Heart valve having tissue alignment with anchors and an outer sheath
First Claim
1. A heart valve comprising:
- a frame comprising an annular base and a plurality of posts extending from said base;
a plurality of tissue anchors attached to said frame;
a plurality of tissue leaflets retained by said tissue anchors; and
a flexible elastomeric sheath, wherein said sheath fits around said frame and said tissue leaflets and retains said tissue leaflets on said tissue anchors.
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Accused Products
Abstract
An apparatus and a method for constructing a heart valve prepared from autologous tissue is disclosed. Three tissue leaflets are held in place with tissue anchors on a tissue mounting frame having an annular base and a plurality of commissure posts extending from the base. An elastomeric sheath rests gently on the tissue leaflets to prevent the leaflets from coming off of the anchor hooks and encloses the leaflets to form valve cusps. The leaflets touch each other on a coaptation line with an angle of approximately 65° C. relative to the commissure post. The heart valves can be constructed intraoperatively in a short time, typically ten minutes. The low coaptation angle and the fact that the leaflets are held in place without being clamped between two unyielding members minimize stress on the tissue.
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Citations
11 Claims
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1. A heart valve comprising:
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a frame comprising an annular base and a plurality of posts extending from said base;
a plurality of tissue anchors attached to said frame;
a plurality of tissue leaflets retained by said tissue anchors; and
a flexible elastomeric sheath, wherein said sheath fits around said frame and said tissue leaflets and retains said tissue leaflets on said tissue anchors. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11)
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Specification