Leadless Pacemaker with Imageable Electrode for Left Ventricle Pacing

Resolve Bottlenecks,
Find Innovative Solutions
Generate Solutions

Solution Overview

Problem

Current implantable medical devices often fail to adequately address cardiac conduction diseases and abnormalities, particularly in patients with AV dyssynchrony or tachycardia, as they lack the capability for dual or triple chamber sensing and pacing functions.

Innovation Solution

An implantable medical device with a tissue-piercing electrode made of imageable material, capable of delivering cardiac therapy and sensing electrical activity in the left ventricular myocardium, is implanted through the right atrium or coronary sinus, providing single or multiple chamber pacing, atrioventricular synchronous pacing, and tachycardia-related therapy.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Ease of operation

If a leadless pacemaker is implanted entirely within the heart to eliminate transvenous leads, then ease of operation is improved, but device complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveease of operationVSAvoiddevice complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent combines multiple functions (pacemaker, ICD, CRT capabilities) into a single leadless device that is implanted entirely within the heart, eliminating the need for separate transvenous leads and multiple implantation procedures

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

2Reliability

If dual or triple chamber sensing and pacing functions are added to address cardiac conduction diseases, then reliability is improved, but device complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
ImprovereliabilityVSAvoiddevice complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The leadless pacemaker is designed with universal multi-chamber sensing and pacing capabilities (single, dual, or triple chamber) that can be configured based on patient-specific cardiac conduction diseases, allowing one device to address multiple clinical scenarios

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

3Measurement precision

If imageable material is used in the tissue-piercing electrode to enable accurate positioning, then measurement precision is improved, but device complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvemeasurement precisionVSAvoiddevice complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The tissue-piercing electrode incorporates imageable material that allows it to be visualized during implantation procedures, enabling accurate positioning within the heart chambers through imaging guidance

Inventive Principle:
Principle #32Color changes

Data Source

PatentEP3897815B1Implantable medical device delivery for cardiac therapy
Publication Date: 2024.10.30 MEDTRONIC INC
  • EP3897815B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP3897815B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP3897815B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

Various techniques include advancing an implantable medical device comprising a tissue-piercing electrode toward the triangle of Koch region of the right atrium or through the coronary sinus to deliver cardiac therapy to or sense electrical activity of the left ventricle in the basal region, septal region, or basal-septal region of the left ventricular myocardium of a patient's heart. The tissue-piercing electrode may include an imageable material. The implantable medical device may include an imageable member made of an imageable material coupled to a housing or a lead of the implantable medical device. Image information representing the patient's heart and the imageable material may be acquired using two-dimensional imaging. Orientation information representing the implantable medical device may be generated based on the acquired image information.