Apparatus and method for an ultrasonic probe capable of bending with aid of a balloon
First Claim
1. An ultrasonic medical device comprising:
- a balloon catheter having a proximal end, a distal end and a longitudinal axis therebetween;
an inflation lumen located along the longitudinal axis of the balloon catheter;
a balloon supported by the balloon catheter, an inner surface of the balloon in communication with the inflation lumen; and
an ultrasonic probe located along an outside surface of the balloon catheter, the ultrasonic probe engaging an outer surface of the balloon.
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Accused Products
Abstract
The present invention provides an apparatus and a method for an ultrasonic probe capable of bending, flexing and deflecting with the aid of a balloon to remove a biological material. An ultrasonic medical device includes a balloon catheter, a balloon that is supported by the balloon catheter, an inflation lumen located along a longitudinal axis of the balloon catheter and an ultrasonic probe located along an outside surface of the balloon catheter wherein the ultrasonic probe engages an outer surface of the balloon. The ultrasonic probe is inserted through at least one engaging mechanism on an outside surface of the balloon catheter. The inflated balloon causes the ultrasonic probe to bend, allowing the ultrasonic probe to move along a bend in a vasculature and increase a surface area of the ultrasonic probe in communication with the biological material for ablation.
132 Citations
82 Claims
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1. An ultrasonic medical device comprising:
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a balloon catheter having a proximal end, a distal end and a longitudinal axis therebetween;
an inflation lumen located along the longitudinal axis of the balloon catheter;
a balloon supported by the balloon catheter, an inner surface of the balloon in communication with the inflation lumen; and
an ultrasonic probe located along an outside surface of the balloon catheter, the ultrasonic probe engaging an outer surface of the balloon. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. An ultrasonic medical device comprising:
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a balloon catheter comprising an at least one engaging mechanism located along an outside surface of the balloon catheter;
a balloon having an outer surface and an inner surface, the balloon engaging the outside surface of the balloon catheter;
an elongated ultrasonic probe extending through the at least one engaging mechanism and engaging the outer surface of the balloon; and
an inflation lumen in communication with the balloon, the inflation lumen located along the longitudinal axis of the balloon catheter. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23)
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24. A method of moving an ultrasonic probe along a bend in a vasculature to ablate an occlusion in the vasculature comprising:
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inserting the ultrasonic probe through a proximal engaging mechanism located on an outside surface of a balloon catheter;
moving the ultrasonic probe over an outer surface of a balloon supported by the balloon catheter and through a distal engaging mechanism located on the outside surface of the balloon catheter;
advancing the balloon catheter until the balloon is adjacent to the bend in the vasculature;
inflating the balloon causing the outer surface of the balloon to engage the ultrasonic probe, thereby causing the ultrasonic probe to bend between the proximal engaging mechanism and the distal engaging mechanism;
advancing the ultrasonic probe along the outer surface of the balloon to move the ultrasonic probe along the bend in the vasculature adjacent to the occlusion; and
energizing the ultrasonic probe to ablate the occlusion at the bend in the vasculature. - View Dependent Claims (25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40)
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41. A method of moving a flexible ultrasonic probe capable of having a non-linear shape along a bend within a vasculature of a body to remove a biological material comprising:
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providing a balloon catheter having a balloon in communication with an outside surface of the balloon catheter and the flexible ultrasonic probe extending along an outer surface of the balloon;
inflating the balloon to increase a surface area of the flexible ultrasonic probe in communication with the biological material;
moving the flexible ultrasonic probe along the outer surface of the balloon to move the flexible ultrasonic probe along the bend in the vasculature toward the biological material; and
activating an ultrasonic energy source to provide an ultrasonic energy to the ultrasonic probe to remove the biological material. - View Dependent Claims (42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52)
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53. A balloon catheter comprising:
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a proximal end, a distal end and a longitudinal axis therebetween;
an inflation lumen located along the longitudinal axis of the balloon catheter;
a balloon supported by the balloon catheter, an inner surface of the balloon in communication with the inflation lumen; and
a distal engaging mechanism extending from an outside surface of the distal end of the balloon catheter. - View Dependent Claims (54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 64)
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65. A balloon catheter comprising:
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a proximal end, a distal end and a longitudinal axis therebetween;
an inflation lumen located along the longitudinal axis of the balloon catheter;
a balloon supported by the balloon catheter, an inner surface of the balloon in communication with the inflation lumen; and
a channel along an outside surface of the balloon catheter. - View Dependent Claims (66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74)
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75. An ultrasonic probe comprising:
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a proximal end, a distal end and a longitudinal axis therebetween;
a proximal section located proximal to the distal end; and
a flexible section located between the distal end and the proximal section, wherein the flexible section comprises a diameter smaller than both a diameter of the proximal section of the ultrasonic probe and a diameter of the distal end of the ultrasonic probe. - View Dependent Claims (76, 77, 78, 79, 80, 81, 82)
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Specification