Mechanical Thrombectomy Relief Features for Controlled Clot Release
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing mechanical thrombectomy catheters risk embolizing clot material during insertion and retraction, leading to potential complications in the body, and existing treatments for thromboembolic disorders often require invasive surgical procedures or lytic therapy with associated risks.
Innovation Solution
A clot treatment system with a clot treatment device featuring mouths for engaging and capturing clot material, and relief features that retain and release the captured material when a threshold force is exceeded, combined with an embolic protection device to prevent further embolization, using self-expanding structures to minimize device failure.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a mechanical thrombectomy catheter with a distal element is used to capture clot material, then the ability to remove thromboembolism is improved, but the risk of embolizing clot material increases
Solution Approach 1:
The distal end of the catheter is divided into multiple functional segments: capture elements (wires, loops, or balloons) for engaging clot material, and relief features (protrusions or channels) for controlled release. This segmentation allows the device to perform both capture and safe release functions at different locations, preventing embolization while maintaining clot removal capability
Solution Approach 2:
The relief features act as intermediary structures between the capture elements and the bloodstream. These protrusions or channels serve as mediators that control the release of captured clot material, allowing it to be discharged safely into the vessel lumen rather than embolizing distally
2Productivity
If existing treatments for thromboembolic disorders are used, then clot removal is achieved, but invasive surgical procedures or lytic therapy with associated risks are required
Solution Approach 1:
The device replaces invasive surgical procedures and lytic therapy with a mechanical thrombectomy system that uses a catheter-based mechanical capture and removal mechanism. The distal element with capture elements and relief features provides a minimally invasive approach that directly removes clots through mechanical engagement rather than surgery or chemical dissolution
Solution Approach 2:
The catheter system is designed to be self-contained with all necessary functional elements (capture elements and relief features) integrated into the distal portion. The device performs the entire thrombectomy function through its own structural features without requiring external surgical intervention or pharmacological agents
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed herein are clot treatment systems including mechanical thrombectomy devices and clot treatment devices, and associated devices and methods. In some embodiments, a method of removing clot material from a blood vessel of patient includes inserting a catheter to proximate the clot material within the blood vessel while radially constraining a clot treatment device and an embolic protection device within the catheter. The method can further include moving the catheter proximally to deploy the clot treatment device at least partially distal to clot material within the blood vessel, and then moving the catheter further proximally to deploy the embolic protection device at least partially proximal to the clot material. The clot treatment device can include one or more relief features configured to release captured clot material if the force on the clot treatment device exceeds a threshold.