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US 6,942,657 B2Granted
Intralumenal contact sensor
AssigneeCardioFocus, Inc.
InventorsEdward L. Sinofsky, Norman E. Farr
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An apparatus and method for phototherapy are described in which laser light or other radiation is projected from within a catheter, through a balloon member, and toward the surface of tissue. The light reflected from body fluids or the tissue surface is captured by a collecting device located within the catheter, e.g., within the balloon member, and the intensity of the reflected light is ascertained. The apparatus and method provides for accurately positioning the apparatus against the tissue treatment site.
Claims17
A therapeutic medical device for ablating cardiac tissue, comprising:
- an energy delivering catheter having a flexible elongate member adapted for intralumenal positioning and a balloon member at a distal end of the elongate member,
- the balloon member adapted to contact cardiac tissue upon inflation within a heart and further adapted, upon inflation, to expand to a size larger than a mouth of a pulmonary vein and define a clear pathway for transmission of ablative energy to form a lesion at least partially around the vein, and
- further including a position-sensing system comprising:
- an illuminator disposed within the balloon member which projects light through the balloon member toward a target surface of the heart where ablation is desired, and
- a collecting device also disposed within the balloon member and adapted to receive reflected light when the balloon member is properly positioned to provide a clear pathway to the target surface of the heart for ablative energy.
2 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.