1. A system for treating the heart, comprising:
a cardiac harness configured to conform generally to at least a portion of a heart;
a plurality of leadless pacesense electrodes attached to the cardiac harness, the leadless pacesense electrodes being electrically insulated from the cardiac harness;
the pacesense electrodes being capable of providing an electrical stimulus to the heart; and
a control unit having a source of energy for communicating with the pacesense electrodes.
2. The system of claim 1, wherein the control unit includes a power source.
3. The system of claim 1, wherein the control unit includes a microprocessor.
4. The system of claim 1, wherein the cardiac harness is coated with an electrically insulated dielectric material.
5. The system of claim 1, wherein at least a portion of the pacesense electrodes on the cardiac harness are positioned on or adjacent to the epicardial surface of the heart.
6. The system of claim 1, wherein the leadless pacesense electrodes transmit cardiac signals from the heart to the control unit and in response the control unit transmits electrical pulses to the pacesense electrodes.
7. The system of claim 1, wherein the leadless pacesense electrodes are attached to the cardiac harness with a dielectric material.
8. The system of claim 1, wherein the leadless pacesense electrodes receive signals from the control unit.
9. The system of claim 1, wherein the leadless pacesense electrodes transmit signals to and receive signals from the control unit.
10. The system of claim 1, wherein the leadless pacesense electrodes are bipolar.
11. The system of claim 1, wherein a leadless pacesense electrode is epicardially attached to the right atrium appendage and the pacesense electrode communicates with the control unit.
12. The system of claim 1, wherein a leadless pacesense electrode is endocardially implanted in the right atrium and the pacesense electrode communicates with the control unit.
13. The system of claim 1, wherein at least one defibrillator electrode is attached to the cardiac harness and a lead connects the at least one defibrillator electrode to an ICD.
14. The system of claim 1, wherein the leadless pacesense electrodes are arranged in arrays of pacesense electrodes for selective activation and deactivation.
15. The system of claim 14, wherein each array of pacesense electrodes includes two pacesense electrodes.
16. The system of claim 1, wherein a first pacesense electrode is attached adjacent to a first end of a row connector and a second pacesense electrode is attached to second end of the row connector.
17. A system for treating the heart, comprising:
a cardiac harness having rows of undulating spring elements configured to conform generally to at least a portion of a heart;
a control unit for providing electrical pulses to the heart; and
wherein the cardiac harness includes an antenna for transmitting cardiac electrical signals to the control unit.
18. The system of claim 17, wherein at least one undulating strand comprises the antenna.
19. The system of claim 17, wherein the cardiac harness includes coils, at least one of the coils comprising the antenna for transmitting the cardiac electrical signals to the control unit.
20. The system of claim 17, wherein the control unit receives the cardiac electrical signals from the antenna and transmits electrical pulses through leadless pacesense electrodes attached to the cardiac harness.
21. A system for treating the heart, comprising:
a cardiac harness configured to conform generally to at least a portion of a heart;
a plurality of leadless pacesense electrodes attached to the cardiac harness, the leadless pacesense electrodes being electrically insulated from the cardiac harness;
the pacesense electrodes being capable of sensing cardiac signals from the heart; and
a control unit for communicating with the pacesense electrodes.
22. The system of claim 21, wherein the control unit includes a power source.
23. The system of claim 21, wherein the control unit includes a microprocessor.
24. the system of claim 21, wherein the leadless pacesense electrodes receive signals from the control unit.
25. The system of claim 1, wherein the leadless pacesense electrodes receive signals from the control unit.
26. A method of implanting a cardiac harness and leadless pacesense electrodes, comprising:
providing a cardiac harness having leadless pacesense electrodes attached thereto;
providing a control unit;
providing a minimally invasive access site;
inserting the cardiac harness through the minimally invasive access site and around at least a portion of the heart; and
inserting the control unit through the minimally invasive access site and implanting the control unit close enough to the cardiac harness so that the control unit communicates with the leadless pacesense electrodes.
27. The method of claim 26, further comprising providing a delivery device for delivering the cardiac harness minimally invasively.
28. The method of claim 26, further comprising providing an introducer and inserting the introducer into the minimally invasive access site for delivery of the cardiac harness and the control unit.
29. The method of claim 26, further comprising performing diagnostics, testing, and programming of the control unit at any time prior to, during, or after closing the minimally invasive access site.
30. The method of claim 26, wherein the minimally invasive access site is positioned between two ribs.
31. The method of claim 26, further comprising making a small incision in the pericardium so that the cardiac harness and the leadless pacesense electrodes are inserted through the incision and mounted on the epicardial surface of the heart.
32. The method of claim 26, wherein the leadless pacesense electrodes are positioned on or adjacent to the epicardial surface of the heart when the cardiac harness is mounted on the heart.
33. The method of claim 26, wherein the control unit includes a source of electrical energy for transmitting electrical energy to the leadless pacesense electrodes.
34. The method of claim 33, wherein the control unit is programmable to selectively activate or deactivate pairs of pacesense electrodes.
35. The method of claim 26, wherein at least a portion of the cardiac harness is coated with a dielectric material.
36. The method of claim 26, wherein the leadless pacesense electrodes sense cardiac electrical signals from the heart and the control unit transmits an electrical pulse to the leadless pacesense electrodes and through the heart.
37. The method of claim 26, wherein the cardiac harness and the control unit are implanted minimally invasively in less than about one hour.
38. The method of claim 26, wherein the cardiac harness and the control unit are implanted minimally invasively in less than about forty-five minutes.
39. The method of claim 26, wherein the cardiac harness and the control unit are implanted minimally invasively in less than about thirty minutes.
The claims below are in addition to those above.
All refrences to claim(s) which appear below refer to the numbering after this setence.
1. A composition comprising:
a base polymer; and
an ester copolymer comprising an olefin and a copolymerizable ester, wherein the ester copolymer has a pour point less than 40\xb0 C.
2. The composition of claim 1, wherein the base polymer is a solid at 50\xb0 C.
3. The composition of claim 1, wherein the base polymer has a peak melting point greater than 50\xb0 C.
4. The composition of any one of claims 1 to claim 3, wherein the base polymer has a melt index from 0.1 g10 minutes to 3,000 g10 min.
5. The composition of any one of claims 1 to claim 3, wherein the base polymer has a melt index from 0.1 g10 minutes to 2,000 g10 min.
6. The composition of any one of claims 1 to claim 3, wherein the base polymer has a melt index from 0.1 g10 minutes to 1,000 g10 min.
7. The composition of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the base polymer comprises a first olefin and a first copolymerizable ester wherein the base polymer has a peak melting point greater than 50\xb0 C.; and wherein the ester copolymer comprises a second olefin and a second copolymerizable ester, wherein the first and second olefins can be the same or different, wherein the first and second copolymerizable esters can be the same or different, and wherein the ester copolymer has a pour point less than 40\xb0 C.
8. The composition of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the viscosity at 177\xb0 C. of the composition is less than 95% of the viscosity without incorporating the ester copolymer.
9. The composition of any one of the preceding claims, further comprising a tackifier and a wax.
10. The composition of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the composition comprises from 1 wt % to 80 wt % of the base polymer, from 1 wt % to 70 wt % of the tackifier and from 1 wt % to 15 wt % of the wax, based on the total weight of the composition.
11. The composition of claim 9, wherein the viscosity at 177\xb0 C. of the composition is less than 95% of the viscosity of a blend of the base polymer, the tackifier, and the wax.
12. The composition of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the fiber tear of the composition at 25\xb0 C. using Inland paper board as a substrate is at least 95% of the fiber tear of the blend.
13. The composition of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the composition has at least 95% fiber tear at 25\xb0 C. using Inland paper board as a substrate.
14. The composition of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the ester copolymer is present at from 1% to 25% by weight of the base polymer.
15. The composition of any one of claims 7 to 14, wherein the first and second olefins comprise ethylene.
16. The composition of any one of claims 7 to 15, wherein the first and second copolymerizable esters can be the same or different and are selected from the group consisting of vinyl esters of carboxylic acids, alkyl esters of acrylic and methacrylic acids, and combinations thereof.
17. The composition of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the base polymer is selected from ethylene-vinyl acetate and ethylene-n-butyl acrylate.
18. The composition of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the ester copolymer comprises ethylene-vinyl acetate.
19. The composition of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the ester copolymer comprises a pour point below 25\xb0 C.
20. The composition of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the ester copolymer comprises a viscosity at 25\xb0 C. from 50 to 300 mPa-s.
21. The composition of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the ester copolymer is at least 95% by weight non-crystalline.
22. The composition of any one of claims 7 to 21, wherein the base polymer comprises from 15% to 45% by weight of the first copolymerizable ester.
23. The composition of any one of claims 7 to 22, wherein the ester copolymer comprises from 10% to 60% by weight of the second copolymerizable ester.
24. An adhesive composition, comprising a copolymer comprising more than 50% ethylene vinyl acetate wherein the ethylene vinyl acetate has a vinyl acetate content of greater than 10% and wherein the adhesive composition has a viscosity of less than 3000 MPa-s at 177\xb0 C.
25. An adhesive composition, comprising:
from 1 wt % to 80 wt % of a base polymer selected from ethylene-vinyl acetate and ethylene-n-butyl acrylate, from 1 wt % to 60 wt % of a tackifier and from 1 wt % to 15 wt % of a wax, by total weight of the base polymer, the tackifier, and the wax wherein the base polymer is solid at 25\xb0 C. and has a melt index greater than 10 g10 minutes;
from 1 wt % to 25 wt % of a liquid ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer by weight of the base polymer; and
wherein the viscosity at 177\xb0 C. of the adhesive composition is less than 80% of the viscosity of a blend of the base polymer, tackifier, and wax, and wherein the adhesive composition has at least 95% fiber tear at 25\xb0 C. using Inland paper board as a substrate.