Patent ID: 8821376

Claim:
Apparatus for suctioning trapped fluid from one or more bullae situated in an emphysematous lung region of a subject, the apparatus comprising: a plug configured to be placed in an airway of the subject, the airway leading to the emphysematous lung region, the plug defining an opening therethrough that is in an open state thereof when something is inserted through the opening and is in a closed state thereof when nothing is inserted through the opening; a tool having a distal portion and a proximal portion that is proximal to the distal portion, the tool being configured to facilitate suctioning therethrough of the fluid trapped within the one or more bullae of the region, while the proximal portion of the tool is disposed within the opening through the plug; and a navigation aid configured to facilitate suctioning through the tool of the fluid trapped within the one or more bullae of the emphysematous region, by, prior to suctioning through the tool being applied, facilitating navigation of the distal portion of the tool to respective individual bullae of the region, the navigation aid comprising at least one navigation aid selected from the group consisting of: an intra-operative, endoluminal imaging probe configured to be inserted by means of the tool and to verify the location of the tool with respect to the individual bullae by acquiring endoluminal images from within the emphysematous lung region, and an image-guided navigation system that comprises a location sensor coupled to the distal portion of the tool, the navigation system being configured (a) using the location sensor, to sense a current location of the distal portion of the tool when the distal portion of the tool is within the emphysematous lung region, and (b) in response thereto, to generate an indication of the current location of the distal portion of the tool on a previously-acquired image of a portion of the subject's body that contains the emphysematous lung region.