Longitudinally expanding medical device
US6929663B2 · kind B2 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Mar 26, 2003 |
| Grant date | Aug 16, 2005 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Sep 17, 2023 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC A)Human Necessities
- CPC primaryA61M2025/0024
- WIPO fieldMedical technology
- WIPO sectorInstruments
Abstract
A stent for maintaining an open passageway through a body lumen, such as the prostatic urethra of a male patient, includes an elongated segment including a flexible polymer material bridging a plurality of hoops. The elongated segment defines a lumen extending therethrough and has a distal end. A retention structure may be coupled to the distal end of the elongated segment to inhibit the distal end from migrating when the stent is placed within a body of a patient. The flexible polymer material is disposed between the plurality of hoops, thereby creating hinged members that allow for the spaces between the hoops to expand and contract longitudinally to accommodate prostatic swelling when the stent is placed within the prostatic urethra of the patient. A plurality of ridges is disposed along the elongated segment at locations where the flexible material circumscribes the hoops, and these inhibit migration of the stent and facilitate longitudinal expansion by frictionally engaging adjacent tissue, such as the inner wall of the prostatic urethra.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.