Oratec Interventions, Inc.

Smith + Nephew

Terumo Kabushiki Kaisha

Andy Uchida

Hugh R Sharkey

John E Ashley

Kevin To

Nelson L Scarborough

Erik T Engelson

Jose D Alejandro

Kenneth N Horne

Huy D Phan

Uday N Kumar

Duane W Marion

Miriam H Taimisto

Dominique Filloux

Dan Francis

Le Trong Le

Doug Sutton

Ralph I McNall, Iii

Steven Lepke

Katherine Knudsen

John V Hamilton

Ken Woodland

Lucia Kim

Peter A Weissman

Methods for treating anatomic tissue defects such as a patent foramen ovale generally involve positioning a distal end of a catheter device at the site of the defect, exposing a housing and energy transmission member from the distal end of the catheter, engaging the housing with tissues at the site of the defect, applying suction or other approximating tool to the tissue via the housing to bring the tissue together, and applying energy to the tissue with the energy transmission member or to deliver a clip or fixation device to substantially close the defect. Apparatus generally include a catheter body, a housing extending from a distal end of the catheter body for engaging tissue at the site of the defect, and further adapted to house a fusing or fixation device such as an energy transmission member adjacent a distal end of the housing, or a clip or fixation delivery element.

Methods and electrode apparatus to achieve a closure of a layered tissue defect

A fluid introduction system includes an introducer configured to create a pressure of at least 69 kPa within a spine, and an operator configured to actuate the introducer to introduce fluid into the spine according to a predetermined fluid introduction profile. The system can include a computer readable medium having code for receiving fluid introduction data indicative of a fluid introduction parameter, and for receiving response data indicative of a response of the patient at a time related to a time of the fluid introduction data. A method for introducing fluid includes positioning a first introducer in a first portion of a spine, positioning a second introducer in a second, different portion of the spine and, without removing the first and second introducers, introducing fluid into the first portion of the spine with the first introducer and introducing fluid into the second portion of the spine with the second introducer.

Spinal fluid introduction

A method of delivering energy to an intervertebral disc includes positioning an energy delivery device adjacent an inner wall of the disc, and shrinking the nucleus pulposus. An energy delivery element of the device is positioned adjacent a bulge in the intervertebral disc. Energy delivery is controlled based on monitored temperature. A device for delivering energy includes a catheter with a distal portion configured to be inserted into a patient and to follow a natural boundary of a patient tissue, and an energy delivery element located at the distal portion for treating tissue. The distal portion includes a braided polymeric material. The catheter has a proximal portion including a tube for transmitted torque to the distal portion. The energy delivery element is a resistive heating coil having a length, e.g., of about 1.5 cm.

Intervertebral decompression

A method includes recognizing an electrosurgical probe coupled to an electrosurgical generator, selecting a mode of the electrosurgical generator based upon the recognized probe, setting a therapy profile based upon the selected mode, and displaying the therapy profile. The generator can include user inputs for modifying the therapy profile. A computer implemented method for achieving a target temperature includes: a) receiving the target temperature; b) calculating a first set temperature; c) commanding a first output power level until a measured temperature is equal to or greater than the first set temperature; d) calculating an updated set temperature based upon the target temperature; e) commanding a second output power level until the measured temperature is equal to or greater than the updated set temperature; and repeating d and e until the updated set temperature is equal to the target temperature.

Electrosurgical generator

An intervertebral disc device is provided comprising a distal probe sized to be extended from a distal end of an introducer that is percutaneously delivered into an interior of an intervertebral disc, a distal section of the probe comprising an active and return electrode which are each spirally wrapped around the probe such that there are multiple alternating bands of the same active and return positioned longitudinally along the length of the distal section of the probe, the active and return being adapted to deliver bipolar electromagnetic energy to tissue within the intervertebral disc; and a proximal handle for externally guiding the probe within an intervertebral disc.

Electromagnetic energy delivery intervertebral disc treatment devices

An intervertebral disc device is provided comprising a distal probe sized to be extended from a distal end of an introducer that is percutaneously delivered into an interior of an intervertebral disc, a distal section of the probe comprising a flexible neck which tapers in a proximal to distal direction, and a distal tip which is larger in cross sectional diameter than the flexible neck adjacent the distal tip, the flexible neck and distal tip serving to prevent the probe distal end from piercing an internal wall of the intervertebral disc; and a proximal handle for externally guiding the probe within an intervertebral disc.

Intervertebral disc device employing flexible probe

An intervertebral disc device is provided comprising a probe capable of being extended from a distal end of an introducer that is percutaneously delivered into an interior of an intervertebral disc, the probe forming a loop when extended from the distal end of the introducer, the loop having first and second proximal ends external to the introducer which are brought together adjacent the introducer distal end to form the loop by the proximal ends being either attached to or entering the distal end of the introducer; and a proximal handle for externally causing the probe to be extended from the distal end of the introducer and externally guiding the probe within an intervertebral disc.

Intervertebral disc device employing looped probe

An intervertebral disc device is provided comprising a distal sheath sized to be extended from a distal end of an introducer that is percutaneously delivered into an interior of an intervertebral disc, a distal section of the sheath being predisposed to adopting a bent configuration when extended from the introducer; a probe adapted to be extended from a distal end of the sheath, the bent section of the sheath causing the probe to adopt a same bent configuration; and a proximal handle for externally guiding the probe within an intervertebral disc.

Intervertebral disc device employing prebent sheath

Growing community of inventors

Mountain View, CA, United States of America

Andy Uchida