Systems, devices, and methods including catheters configured to monitor biofilm formation having biofilm spectral information configured as a data structure

• US 20110152978A1
• Filed: 11/10/2010
• Published: 06/23/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/04/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Gearbox LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Original Assignee: Searete LLC (Intellectual Ventures LLC)
• Inventors: Rivet, Dennis J., Dacey, Ralph G. JR., Wood, Victoria Y. H., Ishikawa, Muriel Y., Smith, Michael A., Myhrvold, Nathan P., Tegreene, Clarence T., Wood, Lowell L. JR., Hyde, Roderick A., Kare, Jordin T., Sweeney, Elizabeth A., Leuthardt, Eric C.
• Granted Patent: US 8,585,627 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 607/92
• CPC Class Codes: A61L 2/0011 using physical methods

Abstract

Systems, devices, methods, and compositions are described for providing an actively-controllable disinfecting implantable device configured to, for example, treat or prevent an infection in a biological subject.

Claims

1. A catheter device, comprising:

a body structure having an outer surface and an inner surface defining one or more fluid-flow passageways;

an energy emitter component, the energy emitter component configured to deliver optical energy to one or more regions proximate at least one of the outer surface or the inner surface of the body structure;

a sensor component, the sensor component configured to detect at least one of an emitted optical energy, a remitted optical energy, and an acoustic energy from a one or more regions proximate at least one of the outer surface or the inner surface of the body structure and to generate a first response based on a detected at least one of the emitted optical energy or the remitted optical energy; and

one or more computer-readable memory media having infection marker information configured as a data structure, the data structure including a characteristic information component having characteristic microbial colonization spectral information representative of the presence of a microbial colonization proximate at least one of the outer surface or the inner surface of the body structure.

4. The catheter device of claim 1, wherein the characteristic information component includes temporal metabolite information or spatial metabolite information associated with a microorganism colonization event.

5. The catheter device of claim 1, wherein the characteristic information component includes oxygen concentration gradient information associated with a microorganism colonization event.

8. The catheter device of claim 1, wherein the characteristic information component includes spectral information associate with a biofilm-specific tag.

11. The catheter device of claim 1, wherein the characteristic information component includes refractivity information.

23. The catheter device of claim 1, wherein infection marker information includes one or more heuristically determined parameters associated with at least one in vivo or in vitro determined metric.

36. The catheter device of claim 1, wherein the sensor component is configured to detect at least one characteristic associated with a biological sample proximate the outer surface or the inner surface of the body structure.

37. The catheter device of claim 36, wherein the at least one characteristic associated with the biological sample includes a spectral parameter associated with a biofilm-specific tag.

40. The catheter device of claim 36, wherein the at least one characteristic associated with the biological sample includes a refractivity.

49. The catheter device of claim 36, further comprising:

circuitry configured to provide information.

53. The catheter device of claim 36, further comprising:

at least one receiver configured to acquire information based at least in part on a detected emitted optical energy or a detected remitted optical energy.

59. The catheter device of claim 36, further comprising:

circuitry configured to obtain information; and

circuitry configured to store the obtained information.

60. The catheter device of claim 36, further comprising:

a cryptographic logic component.

2. (canceled)

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71. A method, comprising:

automatically comparing one or more characteristics communicated from an implanted catheter device to stored reference data, the one or more characteristics including at least one of information associated with a microbial colonization proximate an outer surface or an inner surface of the implanted catheter device, information associated with an infection marker detected proximate an outer surface or an inner surface of the implanted catheter device, or information associated with a fluid received within one or more fluid-flow passageways of the implanted catheter device; and

initiating a treatment protocol based at least in part on the comparison.

75. The method of claim 71, wherein initiating the treatment protocol includes actuating one or more selectively actuatable energy waveguides of the implanted catheter device based at least in part on the comparison.

79. The method of claim 71, wherein initiating the treatment protocol includes delivering a dose of an ultraviolet radiation based at least in part on the comparison.

81. The method of claim 71, wherein initiating the treatment protocol includes concurrently or sequentially delivering two or more energy stimuli to at least one of the outer surface or the inner surface of the implanted catheter device based at least in part on the comparison.

83. The method of claim 71, further comprising:

selectively energizing one or more regions proximate the surface on the implanted portion of the catheter device via one or more energy-emitting components based at least in part on the comparison.

84. The method of claim 71, further comprising:

selectively energizing one or more regions proximate the surface on the implanted portion of the catheter device via one or more selectively actuatable energy waveguides configured to direct an emitted energy stimulus to one or more regions proximate at least one of the outer surface or the inner surface of the body structure.

85. The method of claim 71, further comprising:

selectively energizing one or more regions proximate the surface on the implanted portion of the catheter device determined to have a microbial colonization based at least in part on the comparison.

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86. A method, comprising:

electronically comparing one or more characteristics communicated from an implanted catheter device to stored reference data, the one or more characteristics including at least one of an in vivo detected microbial colonization presence proximate a surface of the catheter device, an in vivo real-time detected infection marker presence proximate a surface of the catheter device, and in vivo detected measurand associated with a biofilm-specific tag; and

initiating a treatment protocol based at least in part on the comparison.