Abstract: A medical apparatus includes a shaft and a basket assembly. The shaft is configured for insertion into a cavity of an organ of a patient. The basket assembly is connected distally to the shaft and includes electrodes, which are configured to apply electrical energy to tissue within the cavity. The basket assembly further includes a flexible porous sheath, which is fitted over the basket assembly and is configured to contact the tissue within the cavity while simultaneously (i) preventing the electrodes from indenting the tissue and (ii) allowing electrical energy applied from the electrodes to be delivered to the tissue.

Abstract: A method for fabricating a medical device includes providing a metal electrode to be used in applying electrical energy to biological tissue and specifying a frequency at which the electrical energy is to be applied. A thickness of a ceramic coating to be applied to the metal electrode is identified so as to reduce an electrical impedance between the metal electrode and the tissue at the specified frequency by a specified amount. The ceramic coating is deposited over the metal electrode to the identified thickness, and the metal electrode is assembled onto a probe for application to the biological tissue.

Abstract: A system for use with multiple electrodes coupled to respective spines of a probe includes multiple switches connected to the electrodes and configured to short different respective first subsets of the electrodes to each other and different respective second subsets of the electrodes to each other per different respective settings of the switches. The system further includes a processor configured to control the switches so as to alternate through the settings and, for each of the settings, cause a power generator to apply a voltage between the shorted first subset and the shorted second subset while the probe is deployed within a body of a subject. Other examples are also described.

Abstract: An apparatus includes a tube, a support element, multiple spines proximally coupled to the tube, and multiple electrodes coupled to the spines. The spines include respective expandable superelastic elements, and respective polymeric elements extending from respective distal ends of the superelastic elements and coupled to a surface of the support element by virtue of being bent proximally, into alignment with the surface, at a distal end of the support element. Other examples are also described.

Abstract: A medical probe includes a shaft and a basket assembly. The shaft is configured for insertion into a cavity of an organ of a patient. The basket assembly, which is connected at a distal end of the shaft, includes (a) multiple electrically-conductive spines that are electrically-connected to one another so as to form a distributed electrode, and (b) a plurality of spine mounted electrodes, which are disposed along the spines and are configured to (i) sense electrical activity in the cavity, (ii) ablate and (iii) prevent the distributed electrode from indenting tissue in the cavity.

Abstract: A catheter includes an insertion tube, a flexible substrate and one or more electrical devices. The insertion tube is configured for insertion into a patient body. The flexible substrate is configured to wrap around a distal end of the insertion tube and includes electrical interconnections. The electrical devices are coupled to the flexible substrate and are connected to the electrical interconnections.

Abstract: The subject of this disclosure is devices, systems, and uses thereof to treat a plurality of patients for paroxysmal atrial fibrillation. The solution can include delivering a multi-electrode radiofrequency balloon catheter and a multi-electrode diagnostic catheter to one or more targeted pulmonary veins; ablating tissue of the one or more targeted pulmonary veins using the multi-electrode radiofrequency balloon catheter; diagnosing the one or more targeted pulmonary veins using the multi-electrode diagnostic catheter; and achieving at least one of a predetermined clinical effectiveness and acute effectiveness of the method or use based on use of the multi-electrode radiofrequency balloon catheter and the multi-electrode diagnostic catheter in the isolation of the one or more targeted pulmonary veins.

Abstract: In one embodiment, a medical system includes a catheter configured to be inserted into a body part of a living subject, and including a deflectable element having a distal end, an expandable distal end assembly disposed at the distal end of the deflectable element, and comprising a plurality of electrodes, a distal portion, and a proximal portion, and configured to expand from a collapsed form to an expanded deployed form, and a stretchable irrigation tube disposed between the distal portion and the proximal portion, and comprising a plurality of irrigation holes, and configured to stretch longitudinally when the distal end assembly is collapsed from the expanded deployed form to the collapsed form.

Abstract: An apparatus includes a flexible electrically-insulating substrate including an inner surface and an outer surface. The substrate is shaped to define multiple channels passing between the inner surface and the outer surface, at least some of the channels being concave channels. The apparatus further includes an outer layer of an electrically-conducting metal covering at least part of the outer surface, an inner layer of the electrically-conducting metal covering at least part of the inner surface, and respective columns of the electrically-conducting metal that fill the channels such as to connect the outer layer to the inner layer.

Abstract: A system includes a catheter and a processor. The catheter includes an expandable distal-end assembly (EDEA) having: (i) a transmitter, which is coupled to the EDEA and is configured to transmit a first signal, and (ii) one or more receivers, which are coupled to an elastic component of the EDEA, and are configured to produce one or more respective second signals in response to receiving the first signal. The processor is configured to estimate, based on the one or more respective second signals, a force applied to the elastic component.

Abstract: Medical apparatus includes an insertion tube configured for insertion into a body cavity of a patient and an expandable assembly connected distally to the insertion tube and comprising electrodes, which are configured to apply electrical energy to tissue within the body cavity. A flexible porous sheath is fitted over the expandable assembly and configured to contact the tissue within the body cavity so that the electrical energy is applied from the electrodes through the sheath to the tissue.

Abstract: A medical probe includes a tubular distal end section, which is configured to be inserted into a cavity of a patient, and includes (a) a visually guiding object disposed over a perimeter of the distal end section, and (b) a magnetic field sensor including two sensor coils aligned non-parallel with each other, the sensor attached to the distal end section, and having: (i) a first axis of symmetry, of one of the coils, which is aligned perpendicular to a central longitudinal axis of the distal end section, and (ii) a second axis of symmetry, of the remaining coil, which is aligned perpendicular to the central longitudinal axis of the distal end section and not parallel to the first axis of symmetry.

Abstract: A method includes, in a processor, receiving signals from (i) a first position sensor disposed on a shaft of a catheter, and (ii) a second position sensor disposed on a distal end of a sheath of the catheter. Based on the signals received from the first position sensor and the second position sensor, an event is detected in which an expandable distal-end assembly of the catheter is being withdrawn into the sheath while still at least partially expanded. A responsive action is initiated in response to detecting the event.

Abstract: Embodiments of the present invention include a medical probe having a flexible insertion tube, a basket assembly, and a plurality of electrodes. The basket assembly has a proximal end that is connected distally to the insertion tube and includes a plurality of resilient spines, which have respective outer sides and inner sides and are configured to bow radially outward from an axis of the basket assembly and are conjoined at the proximal end and at a distal end of the basket assembly. The plurality of electrodes are fixed to respective ones of the spines in respective longitudinal positions that are staggered on any given spine relative to the longitudinal positions of the electrodes on the spines adjacent to the given spine, and which include a conductive material that is biased towards the respective outer sides of the spines.

Abstract: Embodiments of the present invention include a medical probe having an insertion tube, a basket assembly, an axial electrode, and a plurality of radial electrodes. The insertion tube is configured for insertion into a body cavity of a patient. The basket assembly has a proximal end that is connected distally to the insertion tube and includes a plurality of resilient spines, which are configured to bow radially outward from an axis of the basket assembly and are conjoined at a distal end of the basket assembly. The axial electrode is disposed at the distal end of the basket assembly, having a diameter of at least 1.5 millimeters, and is configured to contact tissue in the body cavity. The plurality of radial electrodes are configured to contact the tissue in the body cavity and include radial electrodes disposed on the spines.

Abstract: Medical apparatus includes an insertion tube configured for insertion into a body cavity of a patient and an expandable assembly connected distally to the insertion tube and comprising electrodes, which are configured to apply electrical energy to tissue within the body cavity. A flexible porous sheath is fitted over the expandable assembly and configured to contact the tissue within the body cavity so that the electrical energy is applied from the electrodes through the sheath to the tissue.

Abstract: A system includes an enclosure, an irrigation retainer, one or more sensors, and a processor. The irrigation retainer is coupled with the enclosure and configured to accept an irrigation container holding irrigation fluid for pumping to a phacoemulsification handpiece. The one or more sensors are coupled with the irrigation retainer and configured to provide at least one signal indicative of a remaining amount of the irrigation fluid. The processor is configured to receive the at least one signal, and in response to the at least one signal, output an estimation of the remaining amount of the irrigation fluid in the irrigation container or an estimation of the amount of irrigation fluid used.

Abstract: An eye surgery system includes an Input/Output (I/O) device and a processor. The I/O device is configured to enable a user to define one or more eye surgery protocols, and further configured to, using the I/O device, present a graphical user interface (GUI) that displays one or more user defined eye surgery protocols. The processor is configured to (a) present the one or more user defined eye surgery protocols on the I/O device using the GUI, (b) test compatibility of the one or more user defined eye surgery protocols with the eye surgery system, and (c) provide an indication of the compatibility to a user of the eye surgery system.

Abstract: A system and method that includes inserting a needle of a phacoemulsification handpiece into an eye of a patient and vibrating the needle in a first trajectory. Matter from the eye is aspirated via an aspiration line while the needle is vibrated in the first trajectory. An indication is received, of a vacuum level in the aspiration line. Determined is, that the vacuum level has changed by at least a preset vacuum level change, and in response vibrating the needle is switched to a second trajectory, different from the first trajectory.

Abstract: A system and method include vibrating a needle of a phacoemulsification handpiece by driving one or more piezoelectric crystals in the handpiece with one or more electrical signals having different respective frequencies using one or more respective drive modules. The needle is inserted into an eye of a patient. The frequencies of the electrical signals are tuned to respective one or more target frequencies, and respective electrical impedances seen by the drive modules are registered. In response to an electrical impedance seen by at least one of the drive modules undergoing a change exceeding a preset impedance change, an indication is provided that material in the eye surrounding the needle has changed, a level of vibration of the needle is changed, and/or the frequency of at least one of the drive modules is adjusted to an electrical resonant frequency thereof.