Expandable structures for deployment in interior body regions
US6623505B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jul 31, 2001 |
| Grant date | Sep 23, 2003 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jul 31, 2021 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC A)Human Necessities
- CPC primaryA61F2310/0097
- WIPO fieldMedical technology
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
Devices intended for deployment into interior body regions employ a catheter tube, which carries an expandable structure. The catheter tube extends along a first axis, while the expanded geometry of the structure is oriented about a second axis, which is not aligned with the first axis. The asymmetry between the two axes permits deployment of the expandable structure in a symmetric fashion with respect to the natural axis of a targeted interior body region, even when the targeted interior body region is either asymmetric in geometry or otherwise requires access along a path that is not aligned with the natural axis. The structure can include spaced apart end regions, which provide a non-conical diameter transition between the diameter of the catheter tube and the larger diameter of the expanded structure. The non-conical diameter transition mitigates the tradeoff, present in conventional structures, between achieving a desired maximum expanded diameter without undesired reduction in the effective length of the structure.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.