Vessel compression with hemodynamic wave reflection to control vascular wave dynamics and enhance blood flow

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12005246-B2
Application number	US-202117143068-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 6, 2021
Priority date	Jan 6, 2020
Publication date	Jun 11, 2024
Grant date	Jun 11, 2024

Abstract

A system configured to be at least partially implanted along an aorta includes an inelastic, static member and a pinching member. The pinching member is configured to receive an activation signal at an activation rate and in response to the activation signal, repeatedly compress the aorta at the second location at the activation rate to pump fluid within the aorta in a desired pumping direction. The system is configured to selectively control wave reflections in order to achieve both improved wave dynamics to reduce cardiac load and increased (or at least non-diminished) blood flow to targeted organs within the cardiovascular system.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A system configured to be at least partially implanted in mammal along an aorta, the system comprising:
an inelastic member comprising a biocompatible material, the inelastic member configured to surround at least a portion of an outer surface of an aorta at a first location along the aorta; and
a pinching member comprising a second biocompatible material, the pinching member configured to surround at least a second portion the outer surface of the aorta at a second location along the aorta, wherein the pinching member further comprises an actuator configured to actuate compression of the aorta and a control unit configured to generate an activation signal at an activation rate and transmit the activation signal at the activation rate to the actuator,
wherein the actuator is configured to receive the activation signal at the activation rate and in response to the activation signal, repeatedly compress the aorta at the second location at the activation rate to pump fluid within the aorta in a desired pumping direction, and
wherein the actuator is further configured to receive the activation signal at the activation rate during both a systolic period and a diastolic period of a cardiac cycle of a heart of the mammal and in response to the activation signal, repeatedly compress the aorta at the second location at the activation rate during both the systolic period and the diastolic period of the cardiac cycle of a heart of the mammal.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the pinching member comprises one or more of: a synthetic biocompatible material, living cells, a tissue-derived matrix or a hydrogel.

3. The system of claim 2 , wherein the pinching member comprises cardiomyocytes.

4. The system of claim 1 , wherein the pinching member comprises first and second arms, and wherein the actuator is configured to cause a distance between the first and second arms to decrease and increase in response to the activation signal.

5. The system of claim 1 , wherein the control unit is further configured to set the activation rate to a first frequency value to cause a first wave dynamic property during a systolic phase of a cardiac cycle, and set the activation rate to a second frequency value to cause a second wave dynamic property during a diastolic phase of the cardiac cycle, wherein the first wave dynamic property is different than the second wave dynamic property.

6. The system of claim 5 , wherein the first wave dynamic property corresponds to a reduction in cardiac load on a heart and wherein the second wave dynamic property corresponds to an increase in blood flow to coronary arteries of the heart.

7. The system of claim 1 , further comprising a power supply configured to deliver electrical power to the pinching member, wherein the pinching member is configured to use the electrical power to repeatedly compress the aorta in response to the activation signal.

8. The system of claim 1 , wherein the pinching member is further configured to generate a wave within the aorta in a first direction when the activation rate is a first frequency value and wherein the pinching member is configured to generate a wave within the aorta in a second direction opposite the first direction when the activation rate is a second frequency value different than the first frequency value.

9. The system of claim 1 , wherein the control unit is further configured to select the activation rate to increase blood flow to carotid arteries of the mammal.

10. The system of claim 1 , wherein the control unit is configured to select the activation rate to increase blood flow to renal arteries of the mammal.

11. The system of claim 1 , wherein the control unit is further configured to control a magnitude of a wave created within the aorta in response to the compression of the aorta by the pinching member.

12. The system of claim 1 , wherein the inelastic member is configured to generate a reflected wave in the direction of a heart of the mammal in response to blood flow through the aorta, and wherein the pinching member is further configured to reduce or eliminate the reflected wave prior to the reflected wave reaching the heart.

13. The system of claim 1 , further comprising a second inelastic member, wherein the second inelastic member is configured to be positioned upstream from the pinching member, and to at least partially reflect in the direction of the pinching member, a reflected wave received from the pinching member in response to blood flow through the aorta.

14. The system of claim 1 , wherein the pinching member is further configured to generate a pressure wave within the aorta in response to compressing the aorta, and wherein the inelastic member is configured to generate a reflected wave in response to receiving the pressure wave.

15. The system of claim 14 , wherein the inelastic member is configured to generate the reflected wave towards one or more of: a heart, carotid arteries, or renal arteries of the mammal.

16. The system of claim 1 , further comprising a second inelastic member comprising the biocompatible material, the second inelastic member configured to surround at least a portion of the outer surface of the aorta at a third location along the aorta.

17. The system of claim 1 , further comprising a second pinching member comprising the second biocompatible material, the second pinching member configured to surround at least a portion the outer surface of the aorta at a third location along the aorta.

18. The system of claim 1 , wherein the activation rate comprises a first activation rate during the systolic period and a second activation rate during the diastolic period, and wherein the first activation rate is different than the second activation rate.

19. The system of claim 18 , wherein the first activation rate reduces cardiac load on the heart by causing a first wave to travel in a positive direction away from the heart during the systolic period and wherein the second activation rate increases blood flow to and through coronary arteries of the heart by causing a second wave to travel in a negative direction towards the heart during the diastolic period.

Assignees

• California Inst Of Techn

Inventors

• Pahlevan Niema M
• Gharib Morteza
• Csete Marie

Classifications

• A61L27/52

  Hydrogels or hydrocolloids · CPC title

• A61L27/3625

  Vascular tissue, e.g. heart valves · CPC title

• A61M60/465

  for devices for mechanical circulatory actuation · CPC title

• A61M60/289

  Devices for mechanical circulatory actuation assisting the residual heart function by means mechanically acting upon the patient's native heart or blood vessel structure, e.g. direct cardiac compression [DCC] devices · CPC title

• A61N1/36

  for stimulation · CPC title