Flexible instrument
First Claim
1. A system for repairing a cardiac valve, comprising:
- a flexible guide shaft for extending from a site outside a patient through a vascular lumen to an area about the cardiac valve;
a flexible inner shaft supporting at its distal end a remotely controlled tool for performing a cardiac repair procedure, the inner shaft received in and removably threaded through the guide shaft for disposing said tool at the area about the cardiac valve;
a user interface having an input device operated by a user for control of at least one of said shafts; and
a retainer adapted to being attached to an annulus of the cardiac valve, and being closeable via the tool to draw the annulus into a smaller diameter.
5 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A remote control flexible instrument system, employing a shaft which supports a tool, is described in which the has proximal and distal ends with at least a portion thereof extending through a lumen of the human body so as to locate the shaft at an internal target site. A master station including an input device provides control of the instrument situated at a slave station. The master station can control at least one degree-of-freedom of the flexible instrument. A controller intercouples the master and slave stations and is operated in accordance with a computer algorithm that receives a command from the input device for controlling at least one degree-of-freedom of the catheter so as to respond in accordance with action at the input device. The flexible instrument further comprises a controlled flexible segment along the shaft, for controlled bending at the flexible segment to guide the shaft and to dispose the tool at an operative site.
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Citations
102 Claims
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1. A system for repairing a cardiac valve, comprising:
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a flexible guide shaft for extending from a site outside a patient through a vascular lumen to an area about the cardiac valve;
a flexible inner shaft supporting at its distal end a remotely controlled tool for performing a cardiac repair procedure, the inner shaft received in and removably threaded through the guide shaft for disposing said tool at the area about the cardiac valve;
a user interface having an input device operated by a user for control of at least one of said shafts; and
a retainer adapted to being attached to an annulus of the cardiac valve, and being closeable via the tool to draw the annulus into a smaller diameter. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 72, 73, 74)
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12. A system for remotely repairing a cardiac valve, comprising:
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a guide catheter for extending intraluminally through a vascular vessel of the human body, so that a distal end of the guide catheter is disposed at an area about the cardiac valve;
a fiber for extending about a diameter of an annulus of the cardiac valve, so that the fiber engages with the diameter of the annulus and draws the annulus into a smaller diameter; and
a flexible working catheter received by and threaded through the guide catheter, the working catheter including a tool engageable with the fiber; and
a remote manipulator controlled from a site remote from the body, for controlling the tool. - View Dependent Claims (13, 14, 15, 16, 75, 76, 77)
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17. A method of repairing a mitral valve of the heart, comprising:
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extending a guide shaft from a site outside the patient to a site adjacent the mitral valve;
inserting a fiber through the guide shaft;
securing the fiber about an annulus of the mitral valve while the heart is beating, the securing step including introducing through the guide shaft a flexible inner shaft having a remotely controlled distal tool for securing the fiber about the annulus leaving opposite ends of the fiber exposed; and
applying a force to the fiber ends so as to draw the annulus into a tighter diameter. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 78, 79)
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27. A method of repairing a mitral valve of the heart, comprising:
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extending a guide shaft from a site outside the patient through a vascular lumen to a site about the mitral valve;
providing a ring of a first diameter, the ring being deformable and capable of matching a desired predetermined diameter of an annulus of the mitral valve, the ring engaged with the guide shaft via a flexible inner shaft received by and threaded through the guide shaft; and
securing the ring about the mitral valve annulus while the heart is beating, the securing step including engaging the ring about a circumference of the annulus via a remotely controlled tool supported at a distal end of the inner shaft, and drawing the annulus into the predetermined diameter. - View Dependent Claims (28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 80, 81, 82)
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37. A method of repairing a cardiac valve, comprising:
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providing a balloon supported on a catheter member;
supporting a plurality of peripherally disposed anchor pins from an outer surface of the balloon, the anchor pins being tethered together;
passing the balloon in a deflated state to an area about the cardiac valve;
inflating the balloon to thrust the anchor pins into an annulus of the cardiac valve; and
tightening the tether to pull the peripherally disposed pins into a smaller diameter. - View Dependent Claims (38, 39, 40)
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41. A method for repairing a cardiac valve, comprising:
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providing a balloon;
supporting and passing the balloon in a deflated state to an area about the cardiac valve;
disposing a plurality of peripherally disposed anchor pins arranged about an outer surface of the balloon, and a tether for intercoupling said anchor pins;
inflating the balloon once positioned at the area about the cardiac valve to thrust the anchor pins into a ring defining a base of the cardiac valve; and
tightening the tether to pull the peripherally disposed pins into a smaller diameter.
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42. A system for remotely repairing a cardiac valve, comprising:
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a flexible guide shaft for extending through an area of the human body so as to locate a distal end thereof at an area about the cardiac valve;
a delivery member for supporting an array of securing pieces at a distal end thereof and extending through said flexible guide member, the array of securing pieces being intercoupled by a cable; and
a remote manipulator for being controlled from a site remote from the body, for controlling the delivery member to expel the securing pieces in sequence about the cardiac valve annulus as the valve is functioning, the remote manipulator capable of controlling a tightening of the cable to draw the annulus into a smaller diameter. - View Dependent Claims (43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58)
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59. A flexible instrument system for repairing an anatomic body part, comprising:
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an instrument shaft having sufficient flexibility along a length thereof so as to readily flex and conform to a vascular lumen pathway in the anatomy as the shaft is inserted therein;
a drivable mechanism disposed at a proximal end of the instrument shaft for controlling a tool supported at a distal end of the instrument shaft, the instrument shaft being insertable into a subject threaded through a flexib;
e guide shaft so as to dispose the distal end of the instrument shaft at an internal site of an anatomic body part; and
a retainer, adapted to being attached to an annulus at the anatomic body part, the retainer being closeable so as to draw the annulus into a smaller diameter. - View Dependent Claims (60, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71, 83, 84)
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85. A flexible instrument system for performing a medical procedure on an anatomic part at an internal operative site, said instrument system comprising:
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a flexible guide shaft extending from a site outside a patient through an anatomic vascular lumen to the area of the operative site;
an inner flexible instrument shaft supporting at its distal end a tool that is controllable in assisting in the medical procedure on the anatomic part, said inner flexible instrument shaft received in and removably threaded through the guide shaft for disposing said tool at said operative site;
a user interface at which a medical practitioner manipulates an input device;
a drive unit for at least one of the shafts; and
an electrical controller coupled between the user interface and the drive unit for at least one of the shafts, and that receives a command from said input device for controlling positioning of said at least one of said shafts so as to respond in accordance with action at the input device in performing the medical procedure. - View Dependent Claims (86, 87, 88, 89, 90)
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91. A method for performing a medical procedure on an anatomic part at an internal operative site, comprising:
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extending a flexible guide shaft from a site outside a patient through an anatomic vascular lumen to the area of the operative site;
threading an inner instrument shaft, that supports at its distal end a tool that is controllable in assisting in the medical procedure, through the guide shaft for disposing said tool at said operative site;
manipulating a user interface at which a medical practitioner manipulates an input device; and
providing a controller coupled between the user interface and drive for at least one of the shafts, and that receives a command from said input a device for controlling positioning of at least one of said shafts so as to respond in accordance with action at the input device in performing the medical procedure. - View Dependent Claims (92, 93, 94)
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95. A flexible instrument system for performing a medical procedure at a target site of the heart, said system comprising:
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a flexible instrument shaft having proximal and distal ends with at least one flexible segment extending through a vascular lumen of the human body;
a flexible guide tube extending through the vascular lumen;
the flexible instrument shaft being threaded through the guide tube, the flexible instrument shaft and guide tube adapted to conform to the configuration of the lumen;
said flexible instrument distal end being a working end for assisting in performing the medical procedure on the heart;
a user interface at which a medical practitioner manipulates an input device;
an electrical controller that receives a command from said input device and for controlling the position of the flexible guide tube so as to respond in accordance with action at the input device in performing the medical procedure; and
means for detecting an anatomically sensed signal and displaying the content-thereof. - View Dependent Claims (96, 97, 98, 99, 100, 101, 102)
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Specification