Patent ID: 8727988
Filing Date: 2014-05-20
Classification: A61B,A61F,A61K,A61M

Abstract:
1. A percutaneous, transluminal method for penetrating from a location within a blood vessel lumen to a location outside of that blood vessel lumen, said method comprising the steps of: A) providing a catheter device that comprises: i. a catheter having a proximal end and a distal end, said catheter being advanceable into a blood vessel lumen; ii. a tissue penetrator that is advanceable in a lateral direction from the catheter, said tissue penetrator being operative to penetrate from the blood vessel lumen in which the catheter is positioned to a target location outside of that blood vessel lumen; iii. an imaging transducer fixedly mounted on the catheter to provide an imaging signal from which an image of the target location and other anatomical structures located adjacent the blood vessel lumen can be obtained, said imaging transducer comprising a plurality of transducer elements at radially spaced-apart locations, one of said transducer elements being a penetrator path indicating element which creates an image that is enhanced or otherwise visually discernible from images produced by the other transducer elements, thereby providing a penetrator path indication which indicates the lateral direction in which the penetrator will subsequently advance from the catheter without reference to any image produced by imaging of any imageable marker located on or in the catheter; B) percutaneously inserting and transluminally advancing the catheter into the blood vessel lumen; C) actuating the imaging transducer and moving the catheter within the blood vessel lumen until the penetrator path indication is aimed at the target location; and D) advancing the tissue penetrator from the catheter to the target location.