Sri Chitra Institute develops India’s first flow diverter stent, transfers tech

The country’s first indigenous device for correcting ballooning of brain arteries and device for healing of heart hole has been developed by the institute in collaboration with National Aerospace Laboratories, Bangalore (CSIR-NAL) using superelastic NiTiNOL alloys.

CSTIMST is an autonomous institute of the Department of Science & Technology (DST), under the Technical Research Centre (TRC), 

Dr K Jayakumar, director, SCTIMST, and Jitendra Hedge, managing director, Biorad Medisys, signed the technology transfer agreements in the presence of Dr Jitendra J Jadhav, director, CSIR- NAL, through an online meeting early this week.

The novel ASD occlude developed by SCTIMST promotes better healing of the hole in the heart and also has softer edge for minimising the damage to adjacent tissue. The delivery system has a novel release mechanism to enable smooth release of the device. 

The flexible flow diverter stent that allows accurate positioning of the device across the aneurysm developed by SCTIMST is the first one to be manufactured in India. It possesses kink resistance and improved radial strength through a novel braiding pattern making the device flexible and adaptable to the distortion of the vessel boundaries. The device is also provided with radio-opaque markers for radiographic visibility. The associated delivery system allows accurate positioning of the device across the aneurysm. 

The devise and its features have been protected through two Indian patent applications, one international patent application, and design registration. 

The Chitra Flow Diverter stent is expected to be priced significantly lower than the currently imported ones.

Flow diverter stents that are used for diverting blood flow away from localised ballooning of arteries in the brain promotes better healing of the hole in the heart.

Nitinol-based occluder devices, which are currently used to heal Atrial Septal Defect (ASD) or hole in the heart that affects eight out of every 1,000 living babies born, are imported.

Besides, India does not manufacture flow diverter stents, which are needed for diverting blood flow away from an intracranial aneurysm or localised ballooning of arteries in the brain, helping reduce chances of its rupture and related stroke.