Mobile Balloon Support Catheter for Tortuous Stenosis Navigation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing endovascular catheters face challenges in providing maximum backup support to guidewires, especially in anatomically difficult regions with long calcified vascular stenoses, significant tortuosity, chronic blockages, and vascular bifurcation disorders, while also requiring improved pushability, crossability, and trackability.
Innovation Solution
Development of an endovascular mobile balloon catheter with a movable balloon at its distal end, controlled by external mobile rings and an inner wire circuit, allowing the balloon to anchor within the vessel and translate propulsion force closer to the tip for enhanced pushability, crossability, and trackability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a traditional endovascular catheter is used, then the structure is simple and easy to manufacture, but the backup support to guidewire is insufficient in anatomically difficult regions
Solution Approach 1:
The balloon is made mobile along the catheter body through a wire circuit mechanism connected to a control handle. This allows the balloon to dynamically reposition itself to provide backup support at different locations, transforming a static catheter structure into a dynamic one that can adapt to various anatomical challenges while maintaining manageable complexity
Solution Approach 2:
A wire circuit acts as an intermediary mechanism between the control handle and the balloon, enabling remote control of balloon positioning. This intermediary system allows complex balloon repositioning functionality to be achieved through a relatively simple wire-based transmission mechanism that doesn't significantly increase overall device complexity
2Force
If the balloon is fixed at the distal end of the catheter, then the structure is simple, but the pushability and propulsion force transmission is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The balloon transitions from a fixed position to a mobile one that can be repositioned along the catheter body. This dynamic positioning capability allows the balloon to be placed optimally for force transmission in different anatomical scenarios, enhancing propulsion force effectiveness while the wire circuit mechanism keeps the added complexity manageable
Solution Approach 2:
The balloon can be pre-positioned along the catheter body before use, allowing optimal placement for force transmission to be established in advance. This preliminary positioning capability enables better force transmission without requiring complex real-time adjustment mechanisms during the procedure
3Force
If the catheter is rigid to provide backup support, then the pushability improves, but the trackability through tortuous vasculature deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The catheter is divided into functional segments: a more rigid proximal portion for force transmission and backup support, and a more flexible distal portion for navigating tortuous vasculature. This segmentation allows the catheter to simultaneously achieve both pushability and trackability by having different mechanical properties in different regions
Solution Approach 2:
Different portions of the catheter have different mechanical qualities - the proximal section is designed with higher rigidity for force transmission while the distal section has higher flexibility for tracking. This local differentiation of mechanical properties allows the single catheter to satisfy both contradictory requirements of pushability and trackability
4Ease of operation
If the balloon is mobile and can reposition, then the crossability and navigation capability improves, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
A wire circuit serves as an intermediary mechanism to control balloon movement, allowing complex repositioning functionality to be achieved through a relatively simple wire-based system. This intermediary approach enables crossability improvements without proportionally increasing overall device complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The balloon can be repositioned by the operator through manual control of the wire circuit mechanism, allowing the device to serve itself in terms of positioning without requiring additional active propulsion systems or complex automated mechanisms. This self-service capability improves crossability while keeping the mechanism relatively simple
Data Source
AI summary
The invention refers to endovascular catheters and methods useful to endovascular surgery. In particular, it refers to support catheters with balloons that are used for the placement or the forwarding of the guidewire through demanding tortuosity and important vascular stenoses in cases where the guidewire needs the best possible backup support of the catheter. This is achieved with the development of an endovascular support catheter (1) with a mobile balloon (22), which has the ability to move along the body of the catheter (2), at its distal part. The movement of the balloon (22) is achieved with the use of two mobile external rings (13) and (18), one inner wire circuit (23), (24), and one control handle (13) (17) which is found at the proximal end of the device (1). The mobile balloon allows the catheter to move inside the vessel even when it is inflated and basically anchored within the vessel.