Patent application number | Description | Published |
20090043297 | CRYOGENIC SYSTEM - A cryosurgical system and method for supplying cryogen to a probe. The system including a container filled with cryogen and having bellows of a pump submerged within said cryogen. Conduits fluidly interconnect the bellows and a probe that is outside the container to permit the cryogen to be forced from the bellows to the probe upon activation of pump. A pressure relief valve is fluidly coupled to the conduits and positioned between the bellows and the probe. After initially forcing cryogen to the probe at a pressure that establishes a colligative-based sub-cooling of the liquid cryogen, the pressure relief valve is activated to lower the pressure of the cryogen to a running pressure. | 02-12-2009 |
20100057064 | Medical Device for the Transport of Subcooled Cryogenic Fluid through a Linear Heat Exchanger - A cryogenic medical device for delivery of subcooled liquid cryogen to various configurations of cryoprobes is designed for the treatment of damaged, diseased, cancerous or other unwanted tissues. The device is a closed or semi-closed system in which the liquid cryogen is contained in both the supply and return stages. The device comprises a number of parts including a vacuum insulated outer dewar, submersible cryogen pump, baffled linear heat exchanger, return chamber, and a series of valves to control the flow of the liquid cryogen. The cryogenic medical device promotes the subcooling to any external cryogenic probe. | 03-04-2010 |
20100057067 | MODULAR PULSED PRESSURE DEVICE FOR THE TRANSPORT OF LIQUID CRYOGEN TO A CRYOPROBE - A cryogenic medical device for delivery of subcooled liquid cryogen to various configurations of cryoprobes is designed for the treatment of damaged, diseased, cancerous or other unwanted tissues. The device is a closed or semi-closed system in which the liquid cryogen is contained in both the supply and return stages. The device is capable of generating cryogen to a supercritical state and may be utilized in any rapid cooling systems. As designed, the device comprises a number of parts including a vacuum insulated outer dewar, submersible cryogen pump, baffled linear heat exchanger, multiple pressurization cartridges, a return chamber, and a series of valves to control the flow of the liquid cryogen. The cryogenic medical device promotes the subcooling to any external cryogenic instrument. | 03-04-2010 |
20100076421 | Nucleation Enhanced Surface Modification to Support Physical Vapor Deposition to Create a Vacuum - The device of the invention takes the form of a catheter/probe and is a closed loop system in which cryogen is delivered along the length of the catheter/probe to the tip where freezing occurs, and then is recirculated. The device is a tube within a tube and comprises a number of parts including supply and return tubes (internal tubes), outer sheath (external tube) sealed to the inner tubes at one or both ends with a gas filled lumen between the internal and external tubes. The lumen of the external tube is filled with a saturated gas which solidifies upon cooling, thereby creating a vacuum along the length of the catheter and providing for insulation between the inner and outer tubes, and preventing freezing along the length of the probe shaft. Further, the outside surface of the internal tubes is modified to potentiate gas nucleation on the outer surfaces of the internal tubes when cooled. At the tip of the probe shaft, the internal tubes come into contact with the outer tube to create a defined region of ultra cold temperatures to cool and freeze the target tissue region. The catheter is designed to carry liquid cryogen under various pressures as well as liquid cryogens of varying temperatures. As such, a temperature initiated transient vacuum insulation along the length of a catheter has been described for the delivery of cryogen for targeted thermal therapy. Furthermore, the device has been developed to couple the temperature initiated vacuum with that of a surface modification along the inner tubes to enable enhanced nucleation and deposition of the saturated gas on the surface of the inner tubes and create an additional layer of insulation. | 03-25-2010 |
20110184402 | Flexible Cryogenic Probe Tip - One embodiment of the invention is a flexible cryogenic probe tip. The flexible probe tip has a linear freeze zone at a distal end of the probe that allows for its placement and precisely controlled movements. The flexible cryogenic probe tip precisely conforms to the target tissue surface to create a linear lesion. In addition, the probe tip is steerable to facilitate proper placement with minimal access points into a patient's body. Various configurations of the flexible probe tip allow it to conform and ablate tissue of many sizes, shapes, and/or dimensions. Methods of utilizing the cryogenic probe tip include steps of positioning the distal end at a tissue site for at least one ablative procedure, maneuvering the distal end to the tissue site, directing a cryogen from the supply source to the distal end, controlling a flow of cryogen from the supply source to the distal end and back to the supply source, and segmenting control of the distal end mechanically or through the step of controlling the flow of cryogen. | 07-28-2011 |
20110225988 | Multi-Lumen Axial Cryogenic Connector - An embodiment of the invention is a cryo-connector, a connector that allows for the delivery and return of a cryogen in an axial configuration. In one embodiment, the connector is a tri-axial configuration allowing for the delivery and return of pressurized cryogen as well as the application of an independent vacuum in the third lumen. Various configurations, however, may accommodate any number of luminary spaces such that cryogen (or other fluids) and/or vacuum spaces may be created in a fashion complementary to the components that the connector will affix to and interconnect with. The connectors can be utilized with any low temperature, cryogenic device and at varying pressures. | 09-22-2011 |
20110245823 | CRYOGENIC SYSTEM - A cryosurgical system and method for supplying cryogen to a probe. The system including a container filled with cryogen and having bellows of a pump submerged within said cryogen. Conduits fluidly interconnect the bellows and a probe that is outside the container to permit the cryogen to be forced from the bellows to the probe upon activation of pump. A pressure relief valve is fluidly coupled to the conduits and positioned between the bellows and the probe. After initially forcing cryogen to the probe at a pressure that establishes a colligative-based sub-cooling of the liquid cryogen, the pressure relief valve is activated to lower the pressure of the cryogen to a running pressure. | 10-06-2011 |
20120059364 | Cryogenic Medical System - A cryogenic medical device for delivery of subcooled liquid cryogen to various configurations of cryoprobes is designed for the treatment of damaged, diseased, cancerous or other unwanted tissues, particularly as utilized for the ablation of cardiac tissue in the treatment of atrial fibrillation. The device is a closed or semi-closed system in which the liquid cryogen is nitrogen contained in both the supply and return stages. The device is capable of generating cryogen to a supercritical state, specifically supercritical nitrogen, and may be utilized in any rapid cooling systems. As designed, the device also integrates endocardial catheters and epicardial probes. | 03-08-2012 |