Isolation Catheter Lung Compartment Assessment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current diagnostic and treatment methods for lung diseases, such as COPD and lung cancer, lack the ability to specifically target and assess individual lung compartments, leading to ineffective treatment delivery and increased side effects due to non-localized administration of therapeutic agents.
Innovation Solution
A system and method using an isolation catheter to access and isolate lung compartments, delivering oxygen-enriched gas for assessment and therapeutic agents directly to targeted compartments, with monitoring of blood oxygen saturation and carbon dioxide levels to determine compartment functionality and treat diseased areas effectively.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If conventional imaging or functional testing is used, then lung disease diagnosis is performed, but individual lung compartment functionality cannot be differentiated or assessed
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies segmentation by dividing the lung into individual compartments (lobes, segments, or subsegments) and assessing each compartment's functionality separately using isolation catheters. This allows differentiation of diseased from healthy compartments, enabling targeted treatment decisions rather than treating the entire lung uniformly.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses an isolation catheter as an intermediary device that can be introduced through the bronchial tree to reach and isolate specific lung compartments. The catheter serves as a mediator between the diagnostic system and the target compartment, enabling localized assessment without requiring complex surgical access.
2Quantity of substance
If systemic or regional chemotherapy is administered, then cancer treatment is provided, but therapeutic agents are not delivered directly to diseased portions of the lung
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by delivering therapeutic agents directly to the isolated diseased lung compartment rather than administering systemically or regionally. This ensures the treatment is concentrated where needed (high local quality) while minimizing exposure to healthy tissues, thereby reducing side effects and improving therapeutic efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts the therapeutic agent delivery from the systemic or regional circulation and directs it specifically to the isolated diseased compartment through the catheter. This separation allows precise control of where the therapeutic agent is delivered, eliminating the problem of non-targeted distribution.
3Manufacturing precision
If conventional lung reduction surgery is performed, then diseased lung portions are resected, but relatively healthy lung tissue is unintentionally removed
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by first isolating the diseased lung compartment with the catheter before administering any therapeutic agent or performing resection. This preliminary isolation step allows precise identification of the target compartment, ensuring that subsequent treatment or surgery is limited to the diseased area and spares healthy tissue.
4Loss of information
If functional testing is performed on the lungs as a whole, then overall lung function is measured, but information about individual compartment functionality is not provided
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the lung function assessment into individual compartments by using isolation catheters to test each compartment separately. This segmentation recovers the compartment-specific functional information that is lost in whole-lung testing, allowing clinicians to identify which specific compartments are diseased and require treatment.
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 precise assessment and targeted treatment of individual lung compartments, reducing side effects by ensuring therapeutic agents are delivered only to affected areas, improving treatment efficacy and minimizing trauma to healthy tissue.
Implementation Method 1
delivering an oxygen-enriched breathing gas to a lung compartment over a measurement period to elevate the oxygen level therein
Implementation Method 2
monitoring blood oxygen saturation, exhaled carbon dioxide concentration, or any combination thereof to detect changes therein over the measurement period
Data Source
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AI summary
Methods and systems for isolating, assessing and treating lung compartments are disclosed. One or more lung compartments are accessed through an isolation catheter, oxygen rich gas is delivered to the compartments, and blood oxygen or exhaled carbon dioxide are monitored to assess lung compartment function. Diseased lung compartments may be treated using therapeutic agents delivered to the diseased compartments through the isolation catheter. Therapeutic agents include carbon monoxide, radioactive agents, chemotherapeutic agents or angiogenesis inhibitors and angiocidal agents.