Catheter-Expandable Heart Valve Frame for Secure Annulus Anchoring
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing surgical treatments for cardiac valve malfunctions, such as mitral and tricuspid valve issues, require open-heart procedures and extracorporeal circulation, which are invasive and risky, and there is a need for less invasive methods to repair or replace these valves.
Innovation Solution
A frame-shaped cardiac valve prosthesis designed to crimp or pinch natural cardiac valve leaflets and annulus, expandable through a catheter, and anchored using wires arranged as arcs and rings to provide a seal and support, allowing for minimally invasive implantation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If open-heart procedures and extracorporeal circulation are used for valve repair or replacement, then reliable valve replacement is achieved, but surgical invasiveness and patient risk increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a flexible frame structure that can be compressed into a catheter for minimally invasive delivery, then expanded at the target site to anchor the valve prosthesis. The frame uses thin-walled structures that provide flexibility during delivery while maintaining structural integrity when deployed, resolving the contradiction between reliable anchoring and reduced surgical invasiveness
Solution Approach 2:
The valve prosthesis is divided into distinct functional segments: an expandable frame structure, wire arcs for anchoring, and valve leaflets for function. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized independently - the frame for delivery flexibility, the wires for secure anchoring, and the leaflets for valve function - while working together to achieve reliable replacement with minimal invasiveness
2Stability of the object's composition
If a frame expands from single-layer to double-layer structure, then anchoring stability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The frame transitions from a single-layer compressed state during delivery to a double-layer expanded state at the implantation site. This dynamic transformation allows the frame to achieve enhanced anchoring stability through the double-layer configuration while maintaining low complexity during delivery, as the double-layer structure forms automatically upon expansion rather than requiring pre-assembly of complex multi-layer structures
Data Source
AI summary
A heart valve prosthesis frame, the frame comprising a hollow tube shape for allowing blood to flow through; an upstream portion designed to expand to have at least one dimension wider than a native heart valve annulus; a downstream portion attached to the upstream portion, the downstream portion also designed to expand to have at least a portion with at least one dimension wider than the native heart valve annulus; wherein the downstream portion is shaped to have one side of the downstream portion of the hollow tube frame extend less from a center of the hollow tube than an opposite side of the hollow tube.