Medtronic Vascular, Inc.

Transvascular, Inc.

Jason Brian Whitt

Joshua Makower

J Christopher Flaherty

Philip Christopher Evard

John T Garibotto

Timothy R Machold

Patrick Edward Macaulay

David R Tholfsen

Margaret W Tumas

John Y Chang

Marc Jensen

Robert C Colloton

K Angela Macfarlane

Theodore Charles Lamson

Russell J Redmond

Claude A Vidal

Thomas Banks

Alan Robert Selfridge

Steven W Kim

Patrick E MacAulay

Alex T Roth

Motoya Hayase

Patrick MacAulay

Adrian E Johnson

Patrick Edward Macauley

Christopher J Flaherty

John Thomas Garibotto

Christopher J c/o Proteus Biomedical Inc Flaherty

The inventions described in this patent application include i) a torqueable introducer sheath which is useable in conjunction with a transvascular passageway forming catheter to effect precise rotational control of the catheter; ii) an anchorable guide catheter which is useable in conjunction with an intravascular imaging catheter and a transvascular passageway-forming catheter to effect precise positioning and aiming of the passageway-forming catheter; iii) a passageway forming catheter having a torqueable proximal portion to facilitate precise rotational positioning of the distal portion of the catheter; iv) a deflectable-tipped passageway forming catheter, v) various markers and other apparatus useable in conjunction with any of the passageway-forming catheters to facilitate precise positioning and aiming of the catheter, and vi) an apparatus which may be formed within a catheter to prevent a member, apparatus of flow of material from being inadvertently advanced through a lumen of the catheter.

Catheters and related devices for forming passageways between blood vessels or other anatomical structures

A system of catheter devices and methods for forming channels or passageways between a luminal anatomical structure (e.g., a blood vessel) and a target location (e.g., another blood vessel, an organ, a mass of tissue, etc.) for the purpose of rerouting blood flow or for delivering a substance or instrument, etc. to the target location.

Catheters, systems and methods for percutaneous in situ arterio-venous bypass

Devices and methods for penetrating from a vessel lumen in which a catheter device is positioned to a target location outside of that vessel lumen. A tissue penetrator advances from a catheter positioned within the vessel lumen to the target location when properly aimed. An imaging transducer fixedly mounted on or within the catheter body provides an imaging signal from which an image of the target location can be obtained. An imageable marker may be present on the catheter to form on the image obtainable from the imaging signal to predict the path that will be followed by the tissue penetrator when the tissue penetrator exits from the catheter. Alternatively, or addition thereto, the imaging transducer may comprise a plurality of imaging elements which are located so that the penetrator path indication can be obtained electronically without use of an imageable marker on the catheter.

Tissue penetrating catheters having integral imaging transducers and their methods of use

Systems and methods for delivering drugs or other substances to target locations outside of blood vessel lumens or other body lumens. In some embodiments, a catheter having a penetrator is advanced into the body lumen and the penetrator is then advanced from the catheter toward a target location outside of that body lumen. The substance is then delivered through a the penetrator itself or through a delivery catheter that has been advanced through the penetrator to the target location. In other embodiments, the blood vessel or other body lumen is blocked at spaced-apart first and second locations and a quantity of the substance is introduced into the closed-off body lumen between the blocked first and second locations. The substance then diffuses into or through the wall of the vessel or body conduit to reach the target location.

Systems and methods for delivering drugs to selected locations within the body

A transvascular system for delivering a drug to a tissue region from a blood vessel includes a catheter having a distal portion with puncturing, orientation, drug delivery, and imaging elements. The puncturing element is deployable for penetrating the vessel wall to access the tissue region. The orientation element has a predetermined relationship with the puncturing element, the imaging element detecting the location of the orientation element with respect to the tissue region to orient the puncturing element. The catheter is percutaneously introduced into the vessel, the puncturing element is oriented towards the tissue region, the puncturing element is deployed to access the tissue region, and the drug is delivered to the tissue region. An ablation device may also be deployed to create a cavity or fluid reservoir in the tissue region for receiving the drug therein, or an indwelling catheter may be advanced into and left in the tissue region.

Methods and apparatus for occluding blood flow within a blood vessel. In a first series of embodiments, the present invention comprises a plurality of embolic devices deployable through the lumen of a conventional catheter such that when deployed, said embolic devices remain resident and occlude blood flow at a specific site within the lumen of the blood vessel. Such embolic devices comprise either mechanical embolic devices that become embedded within or compress against the lumen of the vessel or chemical vaso-occlusive agents that seal off blood flow at a given site. A second embodiment of the present invention comprises utilization of a vacuum/cauterizing device capable of sucking in the lumen of the vessel about the device to maintain the vessel in a closed condition where there is then applied a sufficient amount of energy to cause the tissue collapsed about the device to denature into a closure. In a third series of embodiments, the present invention comprises the combination of an embolization facilitator coupled with the application of an energy force to form an intraluminal closure at a specified site within a vessel.

Methods and apparatus for blocking flow through blood vessel

Methods and apparatus for direct coronary revascularization wherein a transmyocardial passageway is formed between a chamber of the heart and a coronary blood vessel to permit blood to flow therebetween. In some embodiments, the transmyocardial passageway is formed between a chamber of the heart and a coronary vein. The invention includes unstented transmyocardial passageways, as well as transmyocardial passageways wherein protrusive stent devices extend from the transmyocardial passageway into an adjacent coronary vessel or chamber of the heart. The apparatus of the present invention include protrusive stent devices for stenting of transmyocardial passageways, intraluminal valving devices for valving of transmyocardial passageways, intracardiac valving devices for valving of transmyocardial passageways, endogenous tissue valves for valving of transmyocardial passageways, and ancillary apparatus for use in conjunction therewith.

Methods and apparatus for transmyocardial direct coronary revascularization

A transvascular system () for delivering a drug to a tissue region from a blood vessel, such as a coronary vein, includes a catheter () having a distal portion () with puncturing (), orientation (), drug delivery (), and imaging elements (). The puncturing element () is deployable for penetrating the vessel wall to access the tissue region. The orientation element (), e.g. a 'cage' including a plurality of struts () () and/or a radiopaque marker, has a predetermined relationship with the puncturing element (), the imaging element () detecting the location of the orientation element () with respect to the tissue region to orient the puncturing element. The catheter () is percutaneously introducing into the vessel, the puncturing element () is oriented towards the tissue region, the puncturing element () is deployed to access the tissue region, and the drug is delivered to the tissue region. An ablation device () may also be deployed to create a cavity or fluid reservoir in the tissue region for receiving the drug therein, or an indwelling catheter () may be advanced into and left in the tissue region.

A catheter device that is useable to penetrate from a blood vessel in which the catheter device is positioned to a target location comprises a flexible catheter advanceable into the first blood vessel, a tissue penetrator lumen adapted to receive an operative tissue penetrator which is usable to penetrate from the blood vessel to the target location when properly aimed. Further said catheter including an imaging transducer fixedly mounted on or within the catheter body to provide an imaging signal from which an image of the target location can be obtained. The catheter device may include an imageable marker on the catheter to form on the image obtainable from the imaging signal a penetrator path indication that indicates the path that will be followed by the tissue penetrator when the tissue penetrator exits from the catheter. Alternatively, or addition thereto, the imaging transducer may comprise a plurality of imaging elements which are located so that the penetrator path indication can be obtained. A method of utilizing such a catheter device to bypass an arterial obstruction is also disclosed.

Devices and methods for achieving directed placement of guidewires or other flexible rails over which other catheters or other devices may be introduced to a targeted location. A guidewire directing device includes a lumen extending between a proximal end and a distal peripheral opening for directing a guidewire laterally from the device, and may have a deflecting member with a predetermined deflection angle in the lumen adjacent the peripheral opening. A snaring device is also provided that includes one or more lumens through which a snare or other grasping member is directed for releasably capturing or coupling to a guidewire. The snaring and target guidewire devices may include cooperating end effectors for releasably coupling or securing the devices together. The devices may be used for directing, snaring and/or manipulating one or more guidewires between two blood vessels connected by an interstitial channel, for example, to 'floss' a guidewire through the coronary arterial and venous systems between two percutaneous entry sites and/or to bypass a lesion in a vessel using proximal and distal interstitial channels communicating with an adjacent vessel.

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San Francisco, CA, United States of America

Jason Brian Whitt