Surgery – Means for introducing or removing material from body for... – Treating material introduced into or removed from body...
Patent
1990-01-26
1992-01-07
Pellegrino, Stephen C.
Surgery
Means for introducing or removing material from body for...
Treating material introduced into or removed from body...
604281, A61L 2900, A61L 3100
Patent
active
050786849
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
TECHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to a ureter correcting device which is inserted in a ureter to physically correct meandering of the ureter.
BACKGROUND ART
When the ureter of a patient meanders, a medical treatment is performed to correct it. It is rare that meandering of a ureter itself directly poses a physiological problem except for its effect on the structure of the urethra. However, if the ureter greatly meanders, a medical treatment for basic diseases such as urinary tract calculus becomes difficult. For this reason, meandering must be corrected by inserting a ureter correcting device into the ureter of a patient.
A conventional ureter correcting device is designed such that a metal stylet is inserted into a ureter catheter so as to allow the catheter to have a desired straight shape and rigidity.
According to the conventional ureter correcting device, however, since the metal stylet allows the catheter to have rigidity, a urinary tract may be excessively pressurized or damaged by the correcting device upon insertion of the ureter correcting device.
The present invention has been made with the object to provide a ureter correcting device which gives no feeling of being pressurized and which causes no damage to the ureter.
DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION
Recently, an alloy having a shape memory effect has been used in various fields. According to this alloy, when the alloy is heated to a certain temperature range, a desired shape which has been processed in that temperature range is restored regardless of a shape prior to heating. This so-called shape memory alloy utilizes reversibility of martensite transformation. For example, a nickel-titanium alloy is available as a typical shape memory alloy. Since a nickel-titanium alloy can be excellently adapted within a living body, this alloy is expected to be increasingly used in the medical field. Also recently, a shape memory resin having a shape memory effect has been put into practice, and its application in the medical field has been studied. In consideration of these points, in order to improve conventional ureter correcting devices which are unsatisfactory in terms of an insertion feeling and the like, the present inventors have completed the present invention by repeating experiments to utilize shape memory alloys and resins for ureter correcting devices.
According to the present invention, there is provided a ureter correcting device which is inserted in a ureter of a living body to correct meandering of the ureter, characterized by comprising a catheter consisting of a rod-like elastic body, a shape memory member, embedded in the catheter along a longitudinal direction thereof, for restoring a predetermined shape when heated to a predetermined temperature range, and warming means for warming the shape memory member.
According to the ureter correcting device of the present invention, the shape memory member embedded in the catheter is elastically deformed in accordance with the catheter upon insertion, and is rigidly deformed to a desired shape when warmed. More specifically, when the correcting device is inserted into a ureter, since the shape memory member is elastically deformed together with the catheter, the correcting device can be elastically moved along the meandering ureter and can be introduced therein. When the shape memory member is warmed after the distal end of the correcting device reaches a renal pelvis, the phase of the shape memory member is transformed and the member is deformed to a desired shape. Upon deformation of the shape memory member, the catheter is deformed against the elastic force of the ureter, and restores a desired shape to correct meandering of the ureter. After this state is held for a predetermined period of time, warming is stopped and the shape memory member is cooled, and the correcting device is extracted from the ureter.
In order to increase flexibility of the catheter, a hollow portion may be formed in the catheter in its longitudinal direction, more preferably, near the abdominal portion of t
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Lewis Ralph A.
Pellegrino Stephen C.
Terumo Kabushiki Kaisha
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