Integral hermetic impantable pressure transducer

Claim 1

An implantable pressure transducer comprising: a sealed container having a flexible wall fully filled with a first liquid; lead-in conductors exposed to the exterior of said container; a basic pressure transducer having a sensing surface and a vent and coupled to said lead-in conductors, wherein pressure impinging on said sensing surface relative to pressure impinging on said vent may be electrically detected from said lead-in conductors, said transducer fixedly mounted to said container with said first liquid impinging on said sensing surface and with said vent exposed to the exterior of said container; conductor means for coupling said transducer to associated electronic circuitry, coupled to said lead-in conductors; connectors electrically coupled to said conductor means; a vent tube having a first end and a second end, fully filled with a second liquid, said first end sealably coupled to said vent, said second liquid impinging on said vent; a membrane sealably coupled to the second end of said vent tube whereby the pressure differential between pressure external to said container and to said membrane may be electrically detected from said connectors; and a lead body of a material substantially inert to body fluid encasing said conductor means and said vent tube, said lead body having an aperture wherein said membrane is exposed to the exterior of said lead body, said lead body fixedly mounted to said container and to said connectors.