Indian devices for Brain aneurysm and Hole in heart

This is something the Indian citizens have been waiting for. And soon they will have access to the first indigenous flow diverter stent, a device used for Brain Aneurysm, and Atrial Septal Defect Occluder, a device for better healing of the hole in the heart.

Brain aneurysm (also called intracranial aneurysm or cerebral aneurysm) is a life-threatening condition in which a weak spot in the brain’s arterial wall bulges with blood, which can result in a stroke or brain damage leading to death.

Till now, India did not manufacture flow diverter stents, which are needed for diverting blood flow away from localized ballooning of arteries in the brain, helping reduce chances of its rupture and related stroke.

On the other hand, Atrial Septal Defect (ASD) (also called hole in the heart) is a medical condition present at birth that affects 8 out of every 1000 living babies born. An atrial septal defect is a hole between the two upper chambers of the heart.

Nitinol-based occluder devices, which are presently used to heal Atrial Septal Defect (ASD) in India, are purchased from abroad to meet demands.

In order to address the challenges, Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST), an autonomous institute of the Department of Science & Technology (DST) has entered into Technology Transfer Agreements with Pune based Biorad Medisys for two biomedical implant devices: an Atrial Septal Defect Occluder and an Intracranial Flow Diverter Stents developed by the institute in collaboration with National Aerospace Laboratories, Bangalore (CSIR-NAL) using superelastic NiTiNOL alloys.

The novel ASD occlude developed by SCTIMST promotes better healing of the hole in the heart and also has a softer edge for minimizing the damage to adjacent tissue. The delivery system has a novel release mechanism to enable the smooth release of the device.

The flexible flow diverter stent that allows accurate positioning of the device across the aneurysm developed by SCTIMST is the first one to be manufactured in India. It possesses kink resistance and improved radial strength through a novel braiding pattern making the device flexible and adaptable to the distortion of the vessel boundaries.

The device is also provided with radio-opaque markers for radiographic visibility. The associated delivery system allows accurate positioning of the device across the aneurysm.

The cost of the Chitra Flow Diverter stent is expected to be priced significantly lower than the currently imported ones.

Also Read: Bird flu scare: Safe to eat chickens and eggs, but how?