Longitudinally flexible expandable stent

• US 20020177893A1
• Filed: 07/11/2002
• Published: 11/28/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 03/01/1995
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Boston Scientific Scimed (Boston Scientific Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Scimed Life Systems Incorporated (Boston Scientific Corporation)
• Inventors: Brown, Brian J., Davis, Michael L.
• Granted Patent: US 6,913,619 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 623/1.16
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2/91 made from perforated sheet material or tubes, e.g. perforated by laser cuts or etched holes
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2/915 with bands having a meander structure, adjacent bands being connected to each other
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2002/91525 within the whole structure different bands showing different meander characteristics, e.g. frequency or amplitude
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2002/91533 characterised by the phase between adjacent bands
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2002/91541 Adjacent bands are arranged out of phase
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2002/91558 connected peak to peak
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2210/0019 operated at only one temperature whilst inside or touching the human body, e.g. constrained in a non-operative shape during surgery, another temperature only occurring before the operation
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2230/0054 V-shaped
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2250/0018 differing in elasticity, stiffness or compressibility

Abstract

Segmented articulatable stent of open structure comprised of end-connected struts making up the segments with angular interconnects between segments.

Claims

1. A tubular, flexible, expandable stent, comprising:

a plurality of cylindrical shaped segments aligned on a common longitudinal axis to define a generally tubular stent body, each segment being defined by a member formed in an undulating pattern of interconnected substantially parallel struts to define the periphery of the expandable stent body, and in which adjacent pairs of struts in a given segment are interconnected at opposite ends, interconnected ends of one segment being positioned substantially opposite to interconnected ends of an adjacent segment, and

a plurality of interconnecting elements each extending from an end of paired struts on one segment to an end of paired struts on an adjacent segment, the elements extending angularly from one end on one segment to another end, not to an opposite end, on an adjacent segment, the distribution of the elements being such that there are at least three struts between each connecting point on opposite sides of the segments,

whereby, upon expansion of the stent, the paired struts of the adjacent segments are displaced relative to each other about the periphery of the stent body to accommodate longitudinal flexing of the stent within the segments and without interference between adjacent segments.

2. The stent of claim 1 wherein the material of which it is comprised is metal.

3. The stent of claim 2 wherein the metal is a shape memory alloy.

4. The stent of claim 2 wherein the stent is a thin-walled tubular member.

5. The stent of claim 1 in a self-expanding configuration.

6. The stent of claim 1 in a mechanically expandable configuration.

7. The stent of claim 1 wherein the interconnecting elements between adjacent segments are of the same length.

8. The stent of claim 1 wherein the stent includes end segments and intermediate segments and the end segments of the stent include longer struts than the intermediate segments of the stent.