August 25, 2021 Conn Hastings Neurology, Neurosurgery, Radiology, Vascular Surgery

A team from the University of California, San Diego has invented a way to make a steerable catheter that can more accurately navigate the tortuous structures of the cerebrovascular system. The device is inspired by delicate structures found in nature, including flagella and insect legs, and uses the principles of soft robotics to create a hydraulic steering system that is wrapped in a tiny silicone rubber tube. UCSD researchers hope that the technology will allow clinicians to treat areas of the vasculature that are currently inaccessible.

Intracranial aneurysm is a difficult treatment problem. In about 25% of cases, they may be inoperable because they are located in the tortuous vasculature of the brain and cannot be accessed. "As a neurosurgeon, one of the challenges we face is to guide the catheter to the subtle deep parts of the brain," said Dr. Alexander Kalesi, a researcher involved in the study. "Today's results demonstrate a proof of concept for a flexible, easy-to-maneuver catheter that will significantly improve our ability to treat cerebral aneurysms and many other neurological diseases, and I look forward to bringing this innovation to patient care."

Currently, clinicians use curved-tip guide wires to pass catheters through the vasculature from the femoral artery to the cerebral artery where the aneurysm is located. However, this technique is not always optimal, even for theoretically accessible aneurysms. Unfortunately, when the guide wire is removed to start treatment, problems may arise. "Once the guide wire is retrieved, the catheter will return to its original shape, which is usually straight, making it impossible to enter the pathology," said Dr. Jessica Wynn, another researcher involved in the study.

In a method change, this latest technology allows the surgeon to manipulate the tip with a handheld controller that is compressed to manipulate the hydraulic system within the device. The hydraulic oil is simply salt water, which is a safety measure to ensure that any leakage is harmless.  

The steerable catheter navigates the pig’s cerebral arteries and deploys the fluoroscopic image of the coil.

The catheter design is inspired by structures found in nature. "We were inspired by the mating of flagella and insect legs and beetles, which involved micro-scale hydraulics and large-scale deformation," said Gopesh Tilvawala, another researcher involved in the study. "This prompted us to develop [a] a hydraulically driven soft robotic microcatheter."  

So far, researchers have tested this technology on pigs and hope to advance human research as soon as possible.

See the video below about catheter technology:

Scientific Robot Research: A soft robot steerable microcatheter for endovascular treatment of brain diseases

Pass: University of California, San Diego

Conn Hastings received his Ph.D. from the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland for his work in drug delivery. He studied injectable hydrogels for the delivery of cells, drugs and drugs in the treatment of cancer and cardiovascular diseases. The potential of nanoparticles. After earning his PhD and completing a year of postdoctoral research, Conn began his career in academic publishing and then became a full-time science writer and editor, combining his experience in the field of biomedical sciences with his passion for written communication.

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