Expandable Gastric Implant With Controlled Breakdown Release
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current treatments for obesity, such as gastric bypass surgery and intragastric balloons, are invasive, costly, or lack long-term efficacy, and there is a need for less-invasive and affordable interventions for the overweight and obese population.
Innovation Solution
Development of medical devices that occupy space within the body, such as the stomach, using expandable reservoirs and fluid delivery conduits to create a therapeutic effect, with mechanisms for controlled release and drug delivery, including hydrogel-based expandable constructs and fluid valves to manage fluid flow.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If gastric bypass surgery is performed, then weight loss and therapeutic effect are improved, but device complexity and surgical invasiveness increase
Solution Approach 1:
The implant is divided into separate components: a reservoir for fluid storage and a delivery system for controlled release. This segmentation allows the reservoir to be filled endoscopically without complex surgical procedures, reducing invasiveness while maintaining therapeutic effectiveness through systematic drug delivery
Solution Approach 2:
The reservoir is pre-assembled and can be filled with therapeutic fluid before insertion into the body. This preliminary preparation simplifies the implantation procedure, allowing for less-invasive endoscopic placement rather than requiring complex surgical assembly during the procedure
2Volume of moving object
If intragastric balloons are used, then space occupation and therapeutic effect are improved, but device complexity and removal difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The implant incorporates a controllable delivery system that can adjust fluid release rates and potentially reverse the filling process. This dynamic control allows the implant to be deflated and removed more easily compared to fixed-volume balloons, reducing removal difficulty while maintaining space occupation during the therapeutic period
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical inflation/deflation system of traditional balloons with a controlled fluid delivery system using pumps, valves, or osmotic mechanisms. This substitution enables more precise control over volume changes and facilitates easier removal by controlling fluid egress without requiring complex mechanical deflation procedures
3Duration of action of stationary object
If permanent anatomic modifications are made, then long-term weight loss is improved, but patient quality of life and reversibility worsen
Solution Approach 1:
The implant is designed as a temporary, removable device that can be extracted from the body after completing its therapeutic function. This allows the patient to receive long-term weight loss benefits during the implantation period while maintaining the option to remove the device if complications arise or treatment goals are achieved, thus preserving patient quality of life and reversibility
Solution Approach 2:
The implant allows for adjustable therapeutic parameters through controlled fluid release rates, volumes, and timing. This adjustability enables optimization of treatment effectiveness while minimizing side effects and maintaining patient comfort, thereby improving quality of life during treatment compared to fixed permanent modifications
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
Provides a less-invasive and effective means to manage obesity by occupying space within the body, offering controlled drug delivery and therapeutic effects, while being removable without severe complications.
Implementation Method 1
hydrogel-based expandable constructs
Implementation Method 2
fluid delivery conduit that allows transport of a fluid into the medical device
Implementation Method 3
removal of the fluid delivery member causes the tunnel member to revert to the elongate flattened shape such that the interior opposing surfaces move together to narrow the tunnel lumen and increase a resistance to fluid flow through the tunnel lumen
Data Source
AI summary
Methods, devices and systems for delivering a device assembly into a gastric or other space within the body, allowing the device to expand to occupy volume within the gastric space and, after an effective period of time, delivering a substance or stimulus to begin breakdown of the expanded device so that it may release from the body.