Steerable Branch Endoluminal Prosthesis for Aortic Arch Alignment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Endovascular treatments for aortic diseases, such as aortic dissection and aneurysms, are challenging when the diseased portion is located higher up in the aorta due to the arched or curved nature of the thoracic arch and the presence of major arteries, making deployment of custom-made devices difficult.
Innovation Solution
An endoluminal prosthesis with a steerable branch is developed, featuring a tubular main graft body with stents and a deformable region that allows the branch to be flexibly oriented between retrograde and antegrade configurations, facilitating alignment with branch vessels through a balloon-assisted deployment system.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If custom-made devices with fenestrations are used to treat higher aortic diseases, then treatment coverage is improved, but deployment difficulty increases
Solution Approach 1:
The branch is designed to be movable relative to the main graft body, transitioning between retrograde and antegrade configurations. This dynamic capability allows the branch to be positioned optimally during deployment and then fixed in place, resolving the contradiction between achieving proper treatment coverage and the difficulty of deployment in complex aortic anatomies
Solution Approach 2:
The prosthesis is divided into separable components: a main graft body and a detachable branch. This segmentation allows the branch to be independently positioned and oriented relative to the main body, enabling precise alignment with branch vessels while simplifying the overall deployment process in challenging locations
2Adaptability or versatility
If the branch is made steerable to align with tortuous paths, then adaptability is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The branch incorporates a deformable region that allows it to be steered between retrograde and antegrade configurations using a balloon-assisted deployment system. This dynamic steering capability provides adaptability to tortuous aortic paths without requiring complex mechanical steering mechanisms, thus improving versatility while controlling device complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The branch's orientation is changed by inflating a balloon within the deformable region, which alters the physical state of the graft material from a constrained to an expanded state. This parameter change enables smooth transition between configurations, providing adaptability through a simple and effective mechanism rather than complex structural design
Data Source
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AI summary
An endoluminal prosthesis comprising a graft body (20) comprising a slanted proximal end (1227), and a distal end (28); a first stent positioned near the proximal end of the graft body; wherein a top longitudinal length of the graft body is longer than a bottom longitudinal length of the graft body and is configured for placement along the outer curvature of the aortic arch, wherein the bottom longitudinal length of the graft body is configured for placement along the inner curvature of the aortic arch.