Claims
- 1. A transseptal needle antenna system suitable for receiving magnetic resonance signals from a sample, comprising:
a hollow needle having a distal portion and a proximal portion, said distal portion having a distalmost end sharpened for penetrating a myocardial wall, and said needle further comprising a first conductor; an insulator/dielectric applied to cover the first conductor over the proximal portion of said needle; a second conductor applied to cover the insulator/dielectric; and an interface assembly for interfacing with an MRI scanner.
- 2. The system of claim 1, wherein the distal portion is about 5 cm. in length.
- 3. The system of claim 1, wherein the myocardial wall is an interatrial septum.
- 4. The system of claim 1, wherein the first conductor is formed as the hollow needle.
- 5. The system of claim 1, wherein the first conductor is applied as a layer to a surface of the hollow needle.
- 6. The system of claim 5, wherein the surface is an outer surface of the hollow needle.
- 7. The system of claim 1, wherein the hollow needle comprises Nitinol.
- 8. The system of claim 5, wherein the first conductor comprises platinum.
- 9. The system of claim 1, wherein the insulator/dielectric comprises an insulating polymer.
- 10. The system of claim 9, wherein the insulating polymer is Teflon.
- 11. The system of claim 1, wherein the second conductor comprises platinum.
- 12. The system of claim 1, further comprising an obturator.
- 13. A method for visualizing an intrathoracic region of interest using MRI techniques, comprising:
providing a needle system comprising a hollow needle having a distal portion and a proximal portion, said distal portion having a distalmost end sharpened for penetrating a myocardial wall, and said needle further comprising a first conductor, an insulator/dielectric applied to cover the first conductor over the proximal portion of said needle and a second conductor applied to cover the insulator/dielectric; directing the needle system into proximity to a myocardial wall; tracking progress of the needle system using active MRI tracking; penetrating the myocardial wall to approach the intrathoracic region of interest; and using the needle system as an MRI antenna to receive magnetic resonance signals from the intrathoracic region of interest.
- 14. The method of claim 13, wherein the intrathoracic region of interest is a cardiac chamber.
- 15. The method of claim 13, wherein the intrathoracic region of interest is a cardiac valve.
- 16. The method of claim 13, wherein the intrathoracic region of interest is a coronary vessel.
- 17. The method of claim 13, wherein the intrathoracic region of interest is a myocardial structure.
- 18. The method of claim 13, wherein the myocardial wall is an interatrial septum.
REFERENCE TO PRIOR APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. Utility patent application Ser. No. 09/536,090, filed Mar. 24, 2000, and claims priority thereto, and claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/178,933 filed Feb. 1, 2000. The entire disclosure of each application is hereby incorporated by reference.
Provisional Applications (1)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
|
60178933 |
Feb 2000 |
US |
Continuation in Parts (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
09536090 |
Mar 2000 |
US |
Child |
09775338 |
Feb 2001 |
US |