Wire Annuloplasty Ring Mitral Valve Leaflet Coaptation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Mitral valve regurgitation occurs due to incomplete coaptation of valve leaflets, leading to reduced ejection volume and increased heart workload, with existing treatments often requiring invasive open-heart surgery and lengthy recovery times.
Innovation Solution
The use of annuloplasty devices comprising a wire and anchors that exert a radially inward force on the mitral valve leaflets to improve coaptation, reducing regurgitation through minimally invasive procedures.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional open-heart surgery is used to repair mitral valve, then reliable valve repair can be achieved, but patient recovery time is lengthy and procedure complexity is high
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces traditional surgical mechanical intervention (open-heart surgery with surgical instruments) with a minimally invasive delivery system that deploys an annuloplasty device through catheter-based access. The device is delivered via a delivery catheter through vascular access, avoiding open surgery while achieving similar therapeutic effects through mechanical compression and anatomical repositioning of the mitral valve annulus.
Solution Approach 2:
The annuloplasty device incorporates a flexible compression element that can be delivered in a compressed state through the delivery catheter and then expanded or activated at the target site. This flexible structure allows the device to conform to the mitral valve annulus geometry while providing the necessary mechanical support and compression to improve valve function.
2Reliability
If traditional open-heart surgery is used for mitral valve repair, then effective treatment can be achieved, but procedure complexity and invasiveness increase
Solution Approach 1:
The treatment system is divided into separate functional components: a delivery catheter for minimally invasive access, an annuloplasty device with distinct compression elements, and deployment mechanisms. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized independently and simplifies the overall procedure by enabling staged deployment and adjustment.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a delivery catheter as an intermediary device that facilitates the minimally invasive delivery of the annuloplasty device to the mitral valve annulus. This intermediary structure enables access to the heart through vascular pathways without requiring open surgical incisions, thereby reducing procedure complexity and patient trauma.
3Stability of the object's composition
If the wire is made rigid to maintain annulus shape, then structural stability is improved, but the ability to conform to patient-specific anatomy is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The wire structure is designed with dynamic characteristics, allowing it to transition from a flexible delivery state to a stabilized functional state. The wire can be delivered in a flexible, conformable state that adapts to the patient-specific anatomy of the mitral valve annulus, then activated or tensioned to provide the necessary structural stability for valve support.
Solution Approach 2:
The physical parameters of the wire (such as rigidity, tension, or shape) are changed during the deployment process. The wire may be delivered in a low-rigidity state to conform to the annulus geometry, then its mechanical properties are altered through tensioning, shaping, or activation mechanisms to provide the required structural stability for maintaining annulus shape and supporting valve function.
Data Source
AI summary
The disclosure describes an annuloplasty device that includes a wire configured to extend around at least part of an annulus of a cardiac or vascular valve, such as at least partially around a circumference of the annulus, and a plurality of anchors. The anchors of the plurality of anchors are configured to engage the wire and anchor the wire to the annulus. The wire is configured to urge at least some anchors of the plurality of anchors toward each other in a radially inward direction to decrease a distance between valve leaflets that extend from the annulus.