US 6,551,235 B2 · Implantable pump

Abstract

A pump for medical implantation is disclosed which comprises a housing forming a cylindrical cavity, a cylindrical piston movable in the cavity for providing fluid communication between the cavity and channels opening to the cavity, and a motion device for magnetically rotating the piston and moving it back and forth to provide fluid flow between the cavity and the channels. Advantageously, the cylindrical piston is movable as a loose body in the cavity, and thus, functions as a valve. As a result, the pump of the invention is simple and very reliable, since it is devoid of traditional valves. When implanted in a patient, the pump can be used to pump hydraulic fluid between a reservoir and a hydraulic constriction device also implanted in a patient to thereby operate the device and form a the constriction of a passage of the patient's organ. Also disclosed is a method for laparascopically implanting the hydraulically operable implant together with the pump in a patient's abdomen.

Claims24

Dependent claims

A pump for medical implantation, comprising:

a housing forming a cylindrical cavity having a closed end and an open end opposite said closed end, said housing being provided with a first fluid channel opening into said cavity at a first location and a second fluid channel opening into said cavity at a second location circumferentially displaced from said first location,
a cylindrical piston movable in said cavity and having an indentation for providing fluid communication between said cavity and said first channel, when said piston is turned into a first turning position, and for providing fluid communication between said cavity and said second channel, when said piston is turned into a second turning position, and
a motion device for moving said piston back and forth to provide fluid flow between said cavity and any of said channels and for rotating said piston back and forth between said first and second positions.

An apparatus for restricting the flow in a passage of a patient's organ, comprising:

a hydraulic constriction device implanted in the patient to form a constriction of the passage, said constriction device being operable to change the constriction of the passage,
a reservoir implanted in the patient for supplying hydraulic fluid for the operation of said hydraulic constriction device, and
a pump implanted in the patient for pumping hydraulic fluid between said reservoir and said hydraulic constriction device to operate said hydraulic constriction device to change the constriction of the passage,
said pump including
a housing forming a cylindrical cavity having a closed end and an open end opposite said closed end, said housing being provided with a first fluid channel opening into said cavity at a first location and a second fluid channel opening into said cavity at a second location circumferentially displaced from said first location, said first channel being hydraulically connected to said reservoir, said second channel being hydraulically connected to said hydraulic constriction device,
a cylindrical piston movable in said cavity and having an indentation for providing fluid communication between said cavity and said first channel, when said piston is turned into a first turning position, and for providing fluid communication between said cavity and said second channel, when said piston is turned into a second turning position, and
a motion device for moving said piston back and forth to provide fluid flow between said cavity and any of said channels and for rotating said piston back and forth between said first and second positions.

4 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Implantable pump

Life of this patent

Implantable pump

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims24