Soft tissue conduit device

#Tears caused by trauma or disease in soft tissue, such as cartilage, ligament, or muscle, can be repaired by suturing and/or use of various fixation devices. Various tissue fixation devices have been developed for facilitating suturing and are effective for their intended purposes.

#Although the existing soft tissue fixation devices can be satisfactory for their intended purposes, there is still a need for new devices and methods of conducting biological materials to soft tissue.

#The present teachings provide a method of conducting biological material to soft tissue. The method includes loading a conduit device onto a delivery shaft of an inserter, inserting at least a portion of the delivery shaft into soft tissue, expelling the conduit device from the delivery shaft into the tissue, and delivering biological material through an access port of the inserter into at least one outer longitudinal channel of the conduit device.

#The present invention will become more fully understood from the detailed description and the accompanying drawings, wherein:

#FIG. 1A is an isometric view of a conduit device according to the present teachings;

#FIG. 1B is a side view of the conduit device of FIG. 1A;

#The following description is merely exemplary in nature and is in no way intended to limit the invention, its application, or uses. For example, although the present teachings are illustrated for repairing meniscal defects in knee surgery, the present teachings can be used to repair and facilitate healing or regeneration of any injured soft tissue.

#Referring to FIGS. 1A-C, an exemplary soft tissue conduit device 100 according to the present teachings includes an elongated body 102 having an outer surface 104 and a plurality of longitudinal external channels 106 extending along the entire length of the body 102. The channels 106 are shaped such that when the conduit device 100 is inserted into soft tissue, the channels 106 can serve as conduits for conducting biological materials, such as nutrients, into the tissue from outside the tissue or between first and second areas of the tissue, such as, for example, between healthy tissue and injured or torn tissue, or between areas of different vascularity, such as between red-red (vascular), red-white (semi-vascular) and white (avascular) tissue areas of a meniscus. The channels 106 can provide a vascularity path in the tissue for facilitating healing or repair. As such, each channel 106 can have a width “w” and a depth “d” that allows the tissue to envelope or form a “tent” over the channel 106 without blocking the channel 106. Referring to FIG. 1D, deep channels 106 exemplify a shape that provides satisfactory “tenting” or draping of tissue 80 over the channels 106. Referring to FIG. 1E, shallow channels 106′ illustrate inadequate tenting of tissue 80 over the channels 106′, with the tissue at least partially entering the channels 106′. Satisfactory tenting of tissue 80 allows unobstructed or relatively unrestricted flow of nutrients or other biological materials along the channels 106. Typical aspect ratios d/w are less than 1, such as, for example, 0.5, 0.8, etc.

#Various biological materials can be delivered through the channels 106 by external cannulas or other pumping devices during or after implantation. Such biological materials can be in the form of autologous, allogenic, xenograpt or recombinant cells and factors derived from blood, bone marrow aspirate, or fat containing various growth factors, stem cells, activators with or without adhesive properties. Native or endogenous biological materials can also be carried after implantation from a vascular region of the soft tissue 80 to the injured site by inserting the conduit device 100 such that the conduit device 100 extends from a vascular region of the soft tissue to the injured site. Additionally or alternatively, biological materials in the form of platelet gels can be deposited in the channels 106 before implantation, as another mechanism of biological material delivery, including nutrient, delivery.