Single catheter mitral valve repair device and method for use

#In vertebrate animals, the heart is a hollow muscular organ having four pumping chambers: the left atrium, the left ventricle, the right atrium and the right ventricle. The atria are isolated from their respective ventricles by one-way valves located at the respective atrial-ventricular junctions. These valves are identified as the mitral (or bicuspid) valve on the left side of the heart, and tricuspid valve on the right side of the heart. The exit valves from the left and right ventricles are identified as the aortic and pulmonary valves, respectively.

#The valves of the heart are positioned in valvular annuluses that comprise dense fibrous rings attached either directly or indirectly to the atrial and ventricular muscle fibers. Valve leaflets comprising flexible collagenous structures are attached to, and extend inwardly from, the annuluses to meet at coapting edges. The aortic, tricuspid and pulmonary valves each have three leaflets, while the mitral valve only has two. In normal operation, the leaflets of the mitral valve open as left ventricle dilates thereby permitting blood to flow from the left atrium into the left ventricle. The leaflets then coapt (i.e. close) during the contraction cycle of the left ventricle, thereby preventing the blood from returning to the left atrium and forcing the blood to exit the left ventricle through the aortic valve. Similarly, the tricuspid valve regulates flow from the right atrium into the right ventricle, and the pulmonary valve regulates blood exiting the right ventricle.

#For a number of clinical reasons various problems with heart valves can develop. One common form of heart disease involves the deterioration or degradation of the heart valves, which leads to stenosis and/or insufficiency. Heart valve stenosis is a condition in which the valve does not open properly. Insufficiency is a condition in which the valve does not close properly. Insufficiency of the mitral valve, most common because of the relatively high fluid pressures in the left ventricle, results in mitral valve regurgitation (“MR”), a condition in which blood reverses its intended course and flows “backward” from the left ventricle to the left atrium during heart contractions.

#The apparatus of the present invention will be explained in more detail by way of the accompanying drawings, wherein:

#FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of the mitral valve repair device of the present invention;

#FIG. 2 shows a perspective view of the handle portion of the mitral valve repair device of the present invention;

#Disclosed herein is a detailed description of various embodiments of the present invention. This description is not to be taken in a limiting sense, but is made merely for the purpose of illustrating the general principles of the invention. The overall organization of the description is for the purpose of clarity only and is not intended to limit the present invention.

#The single catheter mitral valve repair device of the present invention is designed for use in a surgical treatment of bodily tissue. As those skilled in the art will appreciate, the exemplary single catheter mitral repair device disclosed herein is designed to minimize trauma to the patient before, during, and after a minimally invasive surgical procedure while providing improved tissue stabilization and enhanced placement of a fastening device thereon. While the single catheter mitral valve repair device of the present invention may be used to repair tissue throughout a patient's body, it is particularly useful in repairing dysfunctional mitral valve tissue by stabilizing discreet valvular tissue pieces and deploying a fastening device therethrough, thereby coapting the tissue pieces. The present invention may also be used to repair arterial septal defects (ASD), ventricular septal defects (VSD), and defects associated with patent foramen ovale (PFO).

#FIG. 1 shows the single catheter mitral valve repair device of the present invention. As shown, the repair device 10 comprises a handle portion 12 attached to an elongated body 14. An engagement tip 16 is positioned on the distal portion of the elongated body 14. A vacuum connector 18 is attached to the handle 12. As those skilled in the art will appreciate, the present invention may be manufactured from a variety of materials including, without limitation, various metals, plastics, thermoplastics, silicones, elastomers, ceramics, composite materials, or various combinations of the aforementioned materials. For example, the handle 12 may be manufactured from polyethylene, while the elongated body 14 is manufactured by an elastomer. In an alternate embodiment the elongated body 14, the engagement tip 16, or both may incorporate radio-opaque or echogenic materials, thereby enabling the surgeon to precisely position the repair device 10 within the patient's body.