AUTOMATED CATHETER LENGTH DETERMINATION FOR IMPLANTABLE FLUID DELIVERY DEVICE
First Claim
1. A method of determining a length of an implantable catheter associated with an implantable medical fluid delivery device, the method comprising:
- delivering an amount of fluid from the implantable medical fluid delivery device through the catheter;
measuring a pressure within a lumen of the catheter during the delivery of the fluid to the patient; and
calculating an estimated length of the catheter based on the measured pressure.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
Examples disclosed herein include methods and systems for automatically estimating the length of an implantable catheter by measuring the pressure decay response to pumping fluid through the catheter. The decay time for a unit fluid pressure pulse generated within the catheter is proportional to the length of the catheter, i.e. as the length of the catheter increases so does the decay time. The catheter length can therefore be estimated based on, e.g., the decay time of the pressure pulse. The estimated catheter length can also be analyzed to determine if it is representative of the actual length of the catheter, or, e.g., is affected by one or more catheter malfunctions including cuts and occlusions. Systems for automatically estimating catheter length include an implantable catheter, a pumping mechanism, a pressure sensor placed in a location to measure pressure within the catheter, and a processor that calculates the length of the catheter from a pressure pulse measured while fluid is delivered through the catheter.
38 Citations
41 Claims
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1. A method of determining a length of an implantable catheter associated with an implantable medical fluid delivery device, the method comprising:
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delivering an amount of fluid from the implantable medical fluid delivery device through the catheter; measuring a pressure within a lumen of the catheter during the delivery of the fluid to the patient; and calculating an estimated length of the catheter based on the measured pressure. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
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20. An implantable fluid delivery system comprising:
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a fluid delivery pump; a catheter connected to the fluid delivery pump; a pressure sensor arranged to measure a pressure in a lumen of the catheter; and a processor configured to; control the fluid delivery pump to deliver an amount of fluid through the catheter; control the pressure sensor to measure a pressure within a lumen of the catheter during the delivery of the fluid through the catheter; and calculate an estimated length of the catheter based on the measured pressure. - View Dependent Claims (21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39)
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40. A computer-readable medium comprising instructions for causing a programmable processor in an implantable fluid delivery system to:
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control a fluid delivery pump to deliver an amount of fluid through an implantable catheter; control a pressure sensor to measure a pressure within a lumen of the catheter during the delivery of the fluid through the catheter; and calculate an estimated length of the catheter based on the measured pressure.
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41. A device comprising:
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means for delivering an amount of fluid through an implantable catheter; means for measuring a pressure within a lumen of the catheter during the delivery of the fluid through the catheter; and means for calculating an estimated length of the catheter based on the measured pressure.
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Specification