Rotatable Sleeve-and-Guide Biopsy Instrument for Multiple Tissue Samples
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Solution Overview
Problem
Biopsy procedures are lengthy and challenging when multiple tissue samples are necessary, especially from deep or hard-to-reach locations within the body, as existing instruments require withdrawal and reintroduction for each sample.
Innovation Solution
A medical instrument with a sleeve and inner guide that allows for slidable and rotatable movement, featuring cavities and apertures for cutting and storing multiple tissue samples without complete withdrawal, utilizing materials like Nitinol, stainless steel, or polymers for flexibility and sharp edges for cutting.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If traditional biopsy instruments are used to collect multiple tissue samples, then each sample can be obtained, but the procedure becomes lengthy and time-consuming due to repeated withdrawal and reintroduction of the instrument
Solution Approach 1:
The instrument is divided into multiple functional components: a sleeve with multiple apertures and an inner guide with multiple cavities. This segmentation allows each component to perform specific functions - the sleeve provides structural support and positioning while the inner guide handles tissue sampling. The divided structure enables multiple samples to be collected simultaneously through different apertures and cavities without repeated instrument withdrawal.
Solution Approach 2:
The inner guide is nested within the sleeve, with the inner guide sliding along the lumen of the sleeve. This nested configuration allows the inner guide to be advanced and rotated independently within the sleeve structure. The cavities of the inner guide align with the apertures of the sleeve to receive tissue samples, enabling multiple samples to be collected in a single instrument placement without repeated withdrawal and reintroduction.
2Productivity
If the instrument is designed with multiple cavities and apertures for simultaneous sampling, then multiple tissue samples can be retrieved in one procedure, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The inner guide serves multiple functions: it acts as a cutting element with sharp edges, a sampling container with cavities, and a positioning mechanism that slides and rotates within the sleeve. The sleeve provides both structural support and an aperture system for tissue entry. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate components for each function, thereby managing device complexity while enabling multiple sample collection.
Solution Approach 2:
The inner guide is designed to be both slidable along the lumen of the sleeve and rotatable relative to the sleeve. This dynamic capability allows the inner guide to be positioned at different longitudinal locations and rotated to align different cavities with the apertures. The dynamic design enables flexible adaptation to different tissue locations and sampling requirements without requiring multiple fixed-position instruments, thus managing complexity through functional versatility.
3Manufacturing precision
If sharp edges are incorporated in the cavities and apertures for cutting tissue, then tissue sampling effectiveness is improved, but tissue trauma increases
Solution Approach 1:
Sharp edges are localized specifically to the cutting surfaces where tissue interaction occurs, while the rest of the instrument maintains smooth, atraumatic surfaces. The inner guide cavities and sleeve apertures have sharp edges only at the interfaces that contact and cut tissue, minimizing the overall surface area with sharp features. This localized sharpness provides effective cutting while reducing diffuse tissue trauma throughout the instrument structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The sharp edges that cause potential tissue trauma are converted into beneficial cutting elements by precisely positioning them only where tissue needs to be sampled. The sharp edges of the inner guide cavities and sleeve apertures are designed to cut tissue cleanly during controlled advancement, transforming what could be harmful into a controlled, beneficial cutting action that minimizes overall tissue damage while maintaining sampling effectiveness.
Data Source
AI summary
Medical systems and related methods useful for the retrieval of multiple tissue samples are described. The system may include a sleeve defining a lumen and an aperture proximate a distal end of the sleeve, an inner guide slidable along the lumen of the sleeve and rotatable relative to the sleeve via a handle at a proximal end of the inner guide. A distal end of the inner guide may have a closed atraumatic tip. The inner guide may define at least two cavities each having a shape corresponding to the aperture of the sleeve. The inner guide may be rotatable relative to the sleeve to align one of the at least two cavities with the sleeve to retrieve a tissue sample by proximal or distal movement of the inner guide relative to the sleeve.