Abstract: A medical device is disclosed that can effectively destroy an object in a biological lumen, a method for controlling rotation of the medical device, and a rotation controller. The medical device to be inserted into a biological lumen to destroy a thrombus in the biological lumen includes a long shaft portion that is rotationally driven, a drive unit that rotates the shaft portion, a breaking member that is provided at a distal portion of the shaft portion and is rotatable, and a control unit that controls the rotation of the drive unit, in which the control unit controls the drive unit to repeat the rotation while interposing a stop of the rotation between rotations of the drive unit.

Abstract: An apparatus for fastening around a cranial burr hole includes a substantially flat core and a shell encapsulating a ring portion of the core. The shell defines an orifice substantially centered within the ring portion, and has a contoured lower surface to match the cranial curvature. Pliable arms of the core extend laterally from the ring portion, each being terminated by a fastener member. A central portion of a placement tool for the apparatus has a lower part configured to extend through the apparatus orifice, and an upper part from which first and second arms of the tool extend laterally. Each tool arm is terminated with a receptacle to hold a bone screw, and, when the tool central portion lower part extends through the apparatus orifice, each receptacle aligns with a corresponding fastener member, and lower openings of the receptacles are generally oriented along the contoured lower surface.

Abstract: A tissue-removing catheter for removing tissue in a body lumen includes a catheter body assembly having an axis and proximal and distal end portions spaced apart from one another along the axis. At least a portion of the catheter body assembly is sized and shaped to be received in the body lumen. A handle is mounted to the proximal end portion of the catheter body assembly and operable to cause rotation of the catheter body assembly. The handle includes internal handle components that interface with the catheter body assembly. The internal handle components provide at least four interface locations spaced axially along the catheter body assembly. A tissue-removing element is mounted on the distal end portion of the catheter body assembly. The tissue-removing element is configured to remove the tissue as the tissue-removing element is rotated by the catheter body assembly within the body lumen.

Abstract: A system includes a first tube, a sharp coil at a distal end of the first tube, a second tube displaceable within the first tube, and a sharp housing at a distal of the second tube for storing fasteners. The housing can be positioned at a first tissue, and the coil rotated to advance the coil into engagement with the first tissue. The first tube is retracted to retract the first tissue, and then a first fastener is deployed at the first tissue location. Then, without removing the system from the patient, the distal end of the system is moved adjacent a second tissue location, and the process is repeated for a second fastener at the second tissue location. A suture extends between the first and second fasteners, and tension is applied to the suture to draw the first and second tissues toward each other to reconfigure the tissue.

Abstract: A medical device for removing an object in a body lumen includes a catheter and a drive device. The drive device includes a hub support portion with which a hub portion of the catheter is interlocked. The hub portion has first and second engagement portions interlocked with the hub support portion. The hub support portion includes a rotation blocking portion that is engaged with the first engagement portion to block the hub portion from rotating with respect to the hub support portion, a movement blocking portion that is engaged with the second engagement portion to block movement of the hub portion with respect to the hub support portion in an axial direction, and a releasing portion that releases a state in which a rotation of the hub portion is blocked while maintaining a state in which movement of the hub portion is blocked.

Abstract: A suture device for use in combination with a delivery system including a lumen extending through the delivery system includes a needle usable to carry a suture, a distal shuttle configured to releasably secure the needle, a sleeve disposable over the distal shuttle, the distal shuttle movable relative to the sleeve between a locked position in which the needle is locked to the distal shuttle and an unlocked position in which the needle is releasable from the distal shuttle. The suture device includes a distal assembly including an elongate tool guide movable between a deployment configuration in which the elongate tool guide is substantially parallel with the distal assembly and a working configuration in which the elongate tool guide curves away from the distal assembly.

Abstract: A tissue microfracture apparatus including a housing having a proximal end and a distal end that includes an aperture. The apparatus also includes an elongated member having proximal and distal ends with at least one tissue microfracture spike protruding from the distal end. The member operates cooperatively with the housing to expose a portion of the spike through the aperture. The apparatus also includes a disposing facility between the elongated member and the housing to dispose the spike in a home position within the housing. The disposing facility may be a spring element positioned at either the proximal or distal end of the housing. The elongated member may include a force receiving surface on the proximal end for receiving a force that facilitates exposing the portion of the spike. An exposure limiting facility limits the exposed portion of the spike.

Abstract: A fixation device delivery system is described. The system includes a driver and a cooperating fixation element featuring a barb which becomes active upon deployment in the inner abdominal wall.

Abstract: Systems, devices, and methods relate to generation of augmented images using virtual content that is part of an augmented reality presentation and images of a scene captured via an image sensor. A wearable heads-up display (WHUD) may present an augmented reality presentation with virtual content projected into a field of view of a scene, while an image sensor captures images of the scene. The image sensor may be part of the WHUD or part of a separate device, for instance part of a smartphone. A wearer may view a scene via the WHUD and capture an image of all or a portion of the scene, for instance via a camera of either the WHUD or a separate device. An application monitors the virtual content and can generate an augmented image, which can be transmitted/printed, replicating the augmented reality experience and/or adding customized messages to the resulting augmented image.

Abstract: Systems and methods for removal of thrombus from a blood vessel in a body of a patient are disclosed herein. The method can include: providing a thrombus extraction device including a proximal self-expanding member formed of a fenestrated structure, a substantially cylindrical portion formed of a net-like filament mesh structure having a proximal end coupled to a distal end of the fenestrated structure; advancing a catheter constraining the thrombus extraction device through a vascular thrombus, deploying the thrombus extraction device by stacking a portion of the net-like filament mesh structure outside of the catheter by distally advancing the self-expanding member until the self-expanding member is beyond a distal end of the catheter; retracting the self-expanding member to unstack the portion of the net-like filament mesh structure and to capture the portion of the thrombus; and withdrawing the thrombus extraction device from the body.

Abstract: Rotational atherectomy devices and systems can remove or reduce stenotic lesions in blood vessels by rotating one or more abrasive elements within the vessel. The abrasive elements are attached to a distal portion of an elongate flexible drive shaft that extends from a handle assembly that includes a driver for rotating the drive shaft. In particular implementations, the handle assembly encapsulates an electric motor assembly, a pump assembly, and a controller assembly.

Abstract: A graphics processing unit configured to process graphics data using a rendering space which is sub-divided into a plurality of tiles, the graphics processing unit comprising: a plurality of processing cores configured to render graphics data; cost indication logic configured to obtain a cost indication for each of a plurality of sets of one or more tiles of the rendering space, wherein the cost indication for a set of one or more tiles is suggestive of a cost of processing the set of one or more tiles; similarity indication logic configured to obtain similarity indications between sets of one or more tiles of the rendering space, wherein the similarity indication between two sets of one or more tiles is indicative of a level of similarity between the two sets of tiles according to at least one processing metric; and scheduling logic configured to assign the sets of one or more tiles to the processing cores for rendering in dependence on the cost indications and the similarity indications.

Abstract: A method includes percutaneously advancing an implant to a native heart valve of a subject, the implant being housed in a compressed state within a delivery tool. Next, the method includes unhousing a longitudinally-intermediate portion of the implant, the longitudinally-intermediate portion being longitudinally between a longitudinally-proximal portion of the implant and a longitudinally distal portion of the implant. Subsequently, the longitudinally-proximal portion of the implant is unhoused. Subsequently, the longitudinally-distal portion of the implant is unhoused. By unhousing flanges of the implant, the flanges automatically expand. Upon the flanges expanding, a proximal end of each flange extends radially outward from a central longitudinal axis of the implant and longitudinally in a proximal direction. Other applications are also described.

Abstract: An image processing system includes a computing platform having processing hardware, a display, and a system memory storing a software code. The processing hardware is configured to execute the software code to receive a three-dimensional (3D) digital model, surround the 3D digital model with multiple virtual cameras oriented toward the 3D digital model, and generate, using the virtual cameras, a multiple renders of the 3D digital model. The processing hardware is further configured to execute the software code to generate a UV texture coordinate space for a surface projection of the 3D digital model, and to transfer, using the multiple renders, lighting color values for each of multiple surface portions of the 3D digital model to the UV texture coordinate space.

Abstract: A graphics processing engine has a geometry shading stage having two modes of operation. In the first mode of operation, each primitive output by the geometry shading stage is independent, whereas in the second mode of operation, connectivity between input primitives is maintained by the geometry shading stage. The mode of operation of the geometry shading stage can be determined based on the value of control state data which may be generated at compile-time for a geometry shader based on analysis of that geometry shader.

Abstract: Prosthetic heart valves and methods of use of prosthetic heart valves may be provided. In one implementation, a prosthetic heart valve may include an annular valve body and atrial anchors and ventricular anchors extending from the valve body. An atrial anchor may include a pivoting portion configured to extend in an upstream direction when the prosthetic heart valve is in a delivery configuration and in a downstream direction when the prosthetic heart valve is in a deployed-anchor configuration. A portion of a ventricular anchor may be configured to abut the annular valve body when the prosthetic heart valve is arranged in the delivery configuration.

Abstract: Prosthetic valves and methods of use of prosthetic valves may be provided. In one implementation, a prosthetic valve may include an annular outer frame formed of struts intersecting at outer frame junctions, an inner frame situated within the outer frame and formed of struts intersecting at inner frame junctions, and a plurality of tissue anchors extending from the outer frame. The junctions along a downstream end of the outer frame may be spaced apart circumferentially from the junctions along a downstream end of the inner frame. The outer frame may include an anchor support strut extending between a downstream junction of the outer frame and a point of connection between one of the tissue anchors and the outer frame. The anchor support strut may be configured for placement parallel to a longitudinal axis of the prosthetic valve.

Abstract: A catheter system includes a catheter that includes an outer shaft and a rotatable inner shaft having a drill tip. The catheter can be configured to bend laterally when the inner shaft is rotating within the other shaft for maneuvering within a blood vessel, for example, as the drill tip crosses an occlusion. Catheter bending can be activated by translating the inner shaft relative to the outer shaft in a distal direction, proximal direction, or both. The outer shaft may include a locking feature to rotatably lock the inner shaft with the outer shaft and allowing bidirectional lateral bending of the catheter. The inner shaft can include one or more imaging sensors for collecting images outside of the catheter. The inner shaft may be removable from the outer shaft, for example after an occlusion is crossed, to allow insertion of a guidewire or other device within the outer shaft.

Abstract: A catheter for use in a subject's vasculature includes a rotating and axially movable instrument. The instrument includes a rounded element at its distal end connected to a body having a spiral shape. The instrument is at least partially disposed in a lumen of the catheter and is configured for axial and rotational motion within the lumen between a proximal-most position and a distal-most position, where the body includes at least one edge configured to promote removal of a target substance from the body passageway upon contact with the target substance.

Abstract: A three-dimensional (3D) density volume of an object is constructed from tomography images (e.g., x-ray images) of the object. The tomography images are projection images that capture all structures of an object (e.g., human body) between a beam source and imaging sensor. The beam effectively integrates along a path through the object producing a tomography image at the imaging sensor, where each pixel represents attenuation. A 3D reconstruction pipeline includes a first neural network model, a fixed function backprojection unit, and a second neural network model. Given information for the capture environment, the tomography images are processed by the reconstruction pipeline to produce a reconstructed 3D density volume of the object. In contrast with a set of 2D slices, the entire 3D density volume is reconstructed, so two-dimensional (2D) density images may be produced by slicing through any portion of the 3D density volume at any angle.