Adjustable-Volume Ureteroscopic Biopsy instrument

Acquiring a tissue biopsy is the most accurate method of diagnosing cancerous lesions in the upper urinary tract. Current devices often do not provide a sufficient volume of specimen for accurate pathological diagnosis. Current devices are also limited in their ability to primarily obtain a biopsy from polypoid or protruding lesions. We designed a biopsy device that can obtain an increased specimen volume from the upper urinary tract compared to existing devices in the market. Importantly, this new biopsy device is designed to obtain specimens from lesions of various geometries, including flat lesions, and then allow for a more efficient expulsion of the enclosed specimen out of the ureteroscope. Our design contains forceps with three blades that are attached by a living hinge. This design combines a sheath mechanism as well as a spring mechanism, to facilitate the opening and closing of the forceps. A surgeon would use the spring mechanism to deploy the forceps out of the sheath, entrap the target tissue, and then advance the outer sheath to close the forceps. This device can acquire a maximum volume of 4.86 mm^3, which is approximately 20% more volume than is acquired by current biopsy devices in use. This design will allow pathologists to have a greater volume of specimen to analyze pathological conditions of the upper urinary tract, with fewer repeat biopsies required. It will also facilitate biopsy of difficult-to-acquire flat lesions of the ureter.