THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology (SCTIMST) has developed a cost-effective nitinol-based occlusion device for non-surgical closure of the atrial septal defect (ASD) commonly known as the ‘hole in the heart’, a congenital heart disorder.
The device — Chithra ASD occluder — has been developed by a team lead by Dr Sujesh Sreedharan of Technical Research Centre for Biomedical Devices under the Biotechnology Department of SCTIMST. The institute has applied for a patent. According to a top institute official, the new device would help mitigate the risks of excess clot during tissue formation associated with the existing ASD occlusion procedure.
“The (new) device is designed in such a way that there is no hub on the left side of the device. This will ensure a smooth tissue layer formation over the device in due course of time after implantation in the left atrium. The hub on the right side is retained as part of the release mechanism while delivering the device. To get the single hub, special patterns of braiding were developed,” the official said.
The atrial septal defect is a birth defect of the heart in which there is a hole in the wall (septum) that divides the upper chambers (atria) of the heart. Currently, the ASD device that is available in the market costs around `60,000. However, the cost of the device developed by Sree Chitra may come down by nearly 50 per cent, the official said, and added the institute hopes to transfer the technology in a month’s time.