Multi-Sensor Catheter for Hydrocephalus Shunt Diagnosis
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Current catheter flow sensors are inadequate for diagnosing shunt malfunction in hydrocephalus, as they often rely on single sensor types and may not provide sufficient data on the multiple processes involved in hydrodynamics, and existing technologies face challenges with hermetic packaging and reduced resolution in biological environments.
Innovation Solution
A multi-sensor system integrated into a flexible catheter with sensors on a Parylene C substrate, including flow, pressure, and composition sensors, which use electrochemical impedance transduction and wireless communication to monitor hydrodynamic variables like intracranial pressure, flow rate, and patency, allowing for non-invasive and continuous monitoring.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If single sensor types are used in catheters, then device complexity is reduced, but measurement precision and diagnostic reliability are insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple sensor types (pressure sensors, flow sensors, temperature sensors, and impedance sensors) into a single integrated catheter system. This merging of sensors allows comprehensive monitoring of hydrodynamic variables simultaneously, improving diagnostic accuracy while maintaining manageable device complexity through unified design and signal processing.
Solution Approach 2:
The catheter system is designed with multi-functional sensors that can detect multiple parameters (pressure, flow, temperature, impedance) using a single integrated platform. This multi-functionality approach enables comprehensive shunt monitoring without requiring separate catheters for each measurement type, thereby improving measurement precision without proportionally increasing device complexity.
2Reliability
If hermetic packaging is implemented to protect sensors in biological environments, then sensor reliability is improved, but manufacturing complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs thin-film encapsulation layers (such as parylene coatings) that provide hermetic protection to the sensors while maintaining flexibility and biocompatibility. This thin-film approach protects sensors from biological environments without requiring bulky hermetic packaging, thereby improving sensor reliability while keeping manufacturing complexity and device size manageable.
3Loss of information
If multiple sensors are integrated into the catheter, then diagnostic information completeness is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The catheter is divided into multiple functional segments, each containing specific sensor types positioned at appropriate locations. Pressure sensors are placed at different depths, flow sensors are positioned in the lumen, and temperature/impedance sensors are distributed along the catheter. This segmentation allows comprehensive hydrodynamic monitoring while organizing complexity into manageable functional modules.
Solution Approach 2:
The integrated multi-sensor system incorporates real-time signal processing and feedback mechanisms that correlate data from multiple sensors to distinguish between different shunt failure modes. The system provides feedback on flow rate, pressure differential, temperature changes, and impedance variations, enabling comprehensive diagnostic information while using algorithmic processing to manage the complexity of multiple simultaneous measurements.
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
The multi-sensor system provides accurate, continuous, and timely diagnosis of catheter status, enabling early intervention in hydrocephalus patients by offering comprehensive data on shunt efficacy and patency, with sensitivity maintained under various conditions including flow, temperature, and sterilization.
Implementation Method 1
sensors that sense multiple characteristics of material flowing within the lumen, including at least two of the following: flow rate, pressure, and composition of the material
Data Source
AI summary
A multi-sensor system may include a catheter that has lumen, is flexible, is made of a polymer, and has a circular cross section that has an outer diameter of no more than 0.5 cm; and one or more sensors that sense multiple characteristics of material flowing within the lumen, including at least two of the following: flow rate, pressure, and composition of the material. A multi-sensor system may include a catheter that has lumen, is flexible, is made of a polymer, and has a circular cross section that has an outer diameter of no more than 0.5 cm; and one or more sensors that sense multiple characteristics of material flowing within the lumen, including at least two of the following: flow rate, pressure, and composition of the material.