Flexible Spinal Tissue Modification Device with Anchored Movable Blades
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current surgical treatments for spinal stenosis, such as laminectomy and spinal fusion, are invasive and lead to long-term morbidity and loss of spinal function, as they require significant removal of vertebral bone and joint structures, causing instability and limiting patient mobility.
Innovation Solution
A minimally invasive tissue modification device with an elongate, flexible body and movable blades that can be anchored and tensioned to modify target tissues without extending significantly beyond the treatment area, thereby avoiding damage to non-target tissues and reducing the need for spinal fusion.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If laminectomy and spinal fusion are performed to treat spinal stenosis, then neural and neurovascular impingement is relieved, but significant vertebral bone and joint structures are removed causing spinal instability and loss of function
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts only the necessary portion of tissue (ligamentum flavum or disc material) that is causing impingement, rather than removing entire vertebral structures. The device allows targeted removal of compressive tissue while preserving the surrounding bony architecture and joint structures, thereby relieving neural impingement while maintaining spinal stability.
Solution Approach 2:
The device applies tissue modification locally at the site of impingement rather than globally across the vertebral structure. By concentrating the therapeutic effect only where needed (at the level of neural compression), the device preserves the integrity and function of adjacent spinal structures, avoiding the widespread damage caused by laminectomy and fusion.
2Ease of operation
If extensive bone and joint removal is performed to access target tissue, then tissue modification is achieved, but patient mobility is limited and long-term morbidity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The device employs a nested structure where the cutting element is housed within a protective sheath that can be advanced through the spinal canal. The sheath itself is introduced through a minimally invasive percutaneous approach, nesting multiple functional components within each other to achieve deep tissue access without extensive surgical exposure.
Solution Approach 2:
The device utilizes a flexible elongate body or sheath that can navigate the curved anatomy of the spinal canal. This flexible structure allows the device to be inserted through small incisions and conform to the spinal geometry, providing access to target tissue without requiring large surgical openings or extensive dissection.
3Manufacturing precision
If a rigid cutting device is used to modify tissue, then precise cutting is achieved, but damage to surrounding non-target tissues occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The device introduces an intermediary protective sheath or barrier between the cutting element and surrounding non-target tissues. This intermediary structure allows the cutting action to be precisely directed at the target tissue while the sheath protects adjacent neural and vascular structures from accidental injury.
Solution Approach 2:
The cutting element is designed to be movable relative to the device body, allowing it to be deployed only when needed and retracted when not in use. This dynamic configuration enables precise cutting action at the target site while minimizing the time and space the cutting element occupies, thereby reducing the risk of damage to surrounding tissues.
Data Source
AI summary
A device for modifying one or more tissues in a patient's spine may include: an elongate, at least partially flexible body having a proximal portion and a distal portion, wherein at least the distal portion has dimensions that allow it to be passed into an epidural space and between target and non-target tissues of the spine; at least one movable blade disposed along one side of the elongate body; at least one actuator coupled with the at least one blade and disposed at or near the proximal or distal portion of the body for moving the blade(s) to modify one or more target tissues, wherein the at least one actuator is configured to move the blade(s) without significantly translating the elongate body proximally or distally; and means at or near the proximal and distal portions of the elongate body for facilitating application of at least one of anchoring force and tensioning force to the body to urge the at least one blade against the target tissue.