GI Prosthesis Anchoring Without Tissue-Penetrating Barbs
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing gastrointestinal implants face challenges in safely anchoring within the dynamic environment of the gastrointestinal tract due to intermittent peristaltic motion, leading to potential tissue necrosis and bacterial translocation risks with conventional anchoring methods like sutures and barbs.
Innovation Solution
An anti-migration anchor delivery system using a catheter with a tissue engagement element and a hood mechanism to securely anchor implants within the gastrointestinal tract without penetrating surrounding tissue, employing a suture tether to maintain position and minimize infection risks.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If barbs are used to penetrate the wall of the stomach or small intestine, then anchoring strength is improved, but tissue necrosis and erosion occur
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of penetrating the tissue with barbs to achieve anchoring, the invention inverts the approach by using a delivery system that deploys anchors through the lumen without tissue penetration. The anchors are positioned and secured using a catheter-based system with a hood mechanism that captures and restrains the anchors in place through non-penetrating means.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a delivery system as an intermediary between the anchor and the tissue environment. This system includes a catheter, hood, and deployment mechanism that mediate the anchoring process, allowing anchors to be positioned and secured without direct tissue penetration, thereby eliminating the harmful effects of barbs while maintaining anchoring functionality.
2Stability of the object's composition
If sutures and staples are used for anchoring, then implant stability is improved, but the risk of bacterial translocation increases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention replaces the mechanical penetration system (sutures and staples that pierce tissue) with a catheter-based delivery system that positions anchors through the lumen. The anchors are deployed and restrained without creating penetrations that would allow bacterial translocation, thus substituting the mechanical anchoring approach with a non-penetrating deployment mechanism.
3Reliability
If barbs penetrate the gastrointestinal wall, then anchoring reliability is improved, but the risk of infections increases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention inverts the traditional anchoring approach by avoiding tissue penetration entirely. Instead of using barbs that pierce through the gastrointestinal wall to achieve reliable anchoring, the system deploys anchors through the lumen and restrains them using a hood mechanism and suture tethers, maintaining anchoring reliability without creating infection pathways.
4Reliability
If a delivery system with hood and tissue engagement element is used, then safety is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The delivery system is segmented into distinct functional components: a catheter for delivery, a hood with housing for anchor containment, a tissue engagement element for capture, and a deployment mechanism. This segmentation allows each component to perform its specific function efficiently while enabling the overall system to achieve safe anchor deployment despite the increased complexity of multiple integrated parts.
Data Source
AI summary
Systems and methods for anchoring and restraining gastrointestinal prostheses are disclosed. In various examples, the systems and methods include securing a gastrointestinal device within a patient's anatomy by extending an anti-migration anchor through a plurality of portions of the gastrointestinal device to couple together the plurality of portions of the gastrointestinal device. In some examples, the anti-migration anchor extends through tissue situated between the plurality of portions of the gastrointestinal device.