Patent ID: 7966057

Claim:
A method for using a navigable tissue penetrating catheter system in a human or veterinary patient to penetrate from a location within the lumen of an artery or vein, outwardly through the wall of that artery or vein and to a target location outside of that artery or vein, said method comprising the steps of: (A) providing a navigable tissue penetrating catheter system comprising; i) a field generator for generating a sensing field about at least a portion of the body of a human or veterinary patient; ii) a tissue penetrating catheter comprising a catheter body, a penetrator that is advanceable laterally from the catheter body so as to penetrate outwardly through the wall of an artery or vein in which the catheter body is positioned to a target location and a sensor mounted on or in the catheter body for sensing components of the sensing field and emitting signals indicative of the rotational orientation of the sensor within the sensing field; and iii) a sensor-monitor adapted to receive signals from the sensor and to provide, on the basis of those signals, indicia of the rotational orientation of the sensor within the sending field; (B) providing a sensor-equipped mapping catheter; (C) using the sensor equipped mapping catheter to map or mark the target location; (D) using the field generator to create a sensing field; (E) positioning at least the portion of the patient's body in which the target location is located within the sensing field; (F) inserting the tissue penetrating catheter into the patient's body and advancing the catheter into the lumen of an artery or vein located within the sensing field; (G) actuating the sensor of the tissue penetrating catheter such that signals from the sensor are received by the sensor monitor; (H) using the indicia provided by the sensor monitor to rotationally orient that catheter body within the anatomical conduit such that, when the penetrator is subsequently advanced laterally from the catheter body, it will penetrate outwardly through the wall of the anatomical conduit in which the catheter body is positioned and to the target location outside of the artery or vein in which the tissue penetrating catheter is positioned; and (I) advancing the penetrator from the catheter body, through the wall of the artery or vein in which the catheter body is positioned and to the target location.