Single or Double Lumen Blood Treatment with Decoupled Flow Rates
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional extracorporeal blood treatment systems require high blood flow rates to achieve sufficient clearance of waste molecules and fluids, necessitating larger vascular access needles or lumens, which can be uncomfortable and invasive for patients.
Innovation Solution
A method and system that decouples the flow rates of blood withdrawal, treatment processing, and infusion by using a batch processing approach, allowing for smaller lumens and lower withdrawal/infusion rates while achieving efficient treatment through higher processing rates within a recirculating blood processing loop.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If high blood flow rates are used to achieve sufficient clearance of waste molecules and fluids, then treatment effectiveness is improved, but vascular access needle size must be larger which increases patient discomfort and invasiveness
Solution Approach 1:
The blood flow system is segmented into three independent flow paths with separate flow rates: (1) blood withdrawal flow rate through first conduit, (2) treatment processing flow rate through extracorporeal device, and (3) blood infusion flow rate through second conduit. This segmentation allows each flow rate to be optimized independently, enabling high treatment effectiveness without requiring large vascular access needles.
Solution Approach 2:
A blood chamber serves as an intermediary component that receives withdrawn blood, facilitates treatment processing at high flow rates, and then returns treated blood to the patient. This intermediary allows decoupling of the treatment flow rate from the vascular access flow rates, enabling efficient treatment without large needle lumens.
2Productivity
If high blood flow rates are used to achieve sufficient clearance of waste molecules and fluids, then treatment effectiveness is improved, but larger vascular access needles or lumens are required which increases procedure invasiveness
Solution Approach 1:
The system divides the blood flow into separate segments with independent control: withdrawal flow through first conduit, treatment flow through extracorporeal device, and infusion flow through second conduit. Each segment can be optimized independently, allowing use of small-gauge needles while maintaining high treatment effectiveness.
Solution Approach 2:
The blood chamber acts as an intermediary that enables high treatment flow rates without requiring proportionally large vascular access lumens. The chamber receives blood at one flow rate and returns it at another flow rate, decoupling the requirements for vascular access size from treatment effectiveness.
3Productivity
If conventional continuous blood treatment methods are used, then treatment can be performed, but the flow rates of blood withdrawal, treatment processing, and infusion are coupled which limits optimization flexibility
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments the blood flow into three independently controllable flow paths: (1) blood withdrawal at first flow rate through first conduit, (2) treatment processing at second flow rate through extracorporeal device, and (3) blood infusion at third flow rate through second conduit. This segmentation provides complete decoupling of flow rates, enabling independent optimization of each parameter for maximum treatment effectiveness.
Solution Approach 2:
The system enables dynamic adjustment of each flow rate independently through separate control mechanisms. The first, second, and third flow rates can be varied dynamically during treatment to optimize clearance efficiency while adapting to patient conditions, providing greater flexibility than conventional coupled systems.
Data Source
AI summary
The disclosure provides methods and systems to improve the extracorporeal processing and treatment of blood.