Methods and apparatus for blocking flow through blood vessels

• US 6,638,293 B1
• Filed: 01/21/1999
• Issued: 10/28/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 02/02/1996
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Medtronic Vascular, Inc. (Medtronic Plc)
• Original Assignee: TransVascular, Inc. (Medtronic Plc)
• Inventors: Jensen, Marc, Machold, Timothy R., Flaherty, J. Christopher, Makower, Joshua, Macaulay, Patrick E., Whitt, Jason B., Evard, Philip C., Garibotto, John T.
• Primary Examiner(s): TRUONG, KEVIN THAO
• Application Number:
  US09/117,516
• Time in Patent Office: 1,741 Days
• Field of Search: 606/1, 606/108, 606/191, 606/194, 606/195, 606/200, 606/113, 606/114, 606/127
• US Class Current: 606/200
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/3137 for examination of the interior of blood vessels
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/00234 for minimally invasive surgery A61B17/0218, A61B17/0469, A61B17/12013, A61B17/1285, A61B17/29, A61B17/320016 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/00491 Surgical glue applicators surgical adhesives A61L24/00; two-component delivery syringes A61M5/19
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/0643 with separate closing member, e.g. for interlocking with staple
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/11 for performing anastomosis; Buttons for anastomosis
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/12022 Occluding by internal devices, e.g. balloons or releasable wires plugging an opening in the wall of an organ A61B17/0057; occluders for the cervical canal A61F6/146; vas deferens occluders A61F6/20
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/12045 double occlusion, e.g. during anastomosis
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/12109 in a blood vessel
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/12131 characterised by the type of occluding device
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/12136 Balloons
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/12159 Solid plugs; being solid before insertion
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/12172 having a pre-set deployed three-dimensional shape methods of manufacturing A61B2017/00526
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/12186 liquid materials adapted to be injected
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/1219 expandable in contact with liquids
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/3417 Details of tips or shafts, e.g. grooves, expandable, bendable; Multiple coaxial sliding cannulas, e.g. for dilating syringe needles A61M5/32; dilators A61M29/00
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/3496 Protecting sleeves or inner probes; Retractable tips for protecting body piercing guide needles A61M25/0612
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 18/00 Surgical instruments, devices or methods for transferring non-mechanical forms of energy to or from the body eye surgery A61F9/007; ear surgery A61F11/00
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 18/1445 at the distal end of a shaft, e.g. forceps or scissors at the end of a rigid rod
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 18/1477 Needle-like probes
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 18/1492 having a flexible, catheter-like structure, e.g. for heart ablation A61B18/1477 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 18/24 : with a catheter A61B18/26, A61B18/28 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/00243 : cardiac
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/00247 : Making holes in the wall of the heart, e.g. laser Myocardial revascularization
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/00252 : for by-pass connections, i.e. connections from heart chamber to blood vessel or from blood vessel to blood vessel
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/00504 : Tissue welding
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/0641 : having at least three legs as part of one single body
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/0647 : having one single leg, e.g. tacks
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/0649 : Coils or spirals
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/1107 : for blood vessels
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/1139 : Side-to-side connections, e.g. shunt or X-connections
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/1205 : Introduction devices
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/12127 : Double occlusion, e.g. for creating blood-free anastomosis site
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/22038 : with a guide wire
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/22077 : with a part piercing the tissue A61B2017/22044 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/306 : holding by means of suction
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/347 : Locking means, e.g. for locking instrument in cannula
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/3488 : Fixation to inner organ or inner body tissue
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2018/00392 : Transmyocardial revascularisation
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2018/00404 : Blood vessels other than those in or around the heart
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2018/00869 : Phase
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2018/1425 : Needle
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2018/1475 : Electrodes retractable in or deployable from a housing
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2090/378 : using ultrasound
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2090/3925 : ultrasonic
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2090/3929 : Active markers
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2090/3958 : emitting a signal
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 90/361 : Image-producing devices, e.g. surgical cameras
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 90/40 : Apparatus fixed or close to patients specially adapted for providing an aseptic surgical environment
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2/07 : Stent-grafts
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2/2493 : Transmyocardial revascularisation [TMR] devices
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2/90 : characterised by a net-like or mesh-like structure
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2/95 : Instruments specially adapted for placement or removal of stents or stent-grafts
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2002/075 : the stent being loosely attached to the graft material, e.g. by stitching
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2002/30079 : magnetic
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2002/8486 : provided on at least one of the ends
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2210/009 : magnetic
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2025/0076 : Unidirectional valves
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2025/0096 : being laterally outward extensions or tools, e.g. hooks or fibres
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2025/1052 : for temporarily occluding a vessel for isolating a sector

Abstract

This invention is methods and apparatus for occluding blood flow within a blood vessel (22). In a first series of embodiments, the present invention comprises a plurality of embolic devices (16) deployable through the lumen (12) of a conventional catheter (10) such that when deployed, said embolic devices (16) remain resident and occlude blood flow at a specific site within the lumen of the blood vessel (22). Such embolic devices (16) comprise either mechanical embolic devices that become embedded within or compress against the lumen of the vessel or chemical vaso occlusive agents that seal off blood flow at a given site. A second embodiment of the present invention comprises utilization of a vacuum/cauterizing device capable of sucking in the lumen of the vessel about the device to maintain the vessel in a closed condition where there is then applied a sufficient amount of energy to cause the tissue collapsed about the device to denature into a closure. In a third series of embodiments, the present invention comprises the combination of an embolization facilitator coupled with the application of an energy force to form an intraluminal closure at a specified site within a vessel.

Claims

1. A device which is implantable in a blood vessel to block the flow of blood in at least one direction through a lumen of that blood vessel, said device comprising:

a) a blood vessel engaging portion comprising a cylindrical frame initially disposable in a radially collapsed configuration such that said device may be passed into the lumen of said blood vessel, and subsequently expandable to an operative configuration wherein the cylindrical frame will frictionally engage a wall of the blood vessel to hold the device in a substantially fixed position within said blood vessel lumen, a hollow channel extending longitudinally through the cylindrical frame when the cylindrical frame is expanded to its operative configuration; and

,

b) a lumen blocking portion comprising a flexible sock member that has an open end and a substantially closed end, the open end of said flexible sock member being affixed to the cylindrical frame such that when the cylindrical frame is disposed in its operative configuration within a blood vessel, blood flowing through the blood vessel will enter the sock member and will be substantially blocked by the sock member from flowing through the hollow channel of the cylindrical frame.

2. The device of claim 1 wherein the cylindrical frame comprises a wire matrix.

3. The device of claim 1 wherein said blood vessel engaging portion further comprises an inflatable member.

4. The device of claim 1 wherein said blood vessel engaging portion has projections which embed in the wall of the blood vessel.

5. The device of claim 1 wherein said blood vessel engaging portion has hooks which embed in the blood vessel.

6. The device of claim 1 wherein said flexible sock member is a woven fabric member.

7. The device of claim 1 wherein said flexible sock member is formed at least partially of a material which is capable of being penetrated by a transluminally advanceable penetrating member, after the device has been implanted in a blood vessel lumen.

8. The device of claim 1 wherein the blood vessel engaging portion of the device is radially contractible following implantation so as to disengage from the blood vessel wall, thereby facilitating removal of the device.

9. The device of claim 8 wherein said device further comprises a connector formed on the device to facilitate connection of the device to a transluminally inserted retrieval instrument which is operative to pull the device in to an adjacent catheter.

10. The device of claim 8 wherein the cylindrical frame portion of the device is constructed such that, when the retrieval instrument is attached to the connector and a pulling force is applied to the retrieval instrument, the cylindrical frame will radially contract, thereby facilitating retraction of the device into an adjacent catheter.

11. The device of claim 1 wherein the cylindrical frame is formed at least partially of a shape memory material which transitions to said operative configuration when warmed to body temperature, but which may be radially contracted in situ by bathing the device in a cooled liquid so as to cool the device to a shape memory transition temperature which is lower than body temperature.

12. The device of claim 1 wherein the cylindrical frame is formed at least partially of resilient self-expanding material which is biased to said operative configuration such that, when unconstrained, the cylindrical frame will resiliently self-expand to said operative configuration.

13. The device of claim 1 wherein the cylindrical frame is formed at least partially of a plastically deformable material which is initially of said radially compact configuration, but which is subsequently deformable to said operative configuration by the application of pressure against said device.

14. The device of claim 1 wherein said blood vessel engaging portion comprises a radiographically visible material.

15. The device of claim 1 wherein said flexible sock member may be selectively penetrated to permit advancement of a catheter or device through the hollow channel of the cylindrical frame.

16. The device of claim 1 wherein said flexible sock member comprises a membrane.

17. The device of claim 1 wherein said membrane includes a first side formed of a first material which is resistant to cellular ingrowth, and a second side formed of a second material which is susceptible to cellular ingrowth.

18. The device of claim 1 wherein said flexible sock member is oriented on said frame relative to the direction of blood flow such that the hemodynamic pressure on said flexible member will exert force on the frame in a manner which causes the frame to exert increased outward force against the blood vessel wall.