Nested Sheath Retrieval for Uncollapsed Vena Cava Filters
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current vascular filters face challenges in retrieval when embolic material captures the filter in an uncollapsed state, preventing full collapse and withdrawal, which can lead to exposure and potential damage or emboli release, especially in situations where the filter becomes lodged.
Innovation Solution
A method involving a catheter with a concentric outer sheath for deploying and retrieving a vena cava filter, where an alternative retrieval approach is used by severing the catheter and employing a larger introducer sheath to facilitate the capture and removal of an uncollapsed filter via a second sheath, ensuring safe extraction without damaging the vessel.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a standard retrieval procedure is used to withdraw a temporary vena cava filter, then the filter can be removed from the patient, but if the filter is captured in an uncollapsed state by embolic material, the filter cannot be fully collapsed and withdrawn, leading to potential damage or emboli release
Solution Approach 1:
A second sheath is introduced through the first sheath to capture and retrieve the uncollapsed filter. The nested sheath configuration allows the inner sheath to envelop the filter while the outer sheath provides structural support and access to the vasculature, enabling safe retrieval of filters that cannot be collapsed through standard procedures
Solution Approach 2:
The second sheath acts as an intermediary device between the uncollapsed filter and the extraction path. By positioning the second sheath around the filter, it mediates the retrieval process by providing a protective enclosure that allows the filter to be withdrawn without releasing emboli or causing vascular damage
2Reliability
If a larger introducer sheath is used to facilitate capture and removal of an uncollapsed filter, then safe extraction is enabled, but the complexity of the retrieval procedure increases
Solution Approach 1:
The retrieval system is segmented into multiple functional components: a first sheath for vascular access and filter deployment, and a second sheath for filter capture and retrieval. This segmentation allows each component to perform its specific function independently, making the complex retrieval procedure more manageable and systematic
Data Source
AI summary
A temporary vena cava filter retrieval apparatus includes an introducer sheath for establishing access into a vessel via a patient access site and a retrieval sheath having a diameter sufficiently small to pass through the introducer sheath and sufficiently large to accommodate a partially or fully uncollapsed filter.