The Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne has collaborated with a research team from Western Hospital in Toronto, Canada to develop an ultra miniature and highly flexible neurovascular catheter called "MagFlow". This catheter can safely navigate through the most complex and delicate blood vessels in the brain driven by blood flow, providing a new tool for treating neurological diseases. The relevant paper was published in the latest issue of the journal Science Robotics. Microchannels are medical devices that can meander along human blood vessels, used for treating arterial blockages, stopping bleeding, and even blocking tumor blood supply or implementing precision chemotherapy. However, currently doctors still need to use guide wires to carefully push the microcatheter through the blood vessels during operation, which is not only time-consuming but may also damage the blood vessel wall. More importantly, the existing guide wires and microcatheters are too large in size to reach the tiny blood vessels with a diameter less than 150 microns and as thin as hair deep in the brain. MagFlow is only half the size of a conventional catheter and can travel with the help of blood flow kinetic energy, thereby minimizing contact with the vessel wall. The main body of MagFlow is composed of two pieces of adhesive polymer, which can expand freely like a fire hose, making it easy to transport thin or viscous biomedical liquids. The team also simultaneously developed the robot steering platform "OmniMag", which guides the movement of microchannels through a magnetic field generator installed on the robotic arm. The platform can automatically calculate the optimal magnetic field direction required to guide the MagFlow magnetic tip to turn based on the doctor's touch movement. In the validation experiment, the team inserted MagFlow into extremely narrow and curved arteries in the head, neck, and spine of pigs, rapidly and safely delivering contrast and embolization agents, fully demonstrating its unique performance. The research team stated that this achievement transforms the concept of "flow driven navigation" into a feasible clinical plan, which is expected to open up new avenues for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases in the future, for the treatment of adult patients with hemorrhagic stroke, arteriovenous malformations, and children with cancer. (New Society)