Method and apparatus for transmyocardial revascularization

摘要

A method for performing transmyocardial revascularization (TMR) comprises the steps of creating an incision in an outer portion of heart tissue of a patient and creating a channel in the patient's myocardium through the incision by advancing a channel creating device into the myocardium beyond the depth of the incision to remove myocardial tissue without removing all outer portion heart tissue coinciding with the channel. As a result, the remaining outer portion tissue acts as a cap to reduce bleeding from the channel subsequent to removal of the channel creating device. The cap may be in the form of an annular flap of myocardial/epicardial tissue. The channel creating device used to create the channel with the method can be either a mechanical coring device or an advancing lasing device.