Implantable sensor and associated methods
First Claim
1. A system for detecting indicators of soft tissue wear of a joint, comprising:
- an implantable sensor comprising;
a sensing element adapted for implantation into a portion of a bone adjacent the joint, the sensing element having an external surface configured to maintain the sensing element in a fixed position within the bone, the sensing element configured to detect an acoustic signal indicative of a characteristic of the soft tissue of the joint; and
a telemetry circuit in communication with the sensing element configured to transmit a data set representative of the detected acoustic signal outside of the bone, wherein at least a portion of the telemetry circuit includes a passive RFID tag so as to reduce the power requirements of the telemetry circuit; and
an implantable accelerometer configured to detect a vibration signal indicative of a characteristic of the soft tissue of the joint, including an external surface configured to maintain the accelerometer in a fixed position within the bone and a telemetry circuit adapted for transmitting a data set representative of the detected vibration signal outside of the bone; and
an external receiver in communication with the implantable sensor and the implantable accelerometer, the external receiver configured to receive the data sets representative of the acoustic signal and vibration signal and further configured to analyze the data sets to determine changes in the soft tissue;
wherein the accelerometer is one of a multi-axis accelerometer or a plurality of single-axis accelerometers to produce vectored data to differentiate between locations and types of soft tissue degradation, andwherein the at least one of the implantable sensing element and the implantable accelerometer are configured as a reference marker detectable by an image guided surgery system.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Implantable sensors and methods for detecting changes in a characteristic of a soft tissue is disclosed. In one embodiment, an implantable sensor for detecting indicators of cartilage wear in a joint is provided. The implantable sensor includes a sensing element for detecting a signal indicative of a characteristic of the cartilage of the joint and a telemetry circuit in communication with the sensing element for transmitting a data set representative of the detected signal. In another embodiment, a system for detecting changes in joint cartilage includes an implantable acoustic sensing element and an external receiver in communication with the implantable acoustic sensing element. In other embodiments, methods of detecting cartilage degradation in a joint and methods of using the disclosed sensors are provided.
158 Citations
15 Claims
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1. A system for detecting indicators of soft tissue wear of a joint, comprising:
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an implantable sensor comprising; a sensing element adapted for implantation into a portion of a bone adjacent the joint, the sensing element having an external surface configured to maintain the sensing element in a fixed position within the bone, the sensing element configured to detect an acoustic signal indicative of a characteristic of the soft tissue of the joint; and a telemetry circuit in communication with the sensing element configured to transmit a data set representative of the detected acoustic signal outside of the bone, wherein at least a portion of the telemetry circuit includes a passive RFID tag so as to reduce the power requirements of the telemetry circuit; and an implantable accelerometer configured to detect a vibration signal indicative of a characteristic of the soft tissue of the joint, including an external surface configured to maintain the accelerometer in a fixed position within the bone and a telemetry circuit adapted for transmitting a data set representative of the detected vibration signal outside of the bone; and an external receiver in communication with the implantable sensor and the implantable accelerometer, the external receiver configured to receive the data sets representative of the acoustic signal and vibration signal and further configured to analyze the data sets to determine changes in the soft tissue; wherein the accelerometer is one of a multi-axis accelerometer or a plurality of single-axis accelerometers to produce vectored data to differentiate between locations and types of soft tissue degradation, and wherein the at least one of the implantable sensing element and the implantable accelerometer are configured as a reference marker detectable by an image guided surgery system. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 15)
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7. A system for detecting changes in joint cartilage, comprising:
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an implantable acoustic sensor configured to detect an acoustic signal indicative of a characteristic of the joint cartilage, wherein the implantable acoustic sensor is adapted for injection into a tissue adjacent the joint; a telemetry circuit in communication with the at least one implantable acoustic sensor configured to transmit a data set representative of the detected acoustic signal to an external receiver, wherein at least a portion of the telemetry circuit includes a passive RFID tag so as to reduce the power requirements of the telemetry circuit; an implantable accelerometer configured to detect a vibration signal indicative of a characteristic of the joint cartilage and communicate a data set representative of the vibration signal to an external receiver, wherein the implantable accelerometer is adapted for injection into a tissue adjacent the joint; and an external receiver in communication with the telemetry circuit of the implantable acoustic sensor and the implantable accelerometer, the external receiver configured to receive the data sets representative of the detected acoustic signal and the detected vibration signal from the implantable acoustic sensor and the implantable accelerometer, the external receiver further configured to analyze the data sets to determined changes in the soft tissue; wherein the accelerometer is one of a multi-axis accelerometer or a plurality of single-axis accelerometers configured to produce vectored data to differentiate between locations and types of soft tissue degradation, and wherein the at least one of the implantable sensing element and the implantable accelerometer are configured as a reference marker detectable by an image guided surgery system. - View Dependent Claims (8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
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Specification