Hernia Repair Patch with Nitinol Support for Minimally Invasive Delivery
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current hernia repair patches face challenges in being reduced to a size suitable for minimally invasive procedures, such as laparoscopic techniques, and then expanding to cover defects effectively while requiring complex deployment and fixation methods.
Innovation Solution
A hernia repair patch with a support member, such as a nitinol wire, that is collapsible for delivery through a narrow cannula and expands post-deployment, assisted by a mount like a sleeve that can be detached after fixation, reducing resistance and facilitating easy removal through the same cannula opening.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the patch is reduced in size for delivery through a narrow cannula, then the patch can be delivered via minimally invasive procedure, but the patch cannot effectively cover the hernia defect until expanded
Solution Approach 1:
The patch transitions from a compressed delivery configuration to an expanded functional configuration after deployment. The support member enables this dynamic transformation, allowing the patch to be small during delivery through the cannula and large when covering the hernia defect, thus resolving the contradiction between minimally invasive delivery and effective coverage.
2Stability of the object's composition
If a resilient support member is included to enable patch expansion, then the patch can return to enlarged shape, but the support member creates resistance to manipulation during insertion
Solution Approach 1:
The support member is divided into multiple segments or articulated sections that can flex relative to each other during insertion. This segmentation allows the support member to be manipulated through the narrow cannula with reduced resistance while maintaining its ability to provide structural support and enable expansion after deployment.
Solution Approach 2:
The support member is designed with flexible characteristics, allowing it to bend and conform during insertion through the cannula. This flexibility reduces manipulation resistance during delivery while maintaining the ability to restore the patch to its expanded configuration after deployment, resolving the contradiction between shape retention and ease of insertion.
3Strength
If the support member is permanently attached to the patch, then structural integrity is maintained, but removal of the support member through the same cannula opening becomes difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The attachment between the support member and patch is designed to be dynamic rather than permanent. The attachment mechanism allows the support member to be firmly attached during deployment to maintain structural integrity, but can be detached or removed through the cannula opening after the patch has been properly positioned and expanded, thus resolving the contradiction between strength and ease of removal.
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
Enables efficient delivery and expansion of the patch to cover hernia defects with reduced resistance and simplified post-deployment removal of the support member, enhancing the ease and effectiveness of hernia repair procedures.
Implementation Method 1
a support member, such as a nitinol wire, that is collapsible for delivery through a narrow cannula and expands post-deployment
Data Source
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AI summary
A patch (10) for repairing a hernia defect including a patch body (12) that is reducible into a small configuration for delivery through a narrow incision or cannula into a patient. A support member (26) assists in unfurling the patch body from the small configuration into an expanded configuration. A sleeve (24) releasably mounts the support member to the patch body.