Grounding of a shield within an implantable medical lead
First Claim
1. A method of grounding a braided shield of an implantable medical lead, comprising:
- providing at least one point along the lead where a thickness of a jacket covering the braided shield is less than a thickness of the jacket at areas on either side of the at least one point;
establishing a ground path at the at least one point; and
attaching a metal ring around the at least one point, wherein attaching the metal ring comprises attaching a metal ring that includes a non-conductive coating that creates a capacitive coupling to the metal ring.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Grounding of a shield that is located in an implantable medical lead may be done in many ways. The shield may be grounded directly to tissue from the lead body at one or more points along the lead body. The pathway for grounding may be a direct current pathway or be capacitively coupled. The pathway for grounding may utilize an exposed or nearly exposed shield at one or more points along the lead body. A jacket forming the lead body may have an outer layer removed at these points to provide the RF pathway to ground. Alternatively, the jacket may be doped with conductive particles at these points. Metal conductors such as ring electrodes and/or lead anchors may be attached to the lead at one or more points to provide the RF pathway to ground.
69 Citations
33 Claims
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1. A method of grounding a braided shield of an implantable medical lead, comprising:
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providing at least one point along the lead where a thickness of a jacket covering the braided shield is less than a thickness of the jacket at areas on either side of the at least one point; establishing a ground path at the at least one point; and attaching a metal ring around the at least one point, wherein attaching the metal ring comprises attaching a metal ring that includes a non-conductive coating that creates a capacitive coupling to the metal ring.
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2. A method of grounding a braided shield of an implantable medical lead, comprising:
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providing at least one point along the lead where a thickness of a jacket covering the braided shield is less than a thickness of the jacket at areas on either side of the at least one point; establishing a ground path at the at least one point; and providing the jacket with a doping of conductive particles at the at least one point.
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3. A method of grounding a braided shield of an implantable medical lead, comprising:
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providing at least one point along the lead where a thickness of a jacket covering the braided shield is less than a thickness of the jacket at areas on either side of the at least one point; establishing a ground path at the at least one point; and fastening a conductive lead anchor to the lead at the at least one point. - View Dependent Claims (4)
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5. A method of grounding a braided shield of an implantable medical lead, comprising:
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providing a radio frequency conductive coupling between a metal conductor coated with a non-conductive material and the braided shield for at least one point along the lead; and establishing a ground path from the metal conductor. - View Dependent Claims (6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17)
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18. A method of grounding a shield of an implantable medical lead, comprising:
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providing a radio frequency conductive coupling between a lead anchor and the shield for at least one point along the lead; and establishing a ground path from the lead anchor. - View Dependent Claims (19)
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20. A method of grounding a shield of an implantable medical lead, comprising:
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providing a radio frequency conductive coupling through a doped jacket covering the shield for at least one point along the lead, with sections of the jacket that are not doped on each side of the at least one point; and establishing a ground path from the doped jacket. - View Dependent Claims (21)
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22. A method of grounding a shield of an implantable medical lead, comprising:
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providing a radio frequency conductive coupling between a plurality of metal conductors and the shield for a plurality of points along the lead, at least one of the metal conductors comprising a lead anchor, a most proximal metal conductor being spaced apart from a most distal metal conductor by a nearest edge-to-nearest edge distance of 2 millimeters to 40 centimeters; and establishing a ground path from the metal conductors. - View Dependent Claims (23, 24, 25)
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26. An implantable medical lead, comprising:
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a jacket; a braided shield within the jacket; a metal conductor coated with a non-conductive material affixed to the jacket; and a radio frequency conductive coupling between the metal conductor and the braided shield. - View Dependent Claims (27)
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28. An implantable medical lead, comprising:
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a jacket; a shield within the jacket; a lead anchor attached to the jacket; and a radio frequency conductive coupling between the lead anchor and the shield. - View Dependent Claims (29)
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30. An implantable medical lead, comprising:
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a jacket doped with conductive particles at at least one point, with sections of the jacket that are not doped on each side of the at least one point; a shield within the jacket; and a radio frequency conductive coupling from the shield through the doped jacket at the at least one point. - View Dependent Claims (31)
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32. An implantable medical lead, comprising:
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a jacket; a shield within the jacket; a plurality of metal conductors along the jacket, at least one of the metal conductors comprising a lead anchor, with a most proximal metal conductor being spaced apart from a most distal metal conductor by a nearest edge-to-nearest edge distance within a range of 2 millimeters to 40 centimeters; and a radio frequency conductive coupling between the plurality of metal conductors and the shield. - View Dependent Claims (33)
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Specification