Catheter with pressure sensing
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A medical probe, comprising:
- a flexible insertion tube, having a distal end for insertion into a body cavity of a patient;
a distal tip, which is disposed distal to the distal end of the flexible insertion tube and is configured to be brought into contact with tissue in the body cavity;
a resilient member, which couples the distal tip to the distal end of the flexible insertion tube and is configured to deform in response to pressure exerted on the distal tip when the distal tip engages the tissue; and
a position sensor within the medical probe for sensing a position of the distal tip relative to the distal end of the flexible insertion tube, which changes in response to deformation of the resilient member,wherein the position sensor is configured to generate a signal indicative of the position of the distal tip responsively to a magnetic field that is generated in a vicinity of the distal tip,wherein the position sensor is disposed in the distal end of the flexible insertion tube, and wherein the medical probe comprises a magnetic field generator within the distal tip for generating the magnetic field.
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Abstract
A medical probe includes a flexible insertion tube, having a distal end for insertion into a body cavity of a patient, and a distal tip, which is disposed at the distal end of the insertion tube and is configured to be brought into contact with tissue in the body cavity. A resilient member couples the distal tip to the distal end of the insertion tube and is configured to deform in response to pressure exerted on the distal tip when the distal tip engages the tissue. A position sensor within the probe senses a position of the distal tip relative to the distal end of the insertion tube, which changes in response to deformation of the resilient member.
169 Citations
37 Claims
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1. A medical probe, comprising:
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a flexible insertion tube, having a distal end for insertion into a body cavity of a patient; a distal tip, which is disposed distal to the distal end of the flexible insertion tube and is configured to be brought into contact with tissue in the body cavity; a resilient member, which couples the distal tip to the distal end of the flexible insertion tube and is configured to deform in response to pressure exerted on the distal tip when the distal tip engages the tissue; and a position sensor within the medical probe for sensing a position of the distal tip relative to the distal end of the flexible insertion tube, which changes in response to deformation of the resilient member, wherein the position sensor is configured to generate a signal indicative of the position of the distal tip responsively to a magnetic field that is generated in a vicinity of the distal tip, wherein the position sensor is disposed in the distal end of the flexible insertion tube, and wherein the medical probe comprises a magnetic field generator within the distal tip for generating the magnetic field. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
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8. Apparatus for performing a medical procedure inside a body of a patient, the apparatus comprising:
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a first magnetic field generator, for disposition outside the body of the patient, for generating a first magnetic field within the body; a probe, which comprises; an insertion tube having a distal end for insertion into the body of a patient; a second magnetic field generator within the distal end of the insertion tube for generating a second magnetic field; a distal tip, which is flexibly coupled distal to the end of the insertion tube; and a sensor, which is disposed within the distal tip and is configured to generate first and second signals responsively to the first and second magnetic fields, respectively; and a processor, which is coupled to receive and process the first signal so as to determine coordinates of the distal tip within the body and to receive and process the second signal so as to detect changes in a position of the distal tip relative to the distal end of the insertion tube. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17)
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18. A method for contacting tissue in a body cavity of a patient, the method comprising:
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inserting a probe into the body cavity, the probe comprising a flexible insertion tube and a distal tip, which is coupled distal to a distal end of the flexible insertion tube by a resilient member, and comprising a position sensor, which generates a signal indicative of a position of the distal tip relative to the distal end of the flexible insertion tube, which changes in response to deformation of the resilient member, wherein the position sensor is disposed in the distal tip, and wherein the probe comprises a magnetic field generator within the distal end of the flexible insertion tube for creating a magnetic field; advancing the probe within the body cavity so that the distal tip engages and applies a pressure against the tissue, thereby causing the resilient member to deform; and processing the signal while the distal tip engages the tissue so as to provide an indication of change in the position of the distal tip relative to the distal end of the flexible insertion tube and the pressure exerted against the tissue. - View Dependent Claims (19, 20, 21, 22, 23)
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24. Apparatus for performing a medical procedure inside a body of a patient, the apparatus comprising:
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a probe, which comprises; an insertion tube having a distal end for insertion into the body of a patient; a distal tip, which is flexibly coupled distal to the distal end of the insertion tube; a magnetic field generator, which is disposed within the distal tip and is configured to generate a magnetic field; and a first sensor within the distal end of the insertion tube for generating a first signal in response to the magnetic field; and a second sensor, for disposition outside the body of the patient, for generating a second signal in response to the magnetic field; a processor, which is coupled to receive and process the second signal so as to determine coordinates of the distal tip within the body and to receive and process the first signal so as to detect changes in a position of the distal tip relative to the distal end of the insertion tube.
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25. A medical probe, comprising:
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a flexible insertion tube, having a distal end for insertion into a body cavity of a patient; a distal tip, which is disposed distal to the distal end of the flexible insertion tube and is configured to be brought into contact with tissue in the body cavity; a resilient member, which couples the distal tip to the distal end of the flexible insertion tube and is configured to deform in response to pressure exerted on the distal tip when the distal tip engages the tissue; and a position sensor within the medical probe for sensing a position of the distal tip relative to the distal end of the flexible insertion tube, which changes in response to deformation of the resilient member, wherein the position sensor is configured to generate a signal indicative of the position of the distal tip responsively to a magnetic field that is generated in a vicinity of the distal end, wherein the position sensor is disposed in the distal tip of the flexible insertion tube, and wherein the medical probe comprises a magnetic field generator within the distal end for generating the magnetic field. - View Dependent Claims (26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31)
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32. A method for contacting tissue in a body cavity of a patient, the method comprising:
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inserting a probe into the body cavity, the probe comprising a flexible insertion tube and a distal tip, which is coupled distal to a distal end of the flexible insertion tube by a resilient member, and comprising a position sensor, which generates a signal indicative of a position of the distal tip relative to the distal end of the flexible insertion tube, which changes in response to deformation of the resilient member, wherein the position sensor is disposed in the distal end, and wherein the probe comprises a magnetic field generator within the distal tip of the flexible insertion tube for creating a magnetic field; advancing the probe within the body cavity so that the distal tip engages and applies a pressure against the tissue, thereby causing the resilient member to deform; and processing the signal while the distal tip engages the tissue so as to provide an indication of change in the position of the distal tip relative to the distal end of the flexible insertion tube and the pressure exerted against the tissue. - View Dependent Claims (33, 34, 35, 36, 37)
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Specification