Medical Guide Wire and Method of Forming Thereof

• US 20100174246A1
• Filed: 01/05/2009
• Published: 07/08/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 01/05/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cook Medical Incorporated (Cook Group Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Vance Products Incorporated (Cook Group Incorporated)
• Inventors: Diamant, Valery, Bunch, Tyler J., Yasko, Nadezda
• Granted Patent: US 8,444,577 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 604/265
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2025/09075 having a core without a coil possibly combined with a sheath
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2025/09108 Methods for making a guide wire
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2025/09133 having specific material compositions or coatings; Materials with specific mechanical behaviours, e.g. stiffness, strength to transmit torque
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2025/0915 having features for changing the stiffness
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 25/0054 with regions for increasing flexibility
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 25/09 Guide wires
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49826 Assembling or joining

Abstract

A guide wire for guiding a medical device within a body lumen is described. The guide wire includes a proximal section, a distal section, and a mid section. The proximal section includes a proximal wire core tapered with contraction towards a proximal end of the proximal wire core. The distal section includes a distal wire core tapered with contraction towards a distal end of the distal wire core. The mid section includes a joint for joining the proximal wire core and the distal wire core. The guide wire also includes a safety wire extending along the mid section, and along at least parts of the proximal and distal sections. Moreover, the guide wire includes an outer tubing enveloping the overlapping joint and at least parts of the proximal and distal sections.

Claims

1. A guide wire (10) for guiding a medical device within a body lumen, comprising:

a proximal section (11) including a proximal wire core (111) having a proximal end (112) and a distal end (113), said proximal wire core (111) having at least one portion (109) being tapered with contraction towards the proximal end (112) of said proximal wire core (111);

a distal section (12) including a distal wire core (121) having a proximal end (122) and a distal end (123), said distal wire core (121) having at least one portion being tapered with contraction towards the distal end (123) of said distal wire core (121);

a mid section (13) including a joint (131) joining said distal end (113) of the proximal wire core (111) and said proximal end (122) of the distal wire core (121);

a safety wire (15) extending along the mid section (13), and extending along at least a portion of the proximal section; and

an outer tubing (14) enveloping said overlapping joint and at least parts of the proximal and distal sections.

2. The guide wire of claim 1, wherein the safety wire extends along at least a portion of the distal section.

3. The guide wire of claim 1, wherein said contraction of said distal wire core (121) is asymmetric with respect to a longitudinal axis of the guide wire (10).

4. The guide wire of claim 1, wherein said contraction of said distal wire core (121) starts within the region of or proximate the joint (131).

5. The guide wire of claim 1, wherein said contraction of said distal wire core (121) starts between a center of the joint and a tip (128) of said proximal end (122).

6. The guide wire of claim 3, wherein the mid section (13) includes an empty volume (17) defined between the outer surface of the distal wire core (121) and an inner surface of the outer tubing (14).

7. The guide wire of claim 5, wherein the joint (131) is selected from an overlapping scarf joint, an overlapping splice joint, an overlapping tapered joint, an overlapping male-female joint, and a butt joint.

8. The guide wire of claim 1, wherein the distal section (12) is more flexible than a portion of the proximal section (11) adjacent to the mid section (13).

9. The guide wire of claim 1, wherein the proximal wire core (111) comprises stainless steel.

10. The guide wire of claim 1, wherein the distal wire core (121) comprises a superelastic alloy.

11. The guide wire of claim 1, wherein the distal wire core (121) is formed of a metal alloy including at least one component selected from nickel, titinium, iron, and cobalt.

12. The guide wire of claim 1, wherein the distal wire core (121) is formed of a nickel-titanium alloy comprising titanium at a concentration of about 48 to about 52 atomic percent, with the remainder being essentially nickel.

13. The guide wire of claim 1, wherein the outer tubing (14) comprises a coiled wire.

14. The guide wire of claim 1, wherein the outer tubing (14) is fixed to each of the safety wire (15) to the distal wire core (121) and the proximal wire core (111) at least at the mid section (13) thereof.

15. The guide wire of claim 1, wherein said distal end (113) of the proximal wire core (111) and said proximal end (122) of the distal wire core (121) each comprise beveled ends.

16. The guide wire of claim 15, wherein the joint (131) is a scarf joint in which the beveled end of said distal end (113) of the proximal wire core (111) and the beveled end of said proximal end (122) of the distal wire core (121) abut one another without fixation together.

17. The guide wire of claim 15, wherein a joint angle defined between a seam formed by the abutted beveled ends of the distal end (113) and said proximal end (122) and a longitudinal axis of the guide wire (10) is in the range of about 0.2 to about 45 degrees.

18. The guide wire of claim 1, wherein the outer tubing (14) and the safety wire (15) both extend beyond the proximal end (112) of the proximal wire core (111).

19. The guide wire of claim 18, wherein a proximal end portion of the outer tubing is fixably retained to a proximal end portion of the safety wire.

20. The guide wire of claim 1, wherein the safety wire is fixed to the outer tubing at one or more locations within the mid section.

21. The guide wire of claim 18, where the safety wire is fixed to the distal wire core at the mid section.

22. The guide wire of claim 18, wherein the safety wire is fixed to the proximal wire core at the mid section.

23. The guide wire of claim 1, wherein the proximal wire core (111) extends along the entire proximal section (11) and terminates together with the outer tubing (14) and the safety wire (15).

24. The guide wire of claim 1, wherein at least the distal wire core (121) disposed within the distal section (12) of the guide wire (10) is coated with a layer (16) of a lubricious substance.

25. The guide wire of claim 1, wherein a hydrophilic coating is applied to an external surface of at least one section of the guide wire (10), selected from said proximal section (11), said distal section (12), and said mid section (13).

26. The guide wire of claim 1, wherein the proximal wire core includes a flat portion and the safety wire includes a flat portion, wherein the respective flat portions of the proximal wire and safety wire makes surface-to-surface contact.

27. The guide wire of claim 21, wherein the distal wire core includes a flat portion, wherein the flat portion of the distal wire core and the flat portion of the safety wire makes surface-to-surface contact.

28. A method of forming a wire guide comprising:

forming a first elongate wire core and a second elongate wire core, each wire core comprising a first end portion being tapered with contraction toward a first end of each wire core;

joining an opposite second end portion of each of the first and second elongate wire cores at a joint portion;

placing a safety wire along at least a portion of the first wire core; and

enclosing the first and second wire cores with an outer tubing to envelope a joint of the second end portions of the first and second elongate wire cores.

29. The method of claim 28, further comprising fixing the safety wire to at least one wire core selected from the first and second wire cores.

30. The method of claim 28, further comprising fixing the outer tubing to the safety wire and to at least one portion of the end portions of the first and second elongate wire cores.