EXPANDABLE STENT AND METHOD FOR DELIVERY OF SAME
First Claim
1. A stent comprising:
- a series of undulating circumferential struts;
a plurality of longitudinal struts connecting said series of undulating circumferential struts to form a porous, cylindrical surface; and
flexure elements within said plurality of longitudinal struts, said plurality of longitudinal struts being arranged around said cylindrical surface such that the flexure elements in adjacent longitudinal portions are located at different distances from said circumferential struts.
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Accused Products
Abstract
An expandable stent comprising a proximal end and a distal end in communication with one another and a tubular wall disposed between the proximal end and the distal end. The tubular wall has a longitudinal axis and a porous surface defined by a plurality of intersecting members comprising a series of longitudinal struts disposed substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis of the stent. Each longitudinal strut in the series comprises flexure means for substantially complementary extension and compression of a diametrically opposed pair of the longitudinal struts upon flexure of the stent. The stent is expandable from a first, contracted position to a second, expanded position upon the application of a radially outward force on the stent. The provision of such flexure means in the series of longitudinal struts leads to a very desirable balance of lateral flexibility of the unexpanded stent and radial rigidity of the expanded stent.
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Citations
63 Claims
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1. A stent comprising:
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a series of undulating circumferential struts; a plurality of longitudinal struts connecting said series of undulating circumferential struts to form a porous, cylindrical surface; and flexure elements within said plurality of longitudinal struts, said plurality of longitudinal struts being arranged around said cylindrical surface such that the flexure elements in adjacent longitudinal portions are located at different distances from said circumferential struts. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21)
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22. A stent comprising:
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a series of undulating circumferential members; a plurality of longitudinal members connecting said series of undulating circumferential members to form a porous, cylindrical surface; and flexure members within said plurality of longitudinal members, the flexure members of adjacent longitudinal members having different shapes in an unbent form of the stent. - View Dependent Claims (23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42)
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43. An expandable stent comprising:
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a series of undulating circumferential portions; a plurality of longitudinal portions connecting said series of undulating circumferential portions to form a porous, cylindrical surface; and flexure structure that confers lateral flexibility to said unexpanded stent, said flexure structure being located within said plurality of longitudinal portions, said plurality of longitudinal portions being arranged around said cylindrical surface such that the flexure structures in adjacent longitudinal portions are located at different distances from said circumferential portions, and wherein the flexure structures of adjacent longitudinal portions have different shapes. - View Dependent Claims (44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62, 63)
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Specification