# US 10,765,844 B2 · Medical fluid drainage system > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 10,765,844 B2 - Document ID: US10765844B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 15/516,429 - Filed: 2015-09-25 - Published: 2018-08-16 - Granted: 2020-09-08 - Earliest claimed: 2014-10-06 - Assignees: Ecole Polytechnique Federale De Lausanne (Epfl) - Applicants: Ecole Polytechnique Federale De Lausanne (Epfl) - Inventors: Marco Pisano; Valentina Triacca - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US10765844B2 ## CPC - A61M 27/002: {Implant devices for drainage of body fluids from one part of the body to another (intraocular A61F9/00781; middle ear A61F11/202)} - A61M 2202/0405: Lymph - A61M 2205/04: implanted - A61M: DEVICES FOR INTRODUCING MEDIA INTO, OR ONTO, THE BODY (introducing media into or onto the bodies of animals A61D7/00; means for inserting tampons A61F13/26; devices for administering food or medicines orally A61J; containers for collecting, storing or administering blood or medical fluids A61J1/05); DEVICES FOR TRANSDUCING BODY MEDIA OR FOR TAKING MEDIA FROM THE BODY (surgery A61B; chemical aspects of surgical articles A61L); DEVICES FOR PRODUCING OR ENDING SLEEP OR STUPOR {(Electrotherapy, e.g. producing anaesthesia by the use of alternating or intermittent currents A61N1/36021)} ## Abstract A medical fluid drainage system which may be advantageously used to actively absorb excess fluid from an interstitium in a living host and to transport it from an inlet member 1 in a non edematous body part out of an outlet member 4 via pumps (5, 6, 7) built in series, such as a distal area with functional lymphatic vessels, or directly in a lymphatic vessel, or directly in a blood vessel. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A medical fluid drainage system for draining a fluid from an edematous space of a subcutaneous area of a living body comprising: N pumps, N being an integer number that is larger or equal to 2, the N pumps connected in series, the integer number N pumps limited by a size of the subcutaneous area for accommodating the N pumps, each having an inlet and an outlet; a first inlet member connected to the inlet of a first pump; N−1 inlet members providing fluidic connections between the N pumps; an outlet member connected to the outlet of a last pump; and a controller configured to provide a coordinated operation of the N pumps to provide for a fluid flow from the first and the N−1 inlet members towards the outlet member, wherein the N pumps, the first inlet member, the N−1 inlet members, and outlet member forming a fluid line, wherein each of the N−1 inlet members includes an entry point configured to allow the fluid to directly enter the fluid line, wherein the outlet member includes an exit point configured to allow the fluid to directly exit the fluid line, and wherein the controller is configured to control the N pumps such that first a pump among the N pumps located the most downstream is activated while remaining pumps of the N pumps are closed, and thereafter repeatedly activating a neighboring pump located upstream while keeping downstream pumps open. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, wherein each one of the N−1 inlet members has a tubular shape, the entry point including a lateral entry point. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, wherein the entry point of each one of the N−1 inlet members includes a porous surface having several entry points. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, wherein the entry point of each one of the N−1 inlet members includes an absorbing surface having several entry points. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, wherein the outlet member has a tubular shape with an open free end forming the exit point. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, wherein the outlet member has a tubular shape with the exit point being laterally arranged. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1 configured to drain the fluid from a location within a living body, the fluid being a physiological fluid. ### Claim 8 (depends on 7) The system of claim 7, configured to be partially or totally implantable. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, wherein the outlet member is connected in parallel to a second fluid drainage system. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, further comprising: an actuator for activating the fluid line; a pressure or flow sensor connected to at least one of the N−1 inlet members and to the outlet member, wherein a measurement of the pressure or flow rate sensor is used to determine a frequency of motion of the actuator. ### Claim 11 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to control the N pumps such that a flow rate of a pump of the N pumps is larger than a flow rate of a respective neighboring pump arranged upstream. ### Claim 12 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to operate the N pumps to generate a peristaltic pressure wave along the fluid line. ### Claim 13 A method of draining excess fluid from an edematous space of a subcutaneous area with a medical fluid drainage system, the system including, N pumps, N being an integer number that is larger or equal to 2, the N pumps connected in series, the integer number N pumps limited by a size of the subcutaneous area for accommodating the N pumps, each having an inlet and an outlet; a first inlet member connected to the inlet of a first pump; N−1 inlet members providing fluidic connections between the N pumps; and an outlet member connected to the outlet of a last pump, wherein the N pumps, the first inlet member, the N−1 inlet members, and outlet member forming a fluid line, each of the N−1 inlet members includes an entry point configured to allow a fluid to directly enter the fluid line, and the outlet member includes an exit point configured to allow the fluid to directly exit the fluid line, the method comprising the steps of: implanting the system in a living host, by positioning the first inlet member in the edematous space and by positioning the outlet member in a non-edematous space; and activating and coordinating the N pumps to drain fluid from the edematous space to the non-edematous space through the fluid line, the activating and coordinating including a controlling of the N pumps such that first a pump among the N pumps located the most downstream is activated while remaining pumps of the N pumps are closed, and thereafter successively activating a neighboring pump located upstream while keeping downstream pumps open. ### Claim 14 (depends on 13) The method of claim 13, further comprising the step of: providing a specific flow rate with each one of the N pumps depending on a location of each one of the N pumps along the fluid line. ### Claim 15 (depends on 13) The method of claim 13, further comprising the step of: operating the N pumps to generate a peristaltic pressure wave along the fluid line. ### Claim 16 (depends on 13) The method of claim 13, wherein the step of activating and coordinating the N pumps further comprises: controlling the N pumps such that a flow rate of a pump of the N pumps is larger than a flow rate of a respective neighboring pump arranged upstream.