Needle Tip Pressure Sensing for Tissue Resistance Feedback
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current medical procedures for inserting penetrating devices, such as needles, into specific tissues or regions are challenging due to the lack of direct visual observation, leading to complications like arterial thrombosis, infection, and misidentification of arteries as veins, especially in procedures like arterial cannulation, central venous catheterization, and epidural placement, particularly in obese patients or those with anatomical variations.
Innovation Solution
Incorporating a component within the medical device that responds to pressure changes at the tip, such as a membrane or expanding element, to sense resistance and control advancement, allowing for real-time feedback to the operator or machine controller to ensure accurate placement and prevent further penetration into low resistance areas.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If direct visual observation is used to guide needle placement, then placement precision is improved, but the procedure becomes impossible in most cases due to anatomical constraints
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces direct visual observation with pressure sensing mechanisms. Pressure sensors detect resistance changes as the needle advances through tissues, providing tactile feedback that substitutes for visual guidance. This allows precise needle placement in locations where direct visualization is impossible, such as deep arterial sites or central veins.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces pressure sensors as an intermediary between the needle and tissue. These sensors detect pressure changes and resistance patterns, translating physical interactions into measurable signals that guide needle placement. This intermediary system enables precise positioning without requiring direct visual access to the target site.
2Reliability
If multiple puncture attempts are made to achieve proper needle placement, then placement success is improved, but the risk of complications increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements real-time pressure feedback during needle advancement. Pressure sensors continuously monitor resistance changes, providing immediate feedback to the operator about tissue penetration status. This feedback loop allows single-attempt successful placement by guiding the needle to the correct depth and location, eliminating the need for repeated punctures that increase complication risks.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent performs preliminary pressure mapping and resistance assessment before final needle placement. By sensing pressure patterns and tissue resistance in advance, the system identifies the optimal insertion point and depth, allowing the operator to place the needle correctly on the first attempt without requiring multiple corrective punctures.
3Ease of operation
If anatomical landmarks are used to guide needle insertion, then procedure simplicity is improved, but accuracy deteriorates due to anatomical variations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces reliance on external anatomical landmarks with internal pressure sensing. Instead of using visible surface landmarks that vary with anatomy, the system uses pressure sensors to detect internal tissue resistance patterns and pressure changes that occur during needle advancement. This substitution provides accurate guidance that adapts to individual anatomical variations while maintaining procedural simplicity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the guidance parameter from external anatomical landmarks to internal pressure characteristics. By monitoring pressure changes, resistance patterns, and force requirements during needle advancement, the system adapts to each patient's unique anatomy. This parameter change allows the same simple procedure to achieve accurate placement across diverse anatomical variations.
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 solution reduces the risk of complications by providing real-time feedback on needle placement, preventing misplacement into low resistance areas like veins or the subarachnoid space, thereby minimizing risks of hemorrhage, infection, and procedural time, especially in complex anatomical conditions.
Implementation Method 1
Incorporating a component within the medical device that responds to pressure changes at the tip, such as a membrane or expanding element, to sense resistance
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus provides feedback regarding the material in which tip of the apparatus is located as the tip is advanced into matter of varying resistances. The apparatus responds to a change in pressure, force, or other parameter such that when the tip reaches matter of a certain resistance, a change in the parameter is sensed. The apparatus provides a driving force to a penetrating medical device, such as a needle, when the apparatus tip encounters material of high resistance. When the apparatus tip encounters a low resistance material, no further driving force is applied to the apparatus. An inner core may be advanced into the low resistance material for deployment of a gas or a liquid as desired.