Method and apparatus for mapping and/or ablation of cardiac tissue
AssigneeC.R. Bard, Inc.
InventorsGary S. Falwell, Erik Brown
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An apparatus for mapping and/or ablating tissue includes a braided conductive member that that may be inverted to provide a ring-shaped surface. When a distal tip of the braided conductive member is retracted within the braided conductive member, the lack of a protrusion allows the ring-shaped surface to contact a tissue wall such as a cardiac wall. In an undeployed configuration, the braided conductive member is longitudinally extended, and in a deployed configuration, the distal end of the braided conductive member is retracted to invert the braided conductive member.
Claims21
A medical device for electrophysiology procedures, comprising:
- a catheter shaft having a proximal end and a distal end;
- and
- a braided conductive member located at the catheter shaft distal end;
- the braided conductive member having an undeployed configuration in which the braided conductive member has a distal end and is in a longitudinally extended configuration;
- the braided conductive member further having a deployed configuration in which the braided conductive member distal end is positioned proximally relative to portions of the braided conductive member;
- and
- a braided conductive member adjustment element configured to pull the distal end of the braided conductive member in a proximal direction to place the braided conductive member in to the deployed configuration;
- wherein
- in the deployed configuration, the braided conductive member forms a distally-facing ring-shaped surface and includes ablation electrodes configured to form an annular lesion in tissue when the distally-facing surface is contacted to the tissue and the ablation electrodes are activated.
A catheter comprising:
- a catheter shaft having a proximal end and a distal end;
- and
- a braided conductive member located at the catheter shaft distal end;
- the braided conductive member having an undeployed configuration in which a distal end of the braided conductive member is everted;
- the braided conductive member further having a deployed configuration in which a portion the distal end of the braided conductive member is inverted;
- wherein in the deployed configuration, the braided conductive member forms a distally-facing ring-shaped surface and includes ablation electrodes configured to form an annular lesion in tissue when the distally-facing surface is contacted to the tissue and the ablation electrodes are activated;
- and
- in the deployed configuration, nothing protrudes distally beyond the distally-facing ring-shaped surface.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.