System and Method of Adventitial Tissue Characterization

• US 20140270430A1
• Filed: 03/14/2014
• Published: 09/18/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 03/14/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Volcano Corporation (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Original Assignee: Volcano Corporation (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Inventors: Nair, Anuja
• Granted Patent: US 9,592,027 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 382/128
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/22 Implements for squeezing-off ulcers or the like on the inside of inner organs of the body; Implements for scraping-out cavities of body organs, e.g. bones; Calculus removers; Calculus smashing apparatus; Apparatus for removing obstructions in blood vessels, not otherwise provided for dilators A61M29/00
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 18/1492 having a flexible, catheter-like structure, e.g. for heart ablation A61B18/1477 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/22094 for crossing total occlusions, i.e. piercing
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2018/0041 Removal of thrombosis
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2018/00577 Ablation
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2018/00982 combined with or comprising means for visual or photographic inspections inside the body, e.g. endoscopes
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/085 for locating body or organic structures, e.g. tumours, calculi, blood vessels, nodules
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/0891 for diagnosis of blood vessels
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/12 in body cavities or body tracts, e.g. by using catheters catheters per se A61M25/00
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/445 Details of catheter construction
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/463 characterised by displaying multiple images or images and diagnostic data on one display composite display in devices for short-range imaging with acoustic waves G01S7/52074
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/5215 involving processing of medical diagnostic data
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 50/20 for computer-aided diagnosis, e.g. based on medical expert systems

Abstract

Disclosed herein is a system and method for characterizing adventitial tissue. In one aspect, a system and method is disclosed that characterizes tissue types within the adventitial tissue including nerve bundles and blood vessels. In a further aspect, the adventitia is imaged and characterized to provide guidance for crossing lesions within an occluded vessel.

Claims

1. A method, comprising:

imaging a vessel including surrounding adventitial tissue;

performing tissue characterization on the adventitial tissue; and

displaying adventitial tissue characteristics to a user.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the tissue characterization includes identifying nerve bundles within the adventitial tissue.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein imaging includes imaging the adventitia and the perivascular tissue surrounding an artery, and the identifying includes identifying nerve bundles within the perivascular tissue.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the displaying includes displaying an axial cross section of the vessel showing tissue characterization within the adventitial tissue.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein displaying includes displaying a longitudinal cross sectional view of the vessel showing tissue characterization within the adventitial tissue.

6. The method of claim 1, further including identifying areas of adventitial tissue impacted by ablation.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein said areas include nerve bundles.

8. The method of claim 1, further including performing a first imaging of the vessel and first tissue characterization of the adventitial tissue of the vessel, conducting a therapy on the vessel, performing a second imaging of the vessel and second tissue characterization of the adventitial tissue of the vessel, comparing the first and second tissue characterizations and displaying the differences to the user.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the tissue characterization includes identifying vasa vasorum in the adventitial tissue of the vessel.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the displaying includes displaying an axial cross section of the vessel showing the vasa vasorum within the adventitial tissue.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein displaying includes displaying a longitudinal cross sectional view of the vessel showing the vasa vasorum within the adventitial tissue.

12. The method of claim 9, further including displaying tissue characteristic information for other portions of the vessel.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the other tissue characteristics include plaque within the artery.

14. The method of claim 9, further including providing information to the user on the length of enhanced vasa vasorum growth along the length of the blood vessel.

15. The method of claim 14, further including determining a stent length at least in part of the detected vasa vasorum growth adjacent a lesion.

16. The method of claim 9, further including imaging a vessel including a stent, characterizing the adventitial tissue adjacent the stent to determine vasa vasorum growth, and evaluating vessel health adjacent the stent based on the vasa vasorum growth.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein the tissue characterization includes identifying muscle tissue within the adventitial tissue of the vessel.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the displaying includes displaying an axial cross section of the vessel showing the muscle tissue within the adventitial tissue.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein the displaying includes displaying a longitudinal cross sectional view of the vessel showing the muscle tissue within the adventitial tissue.

20. The method of claim 17, wherein the tissue characterization includes identifying a border between the adventitial tissue and overlying muscle tissue.

21. The method of claim 1, further including imaging a stent disposed in the vessel and comparing the sensed image data to a data base of know stent patterns.

22. The method of claim 21, further including subtracting a stent image from the vessel image to permit better display of tissue characterization.

23. The method of claim 21, further including comparing stent image return echoes to a data base of know stent patterns and displaying detected deviations between the sensed stent image and the data base stent patterns.

24. The method of claim 23, wherein the stent includes one or more bioresorbable materials and displaying detected deviations includes displaying changes based in the resorbable stent material.

25. The method of claim 21, further including evaluating the stent for the development of plaques on the stent and displaying the detected plaques to a user.

26. The method of claim 21, further including evaluating the placement of stent struts against the interior of the vessel.

27. A system for adventitial tissue characterization, the system including:

a data base of known adventitial tissue patterns;

a sensor for collecting imaging data from a vessel; and

a processor configured to compare the sensor imaging data to the data base of known adventitial tissue patterns and determine tissue characterizations within the adventitial tissues.

28. A method for utilizing tissue characterization in image guided therapy, comprising:

positioning an imaging device and a therapy device within the lumen of a vessel;

imaging the vessel including the adventitial tissue surrounding at least a portion of the lumen;

performing tissue characterization on the adventitial tissue;

displaying adventitial tissue characteristics to a user; and

changing the position of the therapy device in response to the displayed adventitial tissue characteristics.

29. The method of claim 28, including defining a longitudinal direction of the therapy device and alerting to the user to the presence of adventitial tissue in the longitudinal direction of the therapy device.

30. The method of claim 28, wherein the therapy device is a chronic total occlusion crossing device and said changing includes changing the longitudinal direction of the device.

31. The method of claim 28, wherein the therapy device is an ablation device and the changing includes changing the longitudinal or radial position of the ablation device within the vessel in response to the adventitial tissue characteristics.