifying tissue. In general, these devices include a plurality of blades positioned on (or formed from) rungs that are flexibly connected. The rungs are typically rigid, somewhat flat and wider than they are long (e.g., rectangular). The rungs may be arranged, ladder like, and may be connected by a flexible connector substrate or between two or more cables. Different sized rungs may be used. The blades (on the rungs) may be arranged in a staggered arrangement. A tissue-collection or tissue capture element may be used to collect the cut or modified tissue.