Endoluminal delivery device

• US 20070185558A1
• Filed: 01/17/2007
• Published: 08/09/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 01/18/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cook Medical Incorporated (Cook Group Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Cook Incorporated (Cook Group Incorporated), William A. Cook Australia Pty. Ltd (Cook Group Incorporated)
• Inventors: Hartley, David
• Granted Patent: US 8,740,964 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 623/1.110
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2/95 Instruments specially adapted for placement or removal of stents or stent-grafts
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2/9517 handle assemblies therefor
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2/966 with relative longitudinal movement between outer sleeve and prosthesis, e.g. using a push rod

Abstract

A highly flexible delivery device (2) for a stent graft (6) particularly for deployment into the thoracic arch of a patient. The delivery device has a distal handle (7), a pusher catheter (4) extending proximally from the handle to a proximal nose cone dilator (11), a guide wire catheter (3) extending from the proximal nose cone dilator to the pusher catheter. To give flexibility the guide wire catheter comprises a Nitinol™ tube, the nose cone dilator has a high flexibility and the pusher catheter has a graded flexibility being more flexible at its proximal end than at its distal end. The graded flexibility can be provided by joined segments (4a, 4b and 4c) of different flexibility or by a inner metal tube (72) to give rigidity over some of the length. Alternatively the graded flexibility can be provided by tapering the wall thickness (80, 80a) of the pusher catheter.

Claims

1. An endovascular delivery device and stent graft mounted thereon;

the delivery device comprising a distal handle,

a pusher catheter extending proximally from the handle,

a proximal nose cone dilator, and

a guide wire catheter extending from the proximal nose cone dilator to the pusher catheter,

wherein the guide wire catheter comprises a Nitinol™

tube.

2. An endovascular delivery device and stent graft mounted thereon as in claim 1 wherein the nose cone dilator has a high flexibility.

3. An endovascular delivery device and stent graft mounted thereon as in claim 1 wherein the pusher catheter has a graded flexibility being more flexible at its proximal end than at its distal end.

4. An endovascular delivery device and stent graft mounted thereon as in claim 1 wherein the pusher catheter comprises a longitudinal lumen therethrough and the guide wire catheter extends through the longitudinal lumen so that the guide wire catheter is movable longitudinally and rotationally with respect to the pusher catheter.

5. An endovascular delivery device and stent graft mounted thereon as in claim 1 wherein the Nitinol™

guide wire catheter has a diameter in the range of from 1.0 mm to 1.5 mm and a wall thickness of from 0.1 to 0.25 mm.

6. An endovascular delivery device and stent graft mounted thereon as in claim 1 wherein the Nitinol™

guide wire catheter has a diameter of 1.28 mm and a wall thickness of 0.12 mm.

7. An endovascular delivery device and stent graft mounted thereon as in claim 1 wherein the nose cone dilator has a length of from 60 mm to 100 mm and a hardness of from 58 to 45 Shore D.

8. An endovascular delivery device and stent graft mounted thereon as in claim 1 wherein the nose cone dilator has a length of from 80 mm to 100 mm and a hardness of from 48 Shore D.

9. An endovascular delivery device and stent graft mounted thereon as in claim 1 wherein the nose cone dilator is formed from a polyurethane.

10. An endovascular delivery device and stent graft mounted thereon as in claim 1 wherein the pusher catheter comprises at least a first proximal portion with a higher flexibility and a second distal portion with a lower flexibility whereby the proximal portion can flex to assist in conformation with tortuosity of vessels into which the delivery device is deployed and the distal portion provides rigidity for progressing a delivery device through the vessels.

11. An endovascular delivery device and stent graft mounted thereon as in claim 10 wherein the first portion has a length of from 5 to 20 cms and has a hardness of from 45 to 55 Shore D.

12. An endovascular delivery device and stent graft mounted thereon as in claim 10 wherein the first portion has a length of from 5 to 20 cms and has a hardness of 48 Shore D.

13. An endovascular delivery device and stent graft mounted thereon as in claim 10 wherein the second portion has a hardness of from 50 to 60 Shore D.

14. An endovascular delivery device and stent graft mounted thereon as in claim 10 wherein the second portion has a hardness of 58 Shore D.

15. An endovascular delivery device and stent graft mounted thereon as in claim 10 wherein the first portion and the second portion are formed from varying grades of polyurethane.

16. An endovascular delivery device and stent graft mounted thereon as in claim 10 wherein the first portion and the second portion are joined together by gluing or heat sealing.

17. An endovascular delivery device and stent graft mounted thereon as in claim 6 further comprising an intermediate portion of pusher catheter between the first portion and the second portion comprising a flexibility between that of the first portion and the second portion.

18. An endovascular delivery device and stent graft mounted thereon as in claim 17 wherein the intermediate portion of pusher catheter between the first portion and the second portion has a length of from 5 to 20 cms and has a hardness of from 48 to 55 Shore D.

19. An endovascular delivery device and stent graft mounted thereon as in claim 1 further comprising a flexible sheath over the pusher catheter and extending distally to the nose cone dilator.

20. An endovascular delivery device and stent graft mounted thereon as in claim 1 wherein the Nitinol™

guide wire catheter has flexibility which is in the range of 10 to 30 times greater than a corresponding stainless steel catheter.

21. An endovascular delivery device and stent graft mounted thereon as in claim 1 wherein the pusher catheter comprises a flexible polyurethane tube having a lumen therethrough and a metal cannula extending through the lumen from a distal end of the pusher catheter towards a proximal end of a pusher catheter whereby to make the distal end more rigid than the distal end.

22. An endovascular delivery device and stent graft mounted thereon as in claim 1 wherein the pusher catheter comprises a relatively thin walled flexible polyurethane tube having a lumen therethrough.

23. An endovascular delivery device and stent graft mounted thereon as in claim 1 wherein the pusher catheter comprises a low friction coating on at least a distal portion thereof.

24. An endovascular delivery device and stent graft mounted thereon as in claim 1 wherein the pusher catheter comprises a tapered wall flexible polyurethane tube having a lumen therethrough and having a reduced outer diameter towards the proximal end thereof.