REMOVABLE MECHANICAL CIRCULATORY SUPPORT FOR SHORT TERM USE

• US 20190321529A1
• Filed: 04/03/2019
• Published: 10/24/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 04/04/2018
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Martin T. Rothman, Theodosios Korakianitis
• Original Assignee: Martin T. Rothman, Theodosios Korakianitis
• Inventors: Korakianitis, Theodosios, Rothman, Martin T.
• Granted Patent: US 11,116,959 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/04 implanted
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 60/13 by means of a catheter allowing explantation, e.g. catheter pumps temporarily introduced via the vascular system
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 60/139 inside the aorta, e.g. intra-aortic balloon pumps
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 60/148 in line with a blood vessel using resection or like techniques, e.g. permanent endovascular heart assist devices
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 60/221 the blood flow through the rotating member having both radial and axial components, e.g. mixed flow pumps
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 60/232 Centrifugal pumps
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 60/237 the blood flow through the rotating member having mainly axial components, e.g. axial flow pumps
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 60/414 transmitted by a rotating cable, e.g. for blood pumps mounted on a catheter
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 60/422 the force acting on the blood contacting member being electromagnetic, e.g. using canned motor pumps
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 60/538 Regulation using real-time blood pump operational parameter data, e.g. motor current
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 60/814 Volutes
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 60/824 Hydrodynamic or fluid film bearings
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 60/857 Implantable blood tubes
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 60/873 specially adapted for wireless or transcutaneous energy transfer [TET], e.g. inductive charging
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 60/876 Implantable batteries
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 60/88 Percutaneous cables
• CPC Class Codes: F04D 1/003 Having contrarotating parts
• CPC Class Codes: F04D 13/028 the driving means being a planetary gear
• CPC Class Codes: F04D 13/0646 the hollow pump or motor shaft being the conduit for the working fluid
• CPC Class Codes: F04D 29/181 Axial flow rotors F04D29/185 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: F04D 29/528 : especially adapted for liquid pumps
• CPC Class Codes: F04D 29/708 : specially for liquid pumps
• CPC Class Codes: F04D 3/00 : Axial-flow pumps priming or boosting F04D9/00

Abstract

Mechanical circulatory supports configured to operate in series with the native heart are disclosed. In an embodiment, an intravascular propeller is installed into the descending aorta and anchored within via an expandable anchoring mechanism. The propeller and anchoring mechanism may be foldable so as to be percutaneously deliverable to the aorta. The propeller may have foldable blades. The blades may be magnetic and may be driven by a concentric electromagnetic stator circumferentially outside the magnetic blades. The stator may be intravascular or may be configured to be installed around the outer circumference of the blood vessel. The support may create a pressure rise between about 20-50 mmHg, and maintain a flow rate of about 5 L/min. The support may have one or more pairs of contra-rotating propellers to modulate the tangential velocity of the blood flow. The support may have static pre-swirlers and or de-swirlers. The support may be optimized to replicate naturally occurring vortex formation within the descending aorta.

Claims

1. A temporary, removable mechanical circulatory support heart-assist device, the device comprising:

at least two propellers or impellers, each propeller or impeller comprising a plurality of blades arranged around an axis of rotation, the blades being configured to pump blood;

wherein two propellers or impellers of the at least two propellers or impellers rotate in opposite directions.

6. The device of claim 1, further comprising a first gearbox placed between a motor and a downstream propeller or impeller of the at least two propellers or impellers, and a second gearbox between the upstream and downstream propeller or impeller of the at least two propellers or impellers.

7. The device of claim 6, wherein diameters of the gears in the first and second gearboxes are configured to achieve equal rpm between the at least two propellers or impellers.

8. The device of claim 6, wherein diameters of the gears in the first and second gearboxes are configured to achieve different rpm between the at least two propellers or impellers.

13. The device of claim 1, further comprising a balloon, wherein the balloon is configured to expand to fill the difference between minimum and maximum aorta sizes.

17. The device of claim 1, further comprising a gearbox comprising two concentric output shafts driving two propellers or impellers of the at least two propellers or impellers in opposite directions, and one input shaft connected via a flexible shaft to an electric motor or gearmotor.

20. The device of claim 1, where an upstream propeller or impeller of the at least two propellers or impellers is driven by an epicyclic-type gearbox, a downstream propeller or impeller of the at least two propellers or impellers is driven in the opposite direction to the upstream impeller or propeller by a second epicyclic-type gearbox.

21. The device of claim 20, wherein suns of both epicyclic gearboxes are driven by sun gears connected via an input shaft to an electric motor.

24. The device of claim 1, where the blades of the two propellers or impellers of the at least two propellers or impellers rotating in opposite directions comprise flexible connections to impeller hubs to accommodate insertion and removal with folded blades, and operation with unfolded blades.

28. The device of claim 1, further comprising

an anchoring mechanism, the anchoring mechanism being configured to anchor the at least one propeller within a lumen of a blood vessel, the anchoring mechanism comprising:

a collapsed configuration for installing the anchoring mechanism in the blood vessel; and

an expanded configuration wherein at least a portion of the anchoring mechanism is configured to be pressed against a wall of the lumen of the blood vessel.

32. The device of claim 1, further comprising a pre-swirler configured to increase a tangential velocity component of blood flow entering the support.

37. The device of claim 1, wherein the plurality of blades of a propeller or an impeller of the at least two propellers or impellers have a fixed open diameter.

38. The support of claim 1, wherein the plurality of blades of a propeller or an impeller of the at least two propellers or impellers have a variable open diameter.

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47. A method of treating congestive heart failure in a patient, the method comprising:

installing a mechanical circulation support within the lumen of the descending aorta of the patient, wherein the mechanical circulation heart-assist device comprises;

at least two propellers or impellers, each propeller or impeller comprising a plurality of blades arranged around an axis of rotation, the blades being configured to pump blood, wherein two propellers or impellers of the at least two propellers or impellers rotate in opposite directions

48. The method of claim 47, wherein the device is configured to provide a pressure rise between about 20 mmHg and about 40 mmHg in the blood flow and to maintain a flow rate of about 5 L/min.

52. The method of claim 47, further comprising expanding the plurality of blades to a fixed diameter.

53. The method of claim 47, further comprising expanding the plurality of blades to a variable diameter.

57. The method of claim 47, further comprising a first gearbox placed between a motor and a downstream propeller or impeller of the at least two propellers or impellers to provide contra-rotation of the at least two propellers or impellers.

58. The method of claim 47, wherein the at least two propellers or impellers rotate at equal rpm.

59. The method of claim 47, wherein the at least two propellers or impellers rotate at different rpm.

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