Children's Medical Center Corporation

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Harvard College

The Brigham and Women's Hospital, Inc.

Assunta Fabozzo

Jeffrey Michael Karp

Conor James Walsh

Pedro J Del Nido

Panagiotis Polygerinos

Yuhan Lee

Steven Charles Wasserman

Ellen T Roche

Lucia R Schuster

Ingeborg Friehs

Pierre DuPont

Veaceslav Arabagi

Asghar Ataollahi

Dana Damian

An insertable catheter device includes a shaft including a proximal end and a distal end, an expandable balloon, and an actuator configured to expand and retract the expandable balloon. The actuator includes a fluid conduit that extends through the shaft and is coupled with the expandable balloon to enable inflation and retraction of the expandable balloon via injection or withdrawal of a fluid to or from the expandable balloon via the fluid conduit. The expandable balloon is displaceably retractable into the shaft and extendable from the shaft. A fluid pump is coupled with the fluid conduit to pump the fluid through the fluid conduit. A patch is positioned to be displaced by the expandable balloon when the expandable balloon is inflated, and the expandable balloon is displaceably retractable into the shaft and displaceably extendable from the shaft.

Insertable catheter device for patch application

An insertable light-dispensing catheter device, comprising a shaft including a proximal and distal end, a light guide extending through the shaft, and a mirror displaceably extendable from the catheter into a position where the mirror receives and reflects light emitted from the light guide. The mirror can be in the form of a coating on an inflatable balloon; and the balloon, when inflated, can press a patch against a defect (e.g., a ventricular septical defect), while the light cures an adhesive that binds the patch to the structure with the defect, thereby remedying the defect.

Catheter device for transmitting and reflecting light

Methods and apparatuses relate to an implantable apparatu0s that may be used to apply tensile force(s) to one or more tissue regions (e.g., proximal and distal esophagus portions, bowel, other conduits) within the body. Such tensile force(s) may cause stretch and/or growth of the tissue region(s). In various embodiments, support members (e.g., suture rings) may be attached to respective tissue regions. The support members may accommodate attachment of a number of sutures along the tissue region. Upon suitable attachment of the support member(s) to the tissue region(s), the actuator may be coupled to the support member(s). The actuator may then be controlled so as to cause relative movement between the support members toward or away from one another. Such movement may result in the application of appropriate tensile force(s) to the tissue region(s).

Methods and apparatuses for applying tensile force to tissue

Growing community of inventors

Jamaica Plain, MA, United States of America

Assunta Fabozzo