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Catherization system and methodRelated Patent Categories: Surgery, Instruments, Heat Application, Tip Or Other Heat Concentration MeansCatherization system and method description/claimsThe Patent Description & Claims data below is from USPTO Patent Application 20060041250, Catherization system and method. Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims
RELATED APPLICATIONS [0001] This application is a continuation application of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/302,076, filed Jan. 22, 2002. FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0002] The invention is related generally to catherization systems, and more particularly to an IR optical fiber catherization system for dislodging arterial blockage and removing resulting arterial debris through application of a vacuum without any damage occurring to artery walls. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0003] Systems for removing arterial debris are known which vary from use of lasers, heated coils, or stents for vaporizing arterial blockage, to mechanical devices such as vibrating conical sandpaper for abrading, so-called nibbler chomping pistons for biting, or rotating blades for cutting the blockage away from the artery walls. [0004] An Excimer Laser Coronary Angioplasty system and procedure offered by Spectranetics of Colorado Springs, Colo., involves the insertion into an artery of a laser catheter containing a bundle of optical fibers and a stent with a guide wire. The laser catheter is advanced in the artery until the guide wire crosses a blockage, at which time bursts of ultraviolet (cool) laser light is transmitted through the fiber optic fibers to open a hole in the blockage. Thereafter, an x-ray contrast dye is injected into the blood stream to determine the extent to which the artery has been opened. This procedure does not remove substantial amounts of blockage because ultra violet radiation is too cool to melt the blockage. Rather, a hole is blasted through the blockage to accommodate the admission of a stent. While the catherization system includes a filter, the filter is not sufficient to catch all debris which may flow downstream. [0005] Such prior systems have failed because they have not effectively removed arterial blockage from the artery walls, and have not effectively removed arterial debris from the artery once the arterial blockage has been dislodged. In addition, such prior systems have not adequately protected the artery walls from physical or thermal injury. Further, many of the prior art devices embody numerous parts which tend to fail or shatter in a high temperature/high vacuum environment. [0006] In the catherization system of the present invention, infrared radiation is used to vaporize arterial blockage and remove it from the artery walls, and arterial guards are used to protect the artery walls from physical and thermal injury. Further, a vacuum chamber is formed within the inner walls of a hollow cylindrical tube comprising the catherization system to remove all arterial debris before it can flow into the body blood stream. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0007] The present invention is directed to an IR (infrared) optical fiber catherization system and method for dislodging blockage from artery walls without injury to the artery. The catherization system includes a central vacuum passageway for removing the resulting arterial debris from the artery to prevent injury caused by such debris entering the main blood stream of the body. The catherization process includes the following steps: X-Ray dye is injected into an artery to pinpoint the location of a blockage; a guidewire of the catherization system is inserted into the artery to cross the location of the blockage; the catherization system is advanced along the guide wire to abut the blockage; IR and vacuum sources are activated respectively to dislodge the blockage from the artery walls and remove arterial debris without damage to the artery and without risk of debris entering the body blood stream. [0008] In one aspect of the invention, the catherization system of the present invention is comprised of a hollow cylindrical tube having a metal clad tip ring at one end, with the circumference of the ring most distant from the end of the tube being larger than the circumference of the ring abutting the end of the tube. [0009] In a further aspect of the invention, arterial guards are molded into the outer surface of the hollow cylindrical tube and have curved flanges extending outward in parallel to the latitudinal axis of the tube to abut the artery walls without injury to the artery. The arterial guards hold the artery walls away from the metal clad tip ring to avoid heat injury to the inner artery walls, and create blood stream flow paths in addition to the central vacuum passageway of the hollow tubing. [0010] In another aspect of the invention, IR optical fibers extend along the longitudinal axis between the inner and outer walls of the hollow cylindrical tube and abut the lower surface of the metal clad tip ring to heat the ring sufficiently to vaporize arterial blockage. [0011] In still another aspect of the invention, the metal clad tip ring is preferably of gold for efficient heat transfer, and the outer surface of the hollow cylindrical tube is coated with Teflon to further avoid thermal injury to the inner artery walls. [0012] In a still further aspect of the invention, the ends of the IR optical fibers abutting the lower surface of the metal clad tip ring are positioned equidistant from the ring's center and are separated by equidistant arcs along a circular path between the inner and outer circumferences of the metal clad tip ring. [0013] In yet another aspect of the invention, the hollow cylindrical tube and IR optical fibers are made of IR specific plastic to avoid splintering in a high temperature/high vacuum environment. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0014] Additional objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which: [0015] FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view along 1-1 of FIG. 2 of a first embodiment of the present invention with arterial guards; [0016] FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the embodiment of the present invention illustrated in FIG. 1 along its latitudinal axis; [0017] FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a second embodiment of the present invention along its longitudinal axis that shows a longitudinal displacement between the metal clad tip ring 14 and the IR optical fibers 13a, 13b, 13d, and 13e to provide added flow paths into the interior of hollow cylindrical tube 10; [0018] FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view along the longitudinal axis of a third embodiment of the present invention which is used in combination with a stent; [0019] FIG. 5 is a side view of an arterial guard used in conjunction with the present invention as depicted in FIGS. 1-3 above; Continue reading about Catherization system and method... 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