Eli Lilly and Company

Edwards Lifesciences Corporation

Robert Ian Lister

Adrian Benton James

Diana Nguyen-Thien-Nhon

Robert Stobie

Ralph Kafesjian

Andrzej Skoskiewicz

Aaron Ernesto Sklar

Banny Banerjee

Brian J Mason

John W Lai

Paul Joseph Silberschatz

Steven Bishop

Nancy J Serpiello

An improved holder and method for implanting a tissue-type prosthetic mitral heart valve that prevents suture looping and ma y also constrict the commissure posts of the valve. An upstanding or shaft member axially positioned on the holder causes the lengths of attachment sutures to extend axially beyond the commissure post tips to create a tent and prevent looping of any of an array of pre-implanted sutures around the tips during deployment of the valve. The shaft member may be axially movable such that it can be initially retracted and then actuated just prior to valve deployment. The shaft member may have notches on its distal tip for capturing the attachment sutures, which are crossed over along the valve axis to ensure engagement by the notches. The attachment sutures may be strands or filaments, or may be wider bands of flexible biocompatible material. If bands are used, they desirably cover the commissure post tips to further help prevent suture looping thereover. The flexible lengths of material extend directly between commissures of the valve, or may extending radially inward from each commissure to a central upstanding member.

Heart valve holder and method for resisting suture looping

An improved holder and method for implanting a tissue-type prosthetic mitral heart valve that prevents suture looping and may also constrict the commissure posts of the valve. An upstanding or shaft member axially positioned on the holder causes the lengths of attachment sutures to extend axially beyond the commissure post tips to create a tent and prevent looping of any of an array of pre-implanted sutures around the tips during deployment of the valve. The shaft member may be axially movable such that it can be initially retracted and then actuated just prior to valve deployment. The shaft member may have notches on its distal tip for capturing the attachment sutures, which are crossed over along the valve axis to ensure engagement by the notches. The attachment sutures may be strands or filaments, or may be wider bands of flexible biocompatible material. If bands are used, they desirably cover the commissure post tips to further help prevent suture looping thereover. The flexible lengths of material extend directly between commissures of the valve, or may extending radially inward from each commissure to a central upstanding member.

A delay mechanism for staging the operation of an automatic injection apparatus () to ensure medication contents are properly delivered prior to the needled syringe () of the apparatus being retracted. In one form, the delay mechanism includes a shuttle (), a follower (), a locking member, a damping compound, and a driver and a driver biasing element (). The shuttle is for a needled syringe of the apparatus and includes a first latching element. The follower includes a second latching element and a cammable surface, which second latching element is for cooperating with the first latching element to limit motion of the shuttle relative to the follower in a second direction opposite the first direction. The locking member is movable from a locking position to a release position by engagement with the syringe plunger during an injection, the locking member, when in the locking position, preventing rotation of the follower relative to the shuttle, the locking member, when in the release position, allowing rotation of the follower relative to the shuttle. The damping compound is between the follower and a supporting surface to dampen rotation of the follower relative to the shuttle. The driver is rotatably fixed relative to the shuttle and includes a camming surface. The shuttle allowing retracting of the syringe needle into the housing of the automatic injection apparatus after injection.

Delay mechanism for automatic injection device

A pharmaceutical delivery device with triggered automatic needle insertion and manually controlled pharmaceutical injection. The pharmaceutical delivery device includes a housing, a pharmaceutical containing needled syringe having an injection tip that is recessed within the housing when the syringe is in a first position and which projects from the housing when the syringe is in a second position, a syringe advancing assembly operable to automatically advance the needled syringe from the first position to the second position, a plunger including an input portion projecting from the housing for manual access by a user, wherein the plunger is operable by the user directly shifting the input portion when the syringe is disposed in the second position to inject pharmaceutical from the syringe through the needle at a rate adjustably controlled by a user during the injection, and wherein the plunger includes a plunger extender automatically movable within the housing from a first location to a second location upon the needled syringe advancing from the first position to the second position, wherein the plunger extender, when in the second location, occupies a space vacated by the needled syringe during advancement from the first position to the second position, whereby the plunger input portion remains stationary relative to the housing during the advancement of the needled syringe.

Needled pharmaceutical delivery device with triggered automatic needle insertion and manually controlled pharmaceutical injection

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Sunnyvale, CA, United States of America

Robert Ian Lister