Enhancement of aqueous flow

• US 9,655,780 B2
• Filed: 09/08/2015
• Issued: 05/23/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 03/15/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Richard Allen Hill
• Original Assignee: Orange County Glaucoma, PC
• Inventors: Hill, Richard A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Wiest, Philip R
• Application Number:
  US14/848,030
• Publication Number:
  US 20150374546A1
• Time in Patent Office: 623 Days
• Field of Search: 604 9
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2/94 Stents retaining their form, i.e. not being deformable, after placement in the predetermined place
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2240/001 Designing or manufacturing processes
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2250/0067 Means for introducing or releasing pharmaceutical products into the body
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 9/0008 Introducing ophthalmic products into the ocular cavity or retaining products therein putting in contact lenses A61F9/0061; introducing or retaining media in cavities of the body in general A61M31/00
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 9/0017 implantable in, or in contact with, the eye, e.g. ocular inserts
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 9/00781 Apparatus for modifying intraocular pressure, e.g. for glaucoma treatment drainage implants in general A61M27/002
• CPC Class Codes: A61K 38/1866 Vascular endothelial growth factor [VEGF]
• CPC Class Codes: A61K 9/0051 Ocular inserts, ocular implants

Abstract

Drainage of body fluid from an area of undesirably high pressure can be accomplished by interconnecting an artificial non-blood fluid conduit with the vascular system. For example, an artificial non-blood fluid conduit can be inserted into the eye to fluidly interconnect the anterior chamber with a location of lower pressure. The conduit can have a growth factor for stimulating growth of new blood vessels in the location of lower pressure to connect the new blood vessels with the non-blood fluid conduit.

Claims

1. An intraocular implant comprising:

a tubular member having an inlet region configured to extend into an anterior chamber of an eye, and a vascular connecting outlet region extending along a portion of the tubular member and configured to extend into an outflow space adjacent to a blood-carrying vessel in a subconjunctival space or along an episcleral surface of the eye; and

a growth factor carried by the vascular connecting outlet region for stimulating growth of new blood vessels between the vascular connecting region and the blood-carrying vessel.

2. The implant of claim 1, wherein the vascular connecting region comprises at least half of a length of the tubular member.

3. The implant of claim 1, wherein the vascular connecting region comprises at least a third of a length of the tubular member.

4. The implant of claim 1, wherein the vascular connecting region comprises less than a fifth of a length of the tubular member.

5. The implant of claim 1, wherein the vascular connecting region comprises a plurality of recesses configured to carry the growth factor therein.

6. The implant of claim 1, wherein the growth factor comprises a vascular growth factor.

7. The implant of claim 6, wherein the growth factor comprises a VEGF.

8. The implant of claim 7, wherein the growth factor comprises a VEGF-A, VEGF-B, VEGF-C, or VEGF-D.

9. The implant of claim 1, wherein the vascular connecting region comprises a resorbable material and a least a portion of the growth factor.

10. The implant of claim 1, wherein the growth factor comprises a coating on the vascular connecting region.

11. The implant of claim 1, further comprising a pump for urging fluid through the implant.

12. The implant of claim 11, wherein the pump has a pumping chamber that defines a pumping surface area of from 1 mm² to 40 mm².

13. The implant of claim 11, wherein the pump is configured to operate using ocular pulse pressure.

14. The implant of claim 1, further comprising a one-way valve for facilitating fluid flow through the implant.

15. The implant of claim 1, further comprising a pump and first and second one-way valves, the pump having a pump body inlet and a pump body outlet, the tubular member coupled to the pump body outlet, wherein the first one-way valve permits flow into the pump body inlet and the second one-way valve restricts retrograde flow into the pump body outlet.

16. A method of deploying an intraocular implant into an eye for stimulating vascular growth, the method comprising:

inserting into the eye a deployment member carrying the implant;

releasing the implant from the deployment member such that an inflow region of the implant resides in an anterior chamber of the eye and a vascular connecting region of the implant is positioned adjacent to a blood-carrying vessel in a subconjunctival space or along an episcleral surface of the eye, the implant having a lumen to conduct fluid therethrough, the vascular connecting region of the implant carrying a growth factor for promoting growth of blood vessels between the vascular connecting region and the blood-carrying vessel to facilitate aqueous humor outflow from the location of higher pressure into the blood-carrying vessel; and

withdrawing the deployment member from the eye.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the growth factor comprises a vascular growth factor.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein the growth factor comprises a VEGF.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein the location of higher pressure comprises an anterior chamber of the eye.

20. The method of claim 16, wherein the vascular connecting region comprises a resorbable material and a least a portion of the growth factor.

21. The method of claim 20, wherein the vascular connecting region comprises a non-resorbable polymeric material having a plurality of apertures extending in a direction transverse to the implant lumen, the plurality of apertures comprising a resorbable material and the growth factor disposed therein.

22. The method of claim 16, wherein the growth factor is impregnated into the vascular connecting region.

23. The method of claim 16, wherein the growth factor comprises a coating on the vascular connecting region.