Patent ID: 6464662
Filing Date: 2002-10-15
Classification: A61M,Y10S

Abstract:
A method for delivering material to tissue within a patient comprising inserting a device into a patient, wherein the device comprises a tube for delivering materials to internal tissue of a patient, said tube comprising a lumen for carrying the material, holes from said lumen to an exterior surface of the tube, and control elements for modifying flow rates of the material from said lumen through said holes, at least some control elements being remotely controllable from outside the patient and controlling a rate of flow of the material through a hole in the tube by controlling the control element wherein a planned position of the tube within the body is shown on a computer display of a computer system, and a medical practitioner uses a graphical interface to specify regions where high concentration of the delivered material is respectively desired or to be avoided, or where it is essential to limit pressure above background, edema or the time for which either occurs, and the computer system uses a model of the diffusion and transport process to define a set of holes and membranes that will result in satisfying these criteria, and then the designed set of holes and/or membranes are provided in a tube.