TRANSMURAL DRUG DELIVERY METHOD AND APPARATUS

摘要

A transmural drug delivery method broadly includes the steps of forming a channel through a tissue surface into the tissue and introducing a drug into the channel. A preferred method promotes myocardial angiogenesis by first forming endocardial channels (32) through the endocardium (30) from within the left ventricle (26) and then introducing angiogenic factors into the channel to promote growth of new arterioles (34) within the myocardium (24). The new arterioles connect the channels to each other, to the coronary arteries (36) and grow in the myocardium itself. Doing so supplies the blood from the left ventricle directly to the myocardium and may also provide flow paths around blockages (47) in the coronary arteries to lessen or eliminate myocardial ischemia. The invention can also be used to introduce other agents into myocardial tissue and into the tissue of other organs.