Subarachnoid epidural shunt
AssigneeCodman & Shurtleff, Inc.
InventorBradley Glenn
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Methods and devices are provided for shunting fluid to treat hydrocephalous, and in particular for treating normal pressure hydrocephalous, or Alzheimer's, Idiopathic Intracranial Hypertension (IIH), or any other condition in which it is necessary to drain and/or cleanse CSF. The methods and devices utilize a shunt having an inlet port, and outlet port, and a flow control component for controlling fluid flow from the inlet port to the outlet port. The shunt can be implanted at a location along or within a patient's spinal column. In one exemplary embodiment, an inlet port of a shunt can be implanted within the subarachnoid space, and an outlet port of a shunt can be implanted at a drainage site. In certain exemplary embodiments, the cerebrospinal fluid is drained into the epidural space.
Claims23
A shunt device, comprising:
- a housing having a fluid inlet port and a fluid outlet port, the fluid inlet and outlet ports being spaced a distance apart such that the fluid inlet port can be positioned to receive fluid from a subarachnoid space of a spinal column and the fluid outlet port can be positioned to deliver fluid to an epidural space of a spinal column, the housing further including a flow control component disposed therein and in fluid communication with the fluid inlet and outlet ports for controlling fluid flow from the fluid inlet port to the fluid outlet port.
A shunt system, comprising:
- a shunt having first and second catheters and a flow control component coupled therebetween for controlling fluid flow from the first catheter to the second catheter;
- and
- a dual-lumen cannula having first and second lumens extending therethrough for respectively receiving the first and second catheters, the first lumen having an opening that is positioned a distance apart from an opening in the second lumen such that the opening in the first lumen can be positioned to receive fluid from a subarachnoid space in a spinal column and the opening in the second lumen can be positioned to deliver fluid to an epidural space in a spinal column.
A method of shunting fluid, comprising:
- positioning an inlet port of a shunt to receive fluid from a subarachnoid space in a spinal column;
- and
- positioning an outlet port of the shunt to deliver fluid to an epidural space of the spinal column such that fluid is drained from the subarachnoid space into the epidural space.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.