Balloon-based measuring system for compliance investigations

For the development of new stent designs, the compliance of the surrounding biological tissue has to be considered. We expect to obtain parameters for simulation, stent dimensioning, and the forces acting on the stent after implantation. Starting point of the investigations is the commercially available Metricath system allowing cross-sectional lumen area measurements of arteries. Its working principle is based on the pressure-volume relationship using a balloon catheter, which is inflated to a specific pressure of about 250 mmHg and conforms to the shape and size of the lumen. However, for compliance charts multiple pressure levels and a larger pressure range are needed. To overcome this technical limitation, the Metricath balloon catheter is combined with a new inflation device, called pV-Monitor. The presented cross-sectional lumen area measurements in rigid tubes and compliance investigations of elastic tubes demonstrate the feasibility of the pV-Monitor system.