Vaso-occlusive Braid with Flexible Transition Section
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current vaso-occlusive devices, such as coils and stents, face challenges in precision placement and removal within vascular applications, particularly in larger aneurysms, due to their limited expandability and stiffness, which can lead to migration and increased procedural complexity.
Innovation Solution
Development of pushable and retrievable vaso-occlusive devices featuring a soft and highly expandable braid structure with a distally-open design, where the braid is attached to a central coil, allowing for precise insertion and retrieval, with features like a flexible transition section and additional filaments or adhesives to enhance pushability and reduce stiffness.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Length of moving object
If small and thin coils are used to fill aneurysms, then the device can be inserted through the catheter, but the coils slip back out of the aneurysm sack and require longer procedures
Solution Approach 1:
The braid member is designed to be dynamically expandable from a compressed delivery configuration to a deployed configuration with a larger outer diameter. This dynamic expansion allows the braid to transition from fitting within the catheter to providing sufficient bulk to prevent slippage out of the aneurysm sack, while maintaining the ability to be pushed through the catheter in its compressed state
Solution Approach 2:
The braid member undergoes a parameter change in its outer diameter between delivery and deployed states. In the delivery configuration, the outer diameter is small enough to pass through the catheter; in the deployed configuration, the outer diameter increases to provide retention within the aneurysm. This parameter change resolves the contradiction between insertability and retention
2Quantity of substance
If multiple individual coils are used to fill larger aneurysms, then the aneurysm can be adequately filled, but the procedure becomes longer and more complicated
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple braid members can be combined in a single device assembly, with each braid member capable of being pushed through the catheter independently or in sequence. This merging approach allows the operator to fill larger aneurysms more efficiently by deploying multiple filling elements through a single catheter insertion, reducing the need for repeated catheter insertions and procedural steps
Solution Approach 2:
The braid member design provides multi-functionality by serving as both the delivery vehicle and the filling element. The same braid member that is pushed through the catheter also provides the bulk material needed to fill the aneurysm, eliminating the need for separate delivery mechanisms and reducing procedural complexity
3Adaptability or versatility
If the braid is made highly expandable with great length, then it can fill larger aneurysms effectively, but it becomes difficult to push and retrieve through the catheter
Solution Approach 1:
The braid member exhibits dynamic mechanical properties, transitioning from a stiff, structured configuration during delivery to a more compliant, expandable configuration after deployment. This dynamic behavior allows the braid to be pushed through the catheter with acceptable force while still providing the expandability needed to fill larger aneurysms effectively
Solution Approach 2:
The braid member is constructed with a flexible structure that allows compression to a small diameter for catheter delivery while maintaining the capacity to expand to a large diameter for aneurysm filling. The flexible construction enables the long braid to be bent and compressed without damage, then expanded reliably at the target site
Data Source
AI summary
A vaso-occlusion system for occluding an aneurysm includes a delivery catheter having a delivery lumen extending therethrough, a pusher member at least partially extending through the delivery lumen, and a vaso-occlusive device loaded within the delivery lumen, the vaso-occlusive device comprising an expandable braid formed out of a plurality of elongate braid filaments, the elongate braid elements having respective proximal end portions that are formed into a flexible transition section having a proximal end portion attached to a distal end of the pusher member and/or to an elongate central member coupled to, and extending distally of, the pusher member.