Patent ID: 8100957

Claim:
A heat transfer catheter system, comprising: a heat transfer catheter insertable into a patient; a heat exchange unit having a fluid pathway therewithin and incorporating an integral pump head adapted to move fluid through the fluid pathway; conduits coupled to the heat transfer catheter and heat exchange unit that enable circulation of a heat exchange medium therebetween upon operation of the pump head; a diverter unit that periodically redirects the fluid pathway, bypassing the heat transfer catheter; and a master control unit having a heat remover and a pump driver, the heat exchange unit being adapted to couple to the master control unit such that the pump driver engages the integral pump head and so that the fluid pathway is in thermal communication with the heat remover, the master control unit controlling the diverter unit to periodically interrupt fluid circulation within the heat exchange unit and the heat transfer catheter, the master control unit configured to receive a target temperature input from an input device and a sensor signal from a temperature sensor, to analyze the signal from the sensor during the fluid flow interruption to determine a rate of change of the temperature as a function of time, to compare the determined temperature to a target temperature, to restart the flow of heat exchange medium through the heat transfer catheter, and to control the rate at which the patient temperature approaches the target temperature by controlling the heat remover with proportional integrated differential (PID) responses.