Patent Application
20230001142
Systems and methods for accessing small arteries for conveying catheters to target vessels such as brain vessels are described. In particular, the invention describes systems enabling a catheter to be introduced directly through a vessel opening without an external sheath wherein a distal tip of the catheter is protected by a protective cover. Methods of introducing catheters into vessels and kits are also described.
Neuro-intervention (NI) procedures utilizing catheter systems to gain access to the cerebral arteries for the treatment of ischemic stroke are varied in terms of approach and the catheter systems utilized. Similarly, other intervention procedures to access other target vessels including the heart or other target areas through the vasculature utilize a range of catheter systems.
In many cases, and in particular NI and cardiac-intervention (CI) procedures, access to the vasculature is obtained through the femoral artery, mainly due to its size and its proximity to the skin. While the femoral artery is an advantageous access point, there are downsides to its use primarily due to recovery times when NI and CI procedures are conducted through this location. For example, when a procedure is conducted through the femoral artery, a patient must typically be kept in a treatment center for a longer period of time due to the need for more time for the access wound to heal before allowing the patient to walk.
In comparison, if an NI or CI procedure is conducted through a radial artery, the patient can be discharged more quickly as the healing of the access wound does not prevent the patient becoming ambulatory almost immediately following the procedure. Hence, in an effort to save hospital and other treatment costs, there is a preference, when appropriate to conduct procedures via the arm arteries.
However, the radial/brachial arteries are smaller and thus generally present limitations and complications for certain procedures. Specifically, there is an upper limit on the size of catheters that be introduced into the arm arteries using conventional artery access equipment.
In accordance with the invention, a system for introducing a catheter into the vasculature through a vessel opening (VO) is described, the system including a catheter having an internal diameter and external diameter; an internal guide sized for telescopic movement within the catheter, the internal guide for supporting the catheter and protecting a distal tip of the catheter as the catheter is introduced through a VO, the internal guide having: a tapered distal tip for introducing the system through the VO; and, a protective cover connected to the tapered distal tip extending proximally and expandable for engagement over the distal tip of the catheter, the protective cover moveable between an engaged position over the catheter and a disengaged position; wherein selective movement of the internal guide relative to the catheter causes the protective cover to move from the engaged position to the disengaged position and when in the disengaged position allows the internal support and protective cover to be proximally withdrawn through the catheter.
In various embodiments,
In another aspect the invention describes a kit including an internal support within sterilized packaging, the internal guide sized for telescopic movement within a catheter, the internal guide for supporting the catheter and protecting a distal tip of the catheter as the catheter is introduced through a VO, the internal guide having: a tapered distal tip for introducing the system through the VO; and, a protective cover connected to the tapered distal tip extending proximally and expandable for engagement over the distal tip of the catheter, the protective cover moveable between an engaged position over the catheter and a disengaged position; wherein selective movement of the internal guide relative to the catheter causes the protective cover to move from the engaged position to the disengaged position and when in the disengaged position allows the internal support and protective cover to be proximally withdrawn through the catheter.
In various embodiments,
The internal support and catheter are packaged within the same sterilized packaging.
The catheter and the internal support are in separate packages including a catheter package and an internal support package.
The internal support package, the expandable ring having an internal diameter expandable between an external diameter of the internal support and an external diameter of the catheter, the expandable ring having a distal edge having a thickness to be placed under a proximal edge of the protective cover during assembly of the protective cover on the catheter.
In another aspect the invention describes a method of introducing a catheter into a vessel through a vessel opening VO comprising the steps of:
a) puncturing a vessel with a hollow needle to form a VO;
b) introducing a wire through the hollow needle;
c) withdrawing the needle over the wire;
d) introducing an arterial access assembly of an internal guide having a tapered proximal tip and a catheter supported over the internal guide, the catheter having a distal tip operatively engaged with a protective cover configured to the internal guide;
e) advancing the assembly away from the VO;
f) advancing the internal guide proximally relative to the catheter to disengage the protective cover from the distal tip of the catheter; and,
g) withdrawing the internal guide and protective cover through the catheter.
Various objects, features and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description of particular embodiments of the invention, as illustrated in the accompanying drawings. The drawings are not necessarily to scale, emphasis instead being placed upon illustrating the principles of various embodiments of the invention. Similar reference numerals indicate similar components.
The inventor who has experience in the treatment of acute ischemic stroke recognized that a problem exists in introducing larger diameter aspiration catheters into smaller arteries, such as the radial artery, utilizing current artery access equipment. The invention as described herein, describes methods for effectively introducing larger diameter catheter systems into smaller arteries at the artery access stage of endovascular/neuro-intervention procedures.
The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. As used herein, the singular forms “a”, “an” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises” and/or “comprising,” when used in this specification, specify the presence of stated features, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof. As used herein, the term “and/or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items.
Spatially relative terms, such as “distal”, “proximal”, “forward”, “rearward”, “under”, “below”, “lower”, “over”, “upper” and the like, may be used herein for ease of description to describe one element or feature's relationship to another element(s) or feature(s) as illustrated in the figures. It will be understood that the spatially relative terms are intended to encompass different orientations of the device in use or operation in addition to the orientation depicted in the figures. For example, if a feature in the figures is inverted, elements described as “under” or “beneath” other elements or features would then be oriented “over” the other elements or features. Thus, the exemplary term “under” can encompass both an orientation of over and under. A feature may be otherwise oriented (rotated 90 degrees or at other orientations) and the spatially relative descriptors used herein interpreted accordingly. Similarly, the terms “upwardly”, “downwardly”, “vertical”, “horizontal” and the like are used herein for the purpose of explanation only unless specifically indicated otherwise.
It will be understood that when an element is referred to as being “on”, “attached” to, “connected” to, “coupled” with, “contacting”, etc., another element, it can be directly on, attached to, connected to, coupled with or contacting the other element or intervening elements may also be present. In contrast, when an element is referred to as being, for example, “directly on”, “directly attached” to, “directly connected” to, “directly coupled” with or “directly contacting” another element, there are no intervening elements present.
It will be understood that, although the terms “first”, “second”, etc may be used herein to describe various elements, components, etc., these elements, components, etc. should not be limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish one element, component, etc. from another element, component. Thus, a “first” element, or component discussed herein could also be termed a “second” element or component without departing from the teachings of the present invention. In addition, the sequence of operations (or steps) is not limited to the order presented in the claims or figures unless specifically indicated otherwise.
Other than described herein, or unless otherwise expressly specified, all of the numerical ranges, amounts, values and percentages, such as those for amounts of materials, elemental contents, times and temperatures, ratios of amounts, and others, in the following portion of the specification and attached claims may be read as if prefaced by the word “about” even though the term “about” may not expressly appear with the value, amount, or range. Accordingly, unless indicated to the contrary, the numerical parameters set forth in the following specification and attached claims are approximations that may vary depending upon the desired properties sought to be obtained by the present invention. At the very least, and not as an attempt to limit the application of the doctrine of equivalents to the scope of the claims, each numerical parameter should at least be construed in light of the number of reported significant digits and by applying ordinary rounding techniques.
Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs.
Various aspects of the invention will now be described with reference to the figures. For the purposes of illustration, components depicted in the figures are not necessarily drawn to scale. In particular, directions of width and length may be distorted with respect to one another in that widths generally reflect the internal diameters of arteries (typically mm scale) whereas lengths reflect the lengths of arteries (typically a cm+ scale). Thus, for clarity, the “length” scale is generally (but not necessarily) compressed with respect to the width scale and/or shows breaks in the length of components. As such, emphasis is placed on highlighting the various contributions of the components to the functionality of various aspects of the invention. A number of possible alternative features are introduced during the course of this description. It is to be understood that, according to the knowledge and judgment of persons skilled in the art, such alternative features may be substituted in various combinations to arrive at different embodiments of the present invention.
With reference to the figures, systems and methods for introducing catheters into smaller arteries are described.
In a first step, as shown in
As shown in
As shown in
An arterial access system (AAS) as shown in
After the AAS has been introduced as shown in
In accordance with the invention, the inventor recognized that the introduction of a larger bore catheter such as an aspiration catheter (AC) suitable for aspirating a clot from the cerebral arteries would be too large to be introduced into smaller vessels (such as the radial or brachial arteries) within an external sheath 30. That is, the external sheath of a radial artery AAS has a practical maximum internal diameter of about 6 F (OD of about 7.2 F) to allow the passage of a 6 F AC through the external sheath whereas it is desirable to introduce ACs into the cerebral vessels that have outside diameters greater than 6 F (eg. about 6-8 F).
Hence, there has been need for arterial access assemblies (AAAs) that enable the introduction of larger catheters such as an aspiration catheter (AC) into the radial arteries. AAAs are described herein with reference to ACs and cerebral access procedures, although it is understood that different types of catheters for different procedures are contemplated.
As described in Applicant's co-pending applications, U.S. provisional application 62/878,652 filed Jul. 25, 2019, U.S. provisional application 63/029,401 filed May 23, 2020 and International patent application PCT/CA2020/051026 filed Jul. 24, 2020, all incorporated herein by reference, the design of an aspiration catheter that can be maneuvered from the arterial access point (e.g. groin or radial artery) is characterized by a soft distal tip section that is both sufficiently soft to be atraumatic as it navigates through the cerebral arteries, flexible enough to pass through tight curves and also allow effective suction to be applied to a blood clot. Also, the tip is radio-opaque to allow visualization during navigation through neck and intracranial vessels.
Importantly, in order to ensure that the AC is suitable for aspiration, the AC tip generally cannot have a taper at its distal tip (i.e. a narrower wall thickness at the distal tip tapering to a wider wall thickness in the proximal direction) as an AC requires a certain radial stiffness to prevent the distal tip from collapsing when suction is being applied to a clot.
It is also important that when an AAS is being deployed through a VO that the risk of damaging the vessel wall is minimized. Thus, while equipment being pushed into a vessel can tightly engage the vessel, AASs have generally been designed such that the external sheath has an internal taper that enables a smooth transition between the internal guide and external sheath without a significant edge at point 27 (see
The inventor also realized it would be desirable to be able to introduce an AC into a radial artery with the AC being supported internally by an internal guide 20 with the tapered tip 22 of the internal guide protruding from the end of the AC. However, the inventor recognized that the transition between the internal guide 20 and AC is problematic due to the oblique shape of the distal tip of an AC, the softness/flexibility of the distal tip of the AC, the presence of a radio-opaque marker and the lack of distal taper. In other words, without a substantially equivalent stiffness as a comparable external sheath (as shown in
The inventor recognized that in order for the soft distal tip of an AC to pass through and past the VO, a portion of the distal tip of the AC must be protected for its passage through the first 0-15+ cm (approximately) of the vessel as the surgeon is pushing the AC upstream, for example, towards the aortic arch. Generally, internal support in the form of an introducer is not needed after the initial approximate 15 cm as the arteries become sufficiently large that the AC tip will not be tightly engaged against the VW and will be able to be pushed forward without internal support and without crumpling.
Accordingly, in a first embodiment of the invention as shown in
In
In greater detail, the internal guide 40 is sufficiently long to extend beyond the proximal end of the AC and be capable of manipulation from the proximal end of the AC. In addition, the internal guide 40 includes the DTPS that is formed as part of the internal guide to protect and prevent buckling of the AC tip as it is being inserted through the VO and into the artery.
As shown in
The DTPS has a distal end 42a secured to the internal guide 40 and a proximal end 42b that covers the distal tip AC1 of the AC. The DTPS extends proximally a sufficient distance to frictionally engage over a sufficient length of the AC so as to prevent separation/buckling of the AC1 with respect to the internal guide 40.
As shown schematically, the proximal end of the AC includes a stop AC3 that defines a proximal end of the AC. Similarly, the internal guide 40 includes a proximal end stop 40b. The end stop 40b and AC2 are separated a short distance shown as “a” in
As shown in
The internal guide 40 can be provided with one or more recesses 42d within the internal guide 40 such that as the elastic arm ends 42b of DTPS move past AC1, they will be drawn into the recess(es) 42d (dotted line) and thus become flush (or recessed) with respect to the external surface of the internal guide 40.
Thereafter, the end stop 40b can be moved proximally to a length greater than “a” (shown as “c”) and relative to AC2 such that the internal guide 40 can be withdrawn from the AC with the DTPS being able to pass into AC through AC1 (
The internal guide 40 can then be fully removed from the AC thus having introduced the AC into the vessel and allowing further steps of the procedure to be completed.
Typically, the AC/internal guide assembly (AAA) would be pushed forward a distance up to about 15 cm from the VO before conducting the steps as described above.
In this embodiment, after the AC/internal guide assembly has been inserted into the vessel, the internal guide 40 is removed following similar steps to those described above. That is, the internal guide is initially pushed distally to push the umbrella past AC1 (
In another embodiment, the umbrella 30 may “invert” with respect the internal guide 40 when subsequently withdrawn as shown in
Accordingly, as above, the internal guide can then be fully withdrawn.
The arterial access assemblies described above may be assembled at a factory or at a treatment center immediately prior to use.
In the case of factory assembly, kits including various catheters and internal guides may be packaged together. Typically, after manufacture of the internal guide with a DTPS and the catheter, both having appropriate internal and external diameters for engagement with one another, the two components would be assembled such that the DIPS is properly engaged with the distal end of the catheter. After assembly and sterilization, the AAA would be packaged in a single package for delivery and subsequent use at a treatment facility.
As understood by those skilled in the art, various combinations of catheters and internal guides may be assembled based on the properties of specific catheters and their diameters.
For example, a factory assembled kit may include any one of a 6-8 F AC having particular functional properties for cerebral endovascular procedures configured to an appropriately sized internal guide.
Practically, as physicians may desire to use particularly brands of catheters, it may not be commercially feasible for the manufacturer of internal guides to assemble internal guides for a wider range of catheters. As a result, assembly of internal guides with physician selected catheters at a treatment center is desirable.
As shown in
In accordance with one embodiment, the following steps may be followed to assemble an internal support 40 manufactured and packaged (referred to as Package A) within sterilized packaging with a catheter (AC) from another manufacturer, packaged and sterilized within separate packaging (referred to as Package B).
Package A containing an internal support 40 and a ring 50 from one supplier/manufacturer is selected. The internal support 40 has a displayed outside diameter (OD) and length. The ring 50 has an inside diameter (ID) substantially corresponding to the internal support OD and able to slide over the internal support.
Package B containing a catheter having a known OD, ID and length is selected. The catheter may be from a different supplier/manufacturer.
The internal support 40 of package A has a length longer than the length of the catheter in package B. Package A may also include a wire.
Both packages are opened and the distal end of the internal support 40 is inserted into the proximal end of the catheter through the proximal end of the catheter until it extends from the distal end of the catheter. The DTPS 42 of the internal support 40 is pushed past the distal end of the catheter AC1, a distance sufficient to allow the ring to be placed over and proximal to the DTPS.
The ring 50 is slid over the distal tip of the internal support 40 and placed proximal to the DTPS as shown in
As shown in
As shown in
As shown in
The combined AC and internal support can then be introduced into an artery via the procedures described above.
Sterilization of the internal support and DTPS is an important consideration. Hence, it is desirable that the DTPS is manufactured from materials allowing appropriate sterilization to be conducted prior to packaging. Expanded poly tetrafluoroethylene (EPTFE) can have sufficient porosity to enable sterilizing gases such as ethylene oxide to fully and properly penetrate the structures for sterilization.
Although the present invention has been described and illustrated with respect to preferred embodiments and preferred uses thereof, it is not to be so limited since modifications and changes can be made therein which are within the full, intended scope of the invention as understood by those skilled in the art.
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/CA2020/051684 | 12/7/2020 | WO |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 62945695 | Dec 2019 | US |
