Recent Patents on Biomedical Engineering (Discontinued) - Volume 3, Issue 2, 2010

In a recent paper published on Lancet, Learmonth defined total hip arthroplasty (THA) “the operation of the century” [1]. Since the first prostheses in 1960s, advances in bioengineering technology have driven development of hip arthroplasty; in fact better materials and designs have increased the range of motion with enhanced stability and very low wear. With these technologies today, hip arthroplasty is safe and effective not only in old patients with an important limitation of life quality but also in younger patients with high demanding activities. The purpose of this patent review is to discuss the recent technologic advances in bearing surfaces and offer an insight into the potential benefits and concerns with the alternative bearing surfaces.

Single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) have been under investigation during the past decade for an array of applications due to their unique and versatile properties. Recent advances have facilitated the development of numerous SWCNT-based biomedical technologies. Consequently, there has been a worldwide surge in published patent applications and issued patents on SWCNTs. The focus of this review is to summarize the recent patent applications covering the development of synthesis methods, new compositions and utility of SWCNTs for various biomedical applications.

X-ray phase contrast imaging (XPCi) has been the hottest topic in x-ray imaging for over a decade. The excitement originates from the way in which image contrast is generated in XPCi, as this arises from the phase changes that x-rays undergo when crossing an object instead of relying on x-ray absorption. As a consequence, the contrast of all image details is highly enhanced, and features classically considered invisible become detectable. This solves the basic problem of conventional x-ray imaging i.e. poor image contrast arising from small absorption differences. This is extremely important whenever objects that differ little in x-ray absorption from their surrounding background have to be detected, e.g. in diagnostic radiology when soft tissue is imaged. Different XPCi methods were developed, based on freespace propagation, perfect crystals, gratings, etc - all of which are covered by patents which will be reviewed in the present paper. These methods, however, only work with synchrotron radiation (SR), which prevented real-world implementations of XPCi so far. A solution to this problem was developed at UCL, in the shape of a new XPCi approach based on coded apertures. This method is also covered by a patent which will be reviewed in this paper.

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in the United States, accounting for more than one third of all deaths. In heart failure patients, progressive impairment in the ability of the heart to effectively pump blood to the body is caused by adverse remodeling, scar formation and loss of cardiomyocytes. In the past two decades, new bioengineering strategies to counteract the effects of heart failure on cardiac function have shown promise in experimental models. These include the innovative use of biological substrates and polymers to develop two- and threedimensional scaffolds and cardiomyocyte patches to replace or support damaged cardiac tissue. This patent review highlights developments in this arena in the past few years, focusing on the array of starting materials, both cellular and acellular, that are used in the creation of these patches and outlines the major challenges to the field that must be addressed to turn these approaches into viable therapies.

Chest drainage systems have been used routinely in patients following cardiac and thoracic surgeries, as well as patients suffering from chest trauma and lung disease. Maintaining the patency of chest tubes is vital so that one can evacuate abnormal collections of air and fluid from the pleural/mediastinal spaces and prevent hemothorax or pneumothorax; however, many surgeons report clogging or kinking of chest tubes despite efforts to maintain patency. Postoperatively, patients experience discomfort and even pain from chest tubes. There have been improvements in drainage systems. These have become more compact, safer and more “user friendly,” and the use of recently commercialized devices now helps promote the patient's earlier ambulation. This review provides a brief description of recent patents and advances regarding chest drainage systems, which include a variety of chest tubes, debris cleaning systems, methods for safer chest tube placements, and drainage units.

The patents annotated in this section have been selected from various patent databases. These recent patents are relevant to the articles published in this journal issue, categorized by medical imaging, bioinformatics, image processing, biomaterials, pharmaceutical drugs, bioengineering, medical devices, design, biological devices, biomechanics & diagnostic devices related to biomedical engineering.