Irreversible Electroporation Tissue Ablation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current medical procedures for tissue ablation, such as cryosurgery and thermal methods, face challenges in controlling the extent of tissue damage due to blood flow and temperature distribution, while electrical methods like electrochemotherapy require chemical agents and are limited by the need for reversible electroporation to avoid cell death.
Innovation Solution
The use of irreversible electroporation, where electrical pulses are applied to cause irreversible permeabilization of cell membranes, leading to cell death without thermal damage, allowing for controlled tissue ablation without adjuvant drugs or chemicals.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Manufacturing precision
If thermal methods (RF ablation, focused ultrasound) are used to ablate tissue, then tissue destruction is achieved through heating, but the extent of treated area is difficult to control due to blood circulation effects on temperature distribution
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces thermal-based tissue ablation (RF heating, focused ultrasound) with electrical field-based irreversible electroporation. This substitution eliminates the harmful thermal spread caused by blood circulation while achieving controlled tissue destruction through electric pulse-induced membrane permeabilization, directly resolving the contradiction between achieving tissue destruction and controlling the treated area extent.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the fundamental parameter from temperature control to electric field parameter control (voltage, pulse duration, waveform). By using controlled electric pulses with specific parameters (e.g., 100-2000 V/cm, pulse widths of 10 microseconds to 10 seconds), the treatment zone can be precisely defined by electrode placement and electrical parameters, eliminating the uncontrolled thermal spread that occurs with thermal methods.
2Ease of operation
If chemical agents (ethanol injection) are used for tissue ablation, then the technique is easy to apply, but the affected area cannot be controlled due to local blood flow and transport of chemical species
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces chemical-based ablation (ethanol injection) with electrical field-based irreversible electroporation. This substitution eliminates the uncontrolled chemical transport by blood flow while maintaining ease of application through percutaneous electrode insertion and controlled pulse delivery, achieving both ease of operation and precise spatial control of the treated area.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses electric field as an intermediary to achieve tissue ablation without relying on chemical agents. The electric pulses serve as the mediator that directly causes cell membrane permeabilization and tissue destruction, eliminating the need for chemical transport through blood flow and enabling precise control of the affected area through electrode placement and pulse parameters.
3Reliability
If reversible electroporation is used in electrochemotherapy, then cell membrane permeabilization is achieved without cell death, but chemical agents and adjuvant drugs are required
Solution Approach 1:
The patent inverts the approach of electrochemotherapy by using irreversible electroporation instead of reversible electroporation. While electrochemotherapy uses reversible electroporation to facilitate drug entry without killing cells, this patent directly applies irreversible electroporation to kill cells through membrane permeabilization, eliminating the need for chemical agents and adjuvant drugs while achieving reliable tissue ablation.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts and removes the requirement for chemical agents and adjuvant drugs from the electroporation-based treatment. By using irreversible electroporation alone to directly cause cell death through membrane permeabilization, the patent eliminates the need for the chemical component that is essential in electrochemotherapy, simplifying the treatment protocol while maintaining reliability.
4Object-affected harmful factors
If high voltage electrical pulses are applied to cause irreversible electroporation, then tissue ablation is achieved without thermal damage, but precise control of pulse parameters is required
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces thermal-based tissue ablation with electrical field-based irreversible electroporation, which inherently avoids thermal damage. The electric pulses with controlled parameters (voltage, duration, waveform) directly cause membrane permeabilization and cell death without significant heating, achieving tissue ablation with avoidance of thermal damage while the pulse parameter control is managed through specialized electrical equipment.
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
This method effectively ablates undesirable tissue with precise control over the extent of electroporation, achieving results comparable to other minimally invasive techniques like cryosurgery without inducing thermal damage or requiring chemical agents.
Implementation Method 1
irreversible electroporation, where electrical pulses are applied to cause irreversible permeabilization of cell membranes, leading to cell death without thermal damage
Data Source
AI summary
A new method for the ablation of undesirable tissue such as cells of a cancerous or non-cancerous tumor is disclosed. It involves the placement of electrodes into or near the vicinity of the undesirable tissue through the application of electrical pulses causing irreversible electroporation of the cells throughout the entire area of the undesirable tissue. The electric pulses irreversibly permeate the cell membranes, thereby invoking cell death. The irreversibly permeabilized cells are left in situ and are removed by the body immune system. The amount of tissue ablation achievable through the use of irreversible electroporation without inducing thermal damage is considerable.