Systems and methods for moving and circulating fluid to treat alzheimer's disease

摘要

A system for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease is provided by moving cerebrospinal fluid containing particles know to contribute to onset of Alzheimer's disease from a source of cerebrospinal fluid to the stomach or bladder, where the particles are safely digested by gastric acid or excreted, the system including an implantable pump, an inlet catheter, an outlet catheter, and a one-way valve. The system further includes at least one filter to filter harmful particles from the cerebrospinal fluid and return the filtered cerebrospinal fluid back to the source of cerebrospinal fluid, where the harmful particles blocked by the filter may be rinsed off the filter and transported to the stomach or bladder.

主权项

1. An apparatus for removing particles contributing to onset of Alzheimer's disease from a patient, comprising:
an implantable pump having an inlet port and an outlet port; an inlet catheter having an inlet end and an outlet end, the inlet end configured to be disposed in fluid communication with a source of cerebrospinal fluid, and the outlet end coupled to the inlet port of the implantable pump; an outlet catheter having an inlet end and an outlet end, the inlet end in fluid communication with the outlet port of the implantable pump, and the outlet end configured to be disposed through a stomach or bladder wall of the patient; a fine filter in fluid communication with the implantable pump through the output port of the implantable pump, the fine filter configured to block the particles contributing to onset of Alzheimer's disease; a return catheter having an inlet end coupled to the fine filter, and an outlet end configured to be disposed in fluid communication with a different area in the source of cerebrospinal fluid; and a reservoir in fluid communication with the fine filter, wherein the reservoir contains cerebrospinal fluid for washing the fine filter, wherein the inlet end of the outlet catheter is in fluid communication with the output port of the implantable pump through the fine filter.