Importance

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Abstract

A sheath through which a shunt for relieving hydrocephalus can be withdrawn from or advanced into the brain of a patient includes a tubular member which is slidably engageable with the shunt in a surrounding relationship with the shunt. The tubular member has a distal end segment, and an electrically resistive cutting element is positioned on the distal end segment for selectively cutting tissue adjacent the cutting element as the tubular member is advanced over the shunt. Preferably, the cutting element is connected to a source of electrical pulses for selectively heating the cutting element and thus for selectively thermally cutting tissue that has grown into the shunt away from the shunt. The sheath also includes a small fiber tube through which an optical fiber can be positioned to provide a means for presenting a video display of the brain during shunt retrieval and replacement through the sheath.

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First Claim