A cerebral spinal fluid shunt plug includes a shunt plug housing having a shunt valve recess formed therein and a window recess with an access hole. The cerebral spinal fluid shunt plug also includes a shunt valve shaped and dimensioned for positioning within the shunt valve recess of the shunt plug housing and a lucent disk shaped and dimensioned for the passage through the central access hole of the shunt plug housing. In another embodiment, a cerebral spinal fluid shunt plug includes a shunt plug housing having a shunt valve recess formed therein and an intracranial monitoring device recess with an access hole. A shunt valve is positioned within the shunt valve recess of the shunt plug housing and an intracranial monitoring device is passed through the central access hole of the shunt plug housing.

A system for stimulating body tissue may include a stimulation lead, sensors, and a control unit. The stimulation lead may include one or more energy sources. The control unit may include a processor and non-transitory computer readable medium, and an interface (e.g., touch screen interface) for receiving user inputs and communicating information to the user. The sensors may be configured to provide impedance measurements to the control unit. The control unit may calculate lung gas distributions and/or generate an image modeling lung gas distributions. Stimulation delivered by the stimulation may be adjusted based on the impedance measurements.

Systems, apparatus, methods and computer-readable storage media that facilitate monitoring the integrity of telemetry connectivity between an implantable device and an external device are provided. In one embodiment, an implantable device includes a monitoring component that monitors advertisement signal information identifying an amount of advertisement signals transmitted to the external device within a defined time period, and telemetry session information identifying an amount of the telemetry sessions that are established between the external device and the implantable device within the defined time period. A connectivity assessment component of the implantable device further determines whether a telemetry connectivity problem exists between the external device and the implantable device based on a degree of miscorrelation between the advertisement signal information and the telemetry session information.

The invention provides an introducer assembly for delivering a blood pump into vasculature of a subject, as well as a method for utilizing the assembly.

Methods and apparatus for translating a continuous-delivery delivery profile into a plurality of periodic bolus deliveries.

The disclosure provides an implantable bioartificial active secretion system for providing a physiological regulating secretion such as insulin necessary for functionality of a physiologic activity such as glucose metabolism of a living-being host. The system includes a housing implantable within the host, in fluidic communication with tissue fluid indicative of a physiological regulating secretion need. A chamber within the housing contains a plurality of physiologically active, autonomously functioning, live secretory cells for producing the physiological regulating secretion. A continually operating two pump apparatus moves tissue fluid into contact with the secretory cells for pick up of the physiological regulating secretion for subsequent physiologically-effective dispensing into the host, while avoiding immuno-rejection of the host body or of the host to the secretory cells.

In one aspect, an implantable shunt system is disclosed that, in one example implementation, includes a resilient member and a connected fluid regulating device. The fluid regulating device selectively permits fluid flow through an opening valve of an implantable shunt according to an adjustable opening pressure. The opening pressure is proportional to an amount of tension on the resilient member. One or more tension sensors that are connected to the resilient member measure an amount of tension on the resilient member. The tension sensors generate tension data that corresponds to the measured amount of tension. The system further includes a communication unit with a transmitting unit that transmits the measured data over a communication link. The system also includes a reading unit that receives the transmitted tension data over the communication link. The reading unit includes a connector that electrically connects the reading unit to the transmission unit.

A method for the fail-safe termination of in vivo drug delivery from an implantable drug delivery system, the method comprising: providing an implantable drug delivery system comprising: a housing having a reservoir for containing a drug, and a port for dispensing the drug to a patient; and an emergency deactivation unit disposed between the reservoir and the port, the emergency deactivation unit comprising a composite structure comprising a biocompatible ferromagnetic mesh open to fluid flow and a hydrophobic meltable material, the hydrophobic meltable material comprising at least one hole therein for enabling a fluid to pass through the hydrophobic meltable material; implanting the implantable drug delivery system within a patient; enabling the drug to flow from the reservoir, through the at least one hole in the hydrophobic meltable material and out the port; and when drug flow is to be terminated, applying a magnetic field to the composite structure, such that a current is induced in the ferromagnetic mesh which heats the ferromagnetic mesh and melts the hydrophobic meltable material, thereby closing the at least one hole in the hydrophobic meltable material and blocking drug delivery to the patient.

A medical device and a system for medical treatment comprising the medical device are disclosed. The medical device comprises a fluidic conduit and/or is configured to be operatively coupled to a fluidic conduit. The medical device comprises a flow regulator for regulating the flow of a fluid in the fluidic conduit and at least two movable elements, which are passively displaceable as a function of a fluidic pressure change in the fluidic conduit or actively displaceable for regulating the flow of fluid in the fluidic conduit. The medical device further comprises at least one transponder circuit comprising at least one transponder element chosen from a capacitor, an inductor, a resistor, or combinations thereof, being arranged with respect to the movable elements such that the transponder circuit has a capacitance or inductance or resistance or resonant frequency or Q factor, which changes as a function of the displacement of the movable elements. The system further comprises a control device comprising a transceiver, wherein the transceiver is configured to transmit energy to the transponder circuit and to read out the capacitance and/or the inductance and/or the resistance and/or the resonant frequency and/or the Q factor of the transponder circuit, such as to determine with the same transponder circuit whether there is a displacement of any of the movable elements. A foil comprising at least one transponder circuit to be arranged in the medical device is also disclosed.

A quick-connector for use with an autoretroperfusion and hypothermia system and methods of using the connector. The connector comprises a coolant inlet, a coolant outlet, a coolant reservoir, a blood lumen outlet, a blood lumen inlet, and a blood lumen, whereby the coolant outlet is configured to accept a cooling product from the reservoir, the reservoir is configured to accept cooling product from the coolant inlet. Flowing blood powered by the patient's heart may enter the connector through the blood lumen inlet, travel through the blood lumen while being cooled by cooling product in the reservoir, and leave the connector through the blood lumen outlet. The temperature of blood leaving the connector can be measured at the blood lumen outlet. Catheters can be attached to the blood lumen inlet and blood lumen outlet to receive and send blood, respectively. A cooling system can be attached to the coolant inlet and coolant outlet to provide a source of cooling product.