Pressure Measurement Device

Abstract

A device measures pressures in animals and humans and includes a pressure transmission catheter (PTC) filled with a pressure transmitting medium and implantable in an area in having a physiological pressure. A transducer communicates with the pressure transmitting medium to provide a pressure signal representing variations in the physiologic pressure on electrical wires. A connecting catheter carries the electrical wires to signal processing and telemetry circuitry, which transmits a telemetry signal representing the pressure signal to a receiver external to the animal or human. A housing holds the signal processing and telemetry circuitry, but the transducer is remote from the housing. The device is particularly useful in measuring venous pressure, pulmonary pressure, bladder pressure, or intracranial pressure without significant head pressure artifact and with a sufficient dynamic response. One embodiment of the PTC includes a multi-durometer stem.

1 . An apparatus for measuring physiological pressure comprising:
 a pressure transmitting catheter having a lumen filled with a pressure transmitting medium;   a transducer in communication with the pressure transmitting medium to provide a pressure signal representing variations in the physiological pressure on an electrical wire;   signal processing circuitry coupled to the electrical wire to process the pressure signal; and   a housing holding the signal processing circuitry and the transducer;   wherein the pressure transmitting catheter includes a first layer material surrounding the lumen and at least one additional layer of material surrounding the first layer material, wherein the at least one additional layer of material has at least one material with a different hardness than the first layer of material.