Tissue Scaffold Implant with Lateral Anchor for Stenotic Airway
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current treatments for airway stenosis, such as balloon dilation and laryngotracheal reconstruction, come with complications like donor site morbidity, significant surgical expertise requirements, and increased healthcare costs due to the need for rib cartilage harvesting and complex geometric carving.
Innovation Solution
A tissue scaffold implant with a bridge structure and lateral anchor, made from bioacceptable materials like polycaprolactone, that can be tailored to fit the stenotic lumen, eliminating the need for rib cartilage harvesting and allowing for optimized graft sizing and placement.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If rib cartilage harvesting and complex geometric carving are used for laryngotracheal reconstruction, then the airway stenosis can be corrected, but donor site morbidity, significant surgical expertise requirements, and increased healthcare costs occur
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the functional requirement of cartilage grafting from the traditional procedure by using a prefabricated scaffold that mimics cartilage structure and function without requiring actual cartilage harvest. The scaffold is inserted into the stenotic airway to provide structural support and facilitate healing, eliminating the need for donor site morbidity while maintaining the therapeutic effect.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the material parameter from biological cartilage tissue to synthetic or bioengineered scaffold material. This parameter change allows the graft to be prefabricated with precise geometric dimensions before implantation, eliminating the need for complex intraoperative carving while maintaining the structural integrity and biomechanical properties needed for airway reconstruction.
2Reliability
If complex geometric carving of cartilage grafts is performed intraoperatively, then the airway can be reconstructed, but significant surgical expertise and operating room time are required
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by prefabricating the cartilage-like scaffold with precise geometric dimensions before the surgical procedure. The scaffold is manufactured in advance with the exact shape and size needed for the specific airway defect, eliminating the need for complex intraoperative carving and allowing the surgeon to simply insert the pre-formed graft during the procedure.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a copy of the desired cartilage graft geometry through prefabrication. Instead of carving the final shape during surgery, a precise replica or model of the required graft geometry is manufactured in advance, allowing for optimization and customization without consuming valuable operating room time.
3Ease of manufacture
If cartilage grafts are harvested and carved intraoperatively, then the procedure can be performed, but there is no ability to gauge if alternative width grafts would be better suited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces dynamics by providing a system where multiple scaffold sizes and configurations are available for selection. The surgeon can choose from various pre-fabricated graft dimensions and adjust the selection based on intraoperative findings, allowing for optimal sizing that adapts to the specific patient anatomy and defect characteristics rather than being committed to a single harvested graft size.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent applies universality by creating a family of standardized scaffold designs that can accommodate various airway defect sizes and locations. The prefabricated scaffolds are designed to be universally applicable across different patient populations and stenosis severities, providing versatility in graft sizing and configuration while maintaining ease of implantation through a standardized insertion procedure.
Data Source
AI summary
A tissue scaffold implant for expanding a stenotic lumen is provided that includes a bridge structure defining at least two angled sides and a lateral anchor integrally formed with the bridge structure. The lateral anchor is configured to be disposed against at least a portion of an external circumference of the stenotic lumen in a region near an opening formed in the stenotic lumen. At least two seat regions are defined between the at least two angled sides of the bridge structure and the lateral anchor. The at least two seat regions are configured to be received within and support the opening within the stenotic lumen, and the bridge structure and lateral anchor comprise a bioacceptable material.