Method and Apparatus for Tissue Ablation
A method for ablation in which a portion of atrial tissue around the pulmonary veins of the heart is ablated by a first elongated ablation component and a second elongated ablation component movable relative to the first ablation component and having means for magnetically attracting the first and second components toward one another. The magnetic means draw the first and second components toward one another to compress the atrial tissue therebetween, along the length of the first and second components and thereby position the device for ablation of the tissue.
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This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/881,443, filed Jul. 27, 2007, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/411,261, filed Apr. 26, 2006, U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/756,437, filed Jan. 13, 2004, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,094,235, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/016,297, filed Dec. 12, 2001, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,699,240, incorporated herein by reference in their respective entireties. This application also claims priority from U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/286,953, filed Apr. 26, 2001, incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONThe present invention relates to surgical tools and procedures generally and relates more particularly to the use of ablation to treat atrial fibrillation and other disorders.
In patients with chronic atrial fibrillation having tachycardia that resistant to medical treatment, the Maze procedure has been employed. This procedure controls propagation of the depolarization wavefronts in the right and left atria by means of surgical incisions through the walls of the right and left atria. The incisions create blind or dead end conduction pathways, which prevent re-entrant atrial tachycardias from occurring. While the Maze procedure is successful in treating atrial fibrillation, the procedure is quite complex and is currently practiced by only a few very skilled cardiac surgeons in conjunction with other open-heart procedures. The procedure also is quite traumatic to the heart, as in essence the right and left atria are cut into pieces and sewn back together, to define lines of lesion across which the depolarization wavefronts will not propagate.
It has been suggested that procedures similar to the Maze procedure could be instead performed by means of electrosurgical ablation, for example, by applying RF energy to internal or external surfaces of the atria to create lesions across which the depolarization wavefronts will not propagate. Such procedures are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,895,417, issued to Pomeranz, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,575,766, issued to Swartz, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,032,077, issued to Pomeranz, U.S. Pat. No. 6,142,944, issued to Swanson, et al. and U.S. Pat. No. 5,871,523, issued to Fleischman, et al, all incorporated herein by reference in their entireties. Hemostat type electrosurgical or cryo-ablation devices for use in performing such procedures are described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,733,280 issued to Avitall, U.S. Pat. No. 6,237,605 issued to Vaska, et al, U.S. Pat. No. 6,161,543, issued to Cox, et al., PCT published Application No. WO99/59486, by Wang and in pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/747,609 filed Dec. 22, 2000 by Hooven, et al., all incorporated herein by reference in their entireties. In order for such procedures to be effective it is desirable that the electrosurgically created lesions are continuous along their length and extend completely through the tissue of the heart. In order for such procedures to be effective it is desirable that the electrosurgically created lesions are continuous along their length and extend completely through the tissue of the heart. Analogous issues arise when attempting to create continuous lines of lesion through the walls of other heart chambers or other organs.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONAccording to the present invention elongated lesions as might be desired in a maze type procedure or other procedure may be produced using a set of two elongated ablation components carrying means (e.g. an electrode or electrodes) for applying ablation energy (e.g. RF energy) along its length. The ablation components are adapted to be arranged on opposite sides of the walls of the atria or other hollow organs, on either side of the organ walls and to ablate or create lesions in the tissue between the components. The ablation components may also be arranged along opposing external surfaces of an organ, for example opposite sides of an atrial appendage or along opposite sides of the tissue adjacent the bases of the right or left pulmonary veins.
The ablation components are provided with a magnetic system for drawing the components toward one another to compress the wall or walls of an atrium or other hollow organ therebetween, along the length of the components. In these systems, at least one of the components is provided with a magnet or series of magnets extending along the component. The other component is provided with a ferromagnetic member or preferably another magnet or series of magnets extending along its length, having polarity chosen to assure attraction between the two components. The magnet or magnets may be rigid or flexible and may be formed of magnetic material, e.g. rare earth magnets, or may alternatively be electromagnets.
In one preferred embodiment of the invention, the two components comprise opposing jaws of an electrosurgical hemostat, provided with elongated RF electrodes and having straight or curved configurations. In some of these embodiments, the jaws of the hemostat are both rigid and the magnets are present primarily to assure good contact and alignment between the jaws, along their length. In other embodiments, one jaw may be rigid and the other flexible, for example to allow it to be temporarily deformed to access desired locations. In these embodiments, magnetic system also assists the flexible jaw in returning to a configuration corresponding to the rigid jaw, as the jaws are brought into proximity to one another. In some embodiments, one jaw may be shapeable, so that the physician can select a desired configuration, with the other jaw being flexible. In these embodiments, the magnetic system allows the flexible jaw to automatically assume a configuration corresponding to the shapeable jaw. In other embodiments, both jaws might be flexible.
Similar sets of embodiments may be provided wherein the two components are separate from one another, for example mounted to separate handles. Alternatively, a first, external component might be mounted to a handle, to he held by the physician, while a second, internal component may be located on a percutaneously introduced catheter. In these embodiments, the internal component would typically be quite flexible, while the external component would be either rigid or shapeable. In these embodiments the magnetic system allows the internal component to automatically assume a configuration corresponding to the external component, after introduction of the internal component to the interior of the hollow organ.
While the discussion below focuses on ablation systems in which the particular ablation energy delivered is RF energy, delivered via irrigated electrodes, it should be understood that the present invention can usefully be practiced in conjunction with the other forms of ablation energy referred to above. As such, for purposes of the following discussion, the illustrated and described irrigated RF electrodes should be taken as exemplary of a mechanism for applying ablation energy according to the present invention, rather than as limiting.
Jaws 16 and 18 may have a straight configuration as illustrated, or may be curved. Jaws 16 and 18 are preferably manufactured of a non-ferromagnetic material such a biocompatible plastic, and, as discussed below, carry an elongated magnet or series of magnets, extending along the electrodes 20 and 22, in order to assist in aligning the electrodes relative to one another on opposite sides of tissue to be ablated and to assist in compressing tissue between the electrodes to assure good contact along their length. As described in more detail, jaws 16 and 18 may be rigid, shapeable, or flexible, depending on the particular embodiment of the invention being practiced.
As illustrated, jaws 16 and 18 are each provided with a pair of magnets or a series of magnets 108, 110, 112, 114, which extend along the jaws 16 and 18. These magnets, shown in cross section, may either be individual elongated magnets or may be a series of shorter magnets, extending along the jaws. The polarities of magnets correspond to the “N” and “S” markings as illustrated, arranged such that the jaws 16 and 18 are attracted to one another along their lengths. Provision of magnets on both sides of the electrodes 18 and 20 assist in assuring that the electrodes will center themselves with respect to one another so that the electrodes will be located directly across from one another when placed on opposite sides of tissue to be ablated. The magnets also assist in compressing the jaws of the hemostat along their length, assuring good contact with the tissue along the length of the jaws.
Jaws 16 and 18 are preferably fabricated of a non-ferromagnetic material, such as a plastic, so that the magnets and electrode coils as illustrated may be insulated from one another. In some embodiments, both jaws 16 and 18 may be rigid and may be pre-formed with the same configuration so that they are parallel to one another. Alternatively, one of jaws 16 and 18 may be rigid, while the other of the two jaws may be quite pliant or flexible, so that upon placement of the jaws on either side of the wall of a hollow organ to be ablated, the magnetic force provided by the magnets causes the flexible jaw to assume a configuration parallel to the rigid jaw and to compress the wall of the hollow organ between the jaws. In additional alternative embodiments, one of the two jaws 16 and 18 may be shapeable by the physician, to assume a desired configuration, with the other of the two jaws being flexible. In this embodiment as well, the flexible jaw is aligned and configured parallel to the shapeable jaw when the two jaws are brought towards one another on either side of the wall of the hollow organ to be ablated. The shapeable jaw may be shapeable by virtue of the material chosen to fabricate the jaw, or means of a shapeable insert, for example, a longitudinally extending rod of nitinol, stainless steel, or other shapeable metal, not illustrated in
As illustrated in 2A, 2B and 2C, the magnets are arranged so that the south pole(s) of the magnet(s) of one jaw are adjacent to the north pole(s) of the magnet(s) of the other jaw. This configuration will be most desirable in conjunction with embodiments in which single, elongated magnets extend essentially along the length of the jaws, and also in embodiments in which a series of shorter, closely spaced magnets extending along the jaws is provided. In embodiments in which magnets extend along the jaw but are more substantially spaced from one another, the polarity of the magnets may be altered, so that along one jaw, the north poles of the magnets may be located at the distal ends of the magnets and the south poles located at the proximal ends wherein on the other jaw, the south poles of the magnets will be located at their distal ends and north poles of the magnets will be located at proximal ends. Alternative magnetic configurations such as this may be employed in any of the embodiments illustrated in
The magnets themselves may be of any appropriate magnetic material. One particularly desirable set of magnetic materials for use in the present invention may be rare earth magnets, due to their extraordinary strength for relatively small sizes and weights. However, elongated flexible magnets might be substituted, as well as ceramic magnets. In addition, as discussed in more detail below, the magnets may be replaced with electromagnetic coils. In further alternative embodiments, it may be possible to employ magnets located in only one of the jaws, substituting a ferromagnetic material such as magnetic stainless steel for the other of the two magnets. For example, in the embodiment illustrated in
In the embodiments of
The internal ablation component 304 takes the form of a catheter having an elongated catheter body 414 carrying an electrode along its distal portion 420. Distal portion 420 may have a structure corresponding generally to the illustrated structures for the jaws of the hemostats as illustrated in
Claims
1. A method of ablating organ tissue, the method comprising:
- advancing a distal portion of a first elongated catheter through a patient's vascular system into a hollow organ, the first catheter distal portion having a first electrode and a first magnet;
- advancing a distal portion of a second elongated catheter through the patient's vascular system into the hollow organ, the second catheter distal portion having a second electrode and a second magnet, wherein the first and second magnets interact with each other to arrange the first and second catheter distal portions on opposite sides of the hollow organ and to hold the first and second electrodes against the tissue of the hollow organ; and
- applying ablation energy to the organ tissue via at least one of the first and second electrodes.
2. The tissue ablation method as in claim 1 wherein the opposite sides of the hollow organ are disposed adjacent an opening into the hollow organ.
3. A method of ablating tissue, the method comprising:
- receiving first and second elongated ablation components, each of the component having a distally located means for delivery of ablation energy and a distally located magnet;
- percutaneously introducing both the first and second ablation components into the vascular system of a patient;
- navigating both the first and second ablation components to a hollow organ of the patient;
- allowing the magnets of the first and second components to cooperate in order to assist in aligning both of the means for delivery of ablation energy relative to one another on opposite sides of the hollow organ and to assure contact between the means for delivery of ablation energy and the tissue of the hollow organ; and
- applying ablation energy to the tissue of the hollow organ.
4. The tissue ablation method as in claim 3 wherein the cooperation of the magnets of the first and second components is a magnetic force.
5. The tissue ablation method as in claim 3 wherein the first and second elongated ablation components are catheters.
6. The tissue ablation method as in claim 3 wherein the means for delivery of ablation energy is an electrode.
7. The tissue ablation method as in claim 3 wherein the means for delivery of ablation energy is a microwave antenna.
8. The tissue ablation method as in claim 3 wherein the means for delivery of ablation energy is a cooling element to provide for cryo-ablation.
9. The tissue ablation method as in claim 3 wherein the distally located magnet is a rare earth magnet.
10. The tissue ablation method as in claim 3 wherein the distally located magnet is an electromagnet.
Type: Application
Filed: Jun 8, 2012
Publication Date: Nov 1, 2012
Applicant: Medtronics, Inc. (Minneapolis, MN)
Inventor: David E. Francischelli (Anoka, MN)
Application Number: 13/492,466
International Classification: A61B 18/14 (20060101); A61B 18/02 (20060101); A61B 18/18 (20060101);