Steerable Epicardial Lead to be Placed via the Subxiphoid

Congestive Heart Failure (CHF) is a significant and growing healthcare problem with almost five million patients suffering from this condition in the U.S. alone. The resulting hospitalization costs for treating these patients are $15B. While there have been numerous advances in treating CHF, few patients are cured of their symptoms and often have a diminished quality-of-life as their activities become restricted.

Recent medical studies have shown that the use of a biventricular pacemaker, which simultaneously paces both ventricles in the heart, can significantly improve the survival and quality of life for congestive heart failure patients. The American Heart Association has recently expanded their recommendations for the use of biventricular pacing to cover almost a million patients per year in the U.S. alone.

Despite the rapidly growing recognition of the need for biventricular pacing, only 15% of eligible patients currently receive these devices. One of the significant challenges and limitations is the difficulty in placing left ventricular pacing leads. Often, given the difficulty of placing and securing such leads, invasive surgical techniques are required.

The present invention is a novel technique and design for more readily placing a left ventricular pacing lead. This inventor team, Dr. Srijoy Mahapatra and Dr. George Gillies, are uniquely qualified to develop new technologies in this area. Dr. Mahapatra has a background in electrical engineering and is a clinician in the Division of Cardiology at the University of Virginia. Dr. George Gillies is a professor of Physics and Mechanical Engineering at UVa and has a distinguished career in the invention and development of medical devices and catheters. These inventors have pooled their talents to develop a new set of concepts for steerable epicardial pacing leads that can be placed via the subxiphoid process. This resulting advancement in treatment technology offers several potential advantages:

• Minimally invasive placement of left ventricular pacing lead
• Accurate positioning of the left ventricular pacing lead on the target tissues
• Flexibility in pacing left ventricular pacing lead anywhere on left ventricular
• Intra-operative ease-of-use

Inventor(s): Mahapatra, Gillies

Type of Offer: Licensing



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