Doppler guiding catheter using sensed blood turbulence levels

#The invention relates generally to guiding catheters and, more particularly, to Doppler assisted guiding catheters useful for locating and cannulating vessels of a patient's heart.

#Catheters are used in a wide variety of medical procedures. In some applications, these devices provide physicians the ability to explore, operate, and insert drugs/medical devices in various reaches of the anatomy without invasive surgery. Oftentimes, the catheters have medical devices mounted on the catheter shaft, such as in an electrophysiological (EP) ablation catheter, wherein an ablation electrode is mounted at a distal tip of the catheter. In another application, guiding catheters are used to create an easily navigable pathway to be used for delivery of various payloads such as drugs, therapeutic/diagnostic devices (e.g., EP mapping and ablation electrodes), and implantable devices (e.g., cardiac pacing/defibrillation leads).

#Guiding catheter systems are typically configured with a profile that is optimized for the intended method of access. For example, when trying to access the coronary sinus of a patient's heart, one method is to enter the venous system through an incision at a large vein such as the subclavian vein near the shoulder. A guiding catheter is inserted through this incision and is displaced in an arced path through the superior vena cava into the right atrium of the heart. From the right atrium, the ostium of the coronary sinus must be located. A catheter with a distal contour including a relatively sharp bend will point the catheter towards the likely location of the coronary sinus once the right atrium is reached. The contours of pre-shaped guiding catheters are often fixed during manufacture.

#FIG. 1 is a cutaway view of a heart being accessed by a catheter according to the present invention, a distal tip of the catheter located in the right atrium of the heart;

#FIG. 2 is an external view of the catheter's distal end showing a tip mounted ultrasonic Doppler sensor according to the present invention;

#FIG. 3 is a cross sectional view of the catheter corresponding to section 11 in FIG. 2;

#While the invention is amenable to various modifications and alternative forms, specifics thereof have been shown by way of example in the drawings and will be described in detail herein. It is to be understood, however, that the intention is not to limit the invention to the particular embodiments described. On the contrary, the invention is intended to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

#In the following description of the illustrated embodiments, references are made to the accompanying drawings which form a part hereof, and in which is shown by way of illustration, various embodiments in which the invention may be practiced. It is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized, and structural and functional changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

#A catheter according to the present invention employs one or more distally mounted Doppler sensors to detect flow velocities to assist in locating venous orifices, pathways, and other cardiac structures. According to one embodiment, a catheter of the present invention employs a forward viewing Doppler sensor that detects blood flow velocities in a generally axial direction. In another embodiment, a catheter of the present invention employs a side viewing Doppler sensor for detecting blood flow velocities in a generally lateral or radial direction. According to another embodiment, a catheter of the present invention employs a forward viewing Doppler sensor and a side viewing Doppler sensor for detecting blow flow velocities in generally axial and lateral/radial directions, respectively.