Venting/pressure adjustment to aid in delivery of material into an anatomic region via a cannula

[0001] This application claims benefit under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) of U.S. provisional patent application Ser. No. 61/132,041 filed on Jun. 16, 2008.

[0002] This invention generally relates to the medical use of screws or tubes anchored in bone or soft tissues, and particularly, to methods and systems for controlling the pressure of material delivered through the cannulations or fenestrations in the screws or tubes by venting.

[0003] During certain medical procedures such as vertebroplasty, bone screw augmentation, or drug-delivery, it is desirable to inject foreign materials (cements, medications, etc.) into bone or other anatomic regions. For example, delivery of materials through screws with a single cannulation that may or may not include slots (fenestrations) is described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,214,012 B1, “METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR DELIVERING MATERIAL TO A DESIRED LOCATION.” However, local changes and increases in pressure at the regional injection sites can make injection through a single cannula or a radially fenestrated cannula difficult (requiring high pressures) and dangerous (can cause fat embolisms and hypertension). Apparatuses and methods that allow for venting/pressure adjustment of the injection site or region close to the delivery site are presented here, representing an improvement to this previous patent.

[0004] This application includes three related methods/devices for providing the venting of pressure upon injection of material through cannulated and/or fenestrated screws or tubes. The first method involves a device for insertion into bone or other tissue that includes at least two channels (e.g., hollow pathways, tunnels, cannulations), where one channel provides a pathway for material going into the bone/anatomic region and a second/additional channel provides a pathway for material (body fluids) going out of the bone/anatomic region near the site to be injected. The second method involves a plunger that can force material into bone if the plunger is advanced or lessen pressure if the plunger is withdrawn. The third method involves usage of two separate screws, each with a single cannulation. Material is alternately injected or withdrawn from each screw or tube to cause material to flow from one screw or tube to the other and vice versa in a controlled way that can create a uniform or asymmetrical distribution of material as desired.

[0011] The first of the three related methods involves a bone screw and/or anchor device that includes at least two channels (e.g., hollow pathways, tunnels, cannulations), where one channel provides a pathway for material going into the bone/anatomic region and a second/additional channel provides a pathway for material (body fluids) going out of the bone/anatomic region near the site to be injected.

[0012] The delivery and removal sites are close enough to each other so that the pressure at one site affects the other; that is, removal of material/fluid from the removal site should reduce the pressure at the delivery site, while injection of a material at the delivery site should increase the pressure at the removal side. By simultaneously applying positive pressure at one site and negative pressure at the other site, injection is easier and material flows between the two sites instead of flowing away into undesirable areas.

[0013] The channels can be straight, parallel to each other and collinear with the long axis of the bone screw/anchor device. Referring to FIG. 1, material may be delivered into the head 10 of the multi-port screw 11 through a central cannulation 12, out into the anatomical region through distal radial fenestrations near the tip 14, back into the screw through radial fenestrations more proximal to the head 16, and then back through radially offset cannulations 18 and up the shaft toward the screw head 10.

[0014] Alternately one or both channels can be curved, non-parallel to each other and at an angle with the long axis of the bone screw/anchor device. Thus, the openings can be anywhere (and strategically placed) along the bone screw/anchor device. One channel can coincide with the center long axis of the bone screw/anchor device, or both channels can be away from the center long axis.

[0015] Referring to FIG. 2, the channels for ingoing and outgoing materials in the multi-port screw 11 that has been inserted in bone or other tissue 22 can be connected to and used with an external pressure-monitoring system 19, which can be used to control the rate and amount of the injected liquid 21. Pressure on both the positive pressure side 27 and the negative pressure side 28 are monitored with a positive-pressure-side gauge 24 and a negative-pressure-side gauge 26. Controllable valves on positive pressure side 27 and negative pressure side 28 can be controlled to adjust the flow in and out of the screw, either manually through dials or automatically through computerized control of the valves. Outflow of injectate and other waste (e.g., blood) is collected 29.

[0016] An alternative to using the controllable pressure system shown in FIG. 2 with a single multi-port screw is to use it with multiple cannulated needles (or a dual-channel cannula with strategically placed openings) placed into a bone screw/anchor device having a single cannula/tunnel (with or without fenestrations). The needles may be inserted parallel or at an angle relative to each other, to the same or different lengths, where one needle is used to inject/deliver material, and the second (additional) needle is used to simultaneously suction material (body fluid) out of the bone/anatomic region near the site to be injected. The pressure used to remove fluid (i.e. suction) may be adjusted to compensate for the rate of flow of the injected material (i.e. depending on the viscosity of the injectate, etc.).

[0017] It is also possible, although probably not as well-controlled, to connect syringes to each channel, manually compressing one syringe while distracting the other to create positive and negative pressures.

[0018] Another option for creating suction or positive pressure in a straight channel (either in a two-screw configuration as described below or in a single screw with multiple channels) is to use a “plunger” in the channel. Such a plunger could be either a straight cylinder or a threaded cylinder within a threaded channel, as is shown in FIG. 3. FIG. 3 shows both an axially cannulated and radially fenestrated screw as a cutaway view without plunger (left) and the whole screw with plunger 30 (right). After driving the screw into bone or tissue using a screwdriver that is suitable for the hex head socket in the screw head 33, material is injected into the central canal opening in the head of the screw 34. The plunger 30 is then inserted into the central canal. Threaded indentations 31 in the plunger mate with threads 32 in the wall of the cannulation, allowing the plunger to be advanced or withdrawn by rotating it clockwise or counterclockwise in the hole with a smaller screwdriver.

[0019] An alternative embodiment involves the use of two cannulated (and possibly fenestrated) screws in the same piece of bone with tips in close proximity. As an example, two pedicle screws could be used during intraoperative vertebroplasty, where one screw is injecting under positive pressure while the other is withdrawing under negative pressure, allowing cement or material to flow between the screw tips. As with a single screw with multiple channels, this method prevents material from flowing outside the desired area. Referring to FIG. 4, injection begins (left image) with a single screw (left screw in this example), through which material flows and gathers near the fenestrations at the tip 40. Negative pressure is applied to the opposite screw (center image), causing material to flow toward the opposite screw tip 42 (right screw in this example) in a controlled way. If a more uniform distribution of material (right image) is desired, flow through the left screw can be halted or reversed and flow through the right screw reversed (that is, material injected from the right) to build up material near the right screw tip 42.

[0020] Depending on the porosity of the bone or material between the screw tips, this two-screw technique may or may not require a pilot channel to be created so material can flow between screw tips. Referring to FIG. 5, to create a pilot hole, a reaming wire 50 may be passed through the cannulation 52 and into the bone or tissue 54. The reaming wire may be comprised of shape memory alloy such as Nitinol in a pre-coiled configuration that would allow it to angulate after exiting the tip of the screw 56 if a nonlinear pilot hole pathway is desired. Such wires could be forced into the cannulation and advanced through the straight channel, but would curl as they exited the tip.

[0021] It will be understood that implementations are not limited to the specific components disclosed herein, as virtually any components consistent with the intended operation of a method and/or system implementation for a phone system may be utilized. Accordingly, for example, although particular component examples may be disclosed, such components may comprise any shape, size, style, type, model, version, class, grade, measurement, concentration, material, weight, quantity, and/or the like consistent with the intended operation of a method and/or system implementation of embodiments of the present invention may be used. In addition, various other configurations may be used. For example, while a screw may be described as having a hex head or a flat head, any other types of screw heads may be used with affecting the operation of the invention.

[0022] In places where the description above refers to particular implementations of a caller identification system, it should be readily apparent that a number of modifications may be made without departing from the spirit thereof and that these implementations may be applied to other systems. The presently disclosed implementations are, therefore, to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive.