COLLAPSIBLE/EXPANDABLE PROSTHETIC HEART VALVES WITH NON-EXPANDING STENT POSTS AND RETRIEVAL FEATURES

• US 20100249911A1
• Filed: 11/03/2008
• Published: 09/30/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 11/05/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: St Jude Medical LLC (Abbott Laboratories)
• Original Assignee: St Jude Medical Incorporated (Abbott Laboratories)
• Inventors: Alkhatib, Yousef F.
• Granted Patent: US 8,597,349 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 623/1.260
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2/2418 Scaffolds therefor, e.g. support stents
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2/2445 Annuloplasty rings in direct contact with the valve annulus
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2002/825 having longitudinal struts
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2002/9528 for retrieval of stents
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2220/0066 stapled
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2230/0054 V-shaped
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2250/0036 differing in thickness

Abstract

A frame structure for a collapsible and re-expandable prosthetic heart valve. The frame structure includes an annular annulus portion that is configured for implanting in or near a patient'"'"'s native heart valve annulus. This annulus portion of the frame structure may include a plurality of annularly spaced commissure post structures interconnected by connecting structures. The commissure post structures may be more resistant to annular collapse than the connecting structures. In the case of a prosthetic aortic valve, the frame structure may also include an annular aortic portion. The aortic portion may include a plurality of attachment points (for tethers) closest to the annulus portion. Such attachment points and tethers can facilitate re-collapse of a partly deployed valve in the event of a need to reposition or remove the valve.

Claims

1. A frame structure for a prosthetic heart valve comprising:

a plurality of Y-shaped structures disposed in an annular array in which the Y-shaped structures are spaced from one another in a direction that is annular of the array, each of the Y-shaped structures including a base member having a first free end portion and an opposite second end to which a first end of each of two arms of the Y-shaped structure is connected, the arms of each of the Y-shaped structures diverging from one another in a direction away from the second end to define a space between the arms, which space extends in the annular direction; and

a plurality of connecting structures, each of which extends between a respective pair of annularly adjacent ones of the Y-shaped structures, and each of which interconnects the Y-shaped structures in the associated pair, each of the connecting structures being collapsible and re-expandable in the annular direction, each of Y-shaped structures being sufficiently strong to maintain at least 75% of the space between its arms when the array is subjected to an annular collapsing force that collapses it to 50% of an initial annular size.

2. The frame structure defined in claim 1 wherein each of the connecting structures is connected to the arms of the Y-shaped structures in the associated pair but not to the base members of those Y-shaped structures.

3. The frame structure defined in claim 1 wherein each of the Y-shaped structures further includes a linking member that interconnects the arms of that Y-shaped structure at a location that is spaced from the second end.

4. The frame structure defined in claim 1 wherein the array lies in an approximately tubular geometric space that surrounds a central longitudinal axis, and wherein the base member of each of the Y-shaped structures is approximately parallel to the longitudinal axis.

5. The frame structure defined in claim 4 wherein all of the first free end portions point in a first direction along the longitudinal axis.

6. The frame structure defined in claim 5 wherein the first free end portions all extend farther in the first direction than any portions of any of the connecting structures.

7. The frame structure defined in claim 6 wherein no portions of any of the Y-shaped structures extends as far opposite the first direction as portions of the connecting structures.

8. The frame structure defined in claim 7 wherein each of the Y-shaped structures further includes a linking member that interconnects the arms of the Y-shaped structure at a location that is spaced from the second end.

9. The frame structure defined in claim 6 wherein each of the Y-shaped structures further includes a linking member that interconnects the arms of that Y-shaped structure at a location that is spaced from the second end.

10. The frame structure defined in claim 9 wherein the linking member of each of the Y-shaped structures extends approximately as far opposite the first direction as portions of the connecting structures.

11. The frame structure defined in claim 5 further comprising:

an aortic portion that is spaced from the Y-shaped structures and the connecting structures in the first direction, the aortic portion being annular about the longitudinal axis and being annularly collapsible and re-expandable; and

a plurality of strut members for attaching the aortic portion to the Y-shaped and connecting structures of the frame structure.

12. The frame structure defined in claim 11 wherein the aortic portion comprises:

a plurality of open-centered, closed-perimeter cells disposed in an annular array in which connection points between annularly adjacent cells are at intermediate points along sides of the cells and each cell includes first and second ends that respectively point in the first direction and opposite the first direction.

13. The frame structure defined in claim 12 wherein the second end of each of the cells includes an eyelet for attaching a tether member that can be used to pull the eyelet radially in toward the central longitudinal axis.

14. A frame structure for a prosthetic aortic heart valve comprising:

an annulus portion that is annular about a longitudinal axis and that is annularly collapsible and re-expandable;

an aortic portion that is annular about the longitudinal axis and that is annularly collapsible and re-expandable, the aortic portion being spaced from the annulus portion in a first direction along the longitudinal axis; and

a plurality of strut members for connecting the annulus portion to the aortic portion at a plurality of points that are spaced from one another in a direction that is annular of the aortic portion, the aortic portion including, at each of said points, a pair of arm members that begin at that point and that diverge from one another in the first direction with an included angle between the arm members of less than 90°

until each arm member connects to an annularly adjacent arm member that started from another, annularly adjacent one of the points, the aortic portion including no other structure between annularly adjacent ones of the arm members that connect to one another and that start from different ones of the points.

15. The frame structure defined in claim 14 further comprising a plurality of open-centered, closed-perimeter cells between the arm members that start from each of the points, the cells being configured to allow the included angle between those arm members to collapse and re-expand.

16. The frame structure defined in claim 15 further comprising a plurality of additional closed-perimeter, open-centered cells that are disposed in the first direction from the cells between the arm members and that are connected to the cells between the arms members.

17. The frame structure defined in claim 16 wherein the additional cells form an annular array, and wherein the additional cells are configured to allow the annular array to annularly collapse and re-expand.

18. The frame structure defined in claim 14 wherein the annulus portion includes a plurality of annularly spaced commissure posts extending in the first direction, and wherein the strut members are grouped in a plurality of pairs, each pair being associated with a respective one of the commissure posts with that commissure post being between the strut members in the associated pair.

19. The frame structure defined in claim 18 wherein an open space is provided between a duality of the strut members that are annularly adjacent to one another, each of the strut members in the duality being one of the strut members in a respective different one of said pairs of the strut members, the open space helping the frame structure avoid obstructing a patient'"'"'s coronary artery when the frame structure is implanted in a patient.

20. A frame structure for a prosthetic aortic heart valve comprising:

an annulus portion that is annular about a longitudinal axis and that is annularly collapsible and re-expandable;

an aortic portion that is annular about the longitudinal axis and that is annularly collapsible and re-expandable, the aortic portion being spaced from the annulus portion in a first direction along the longitudinal axis; and

a plurality of strut members for connecting the aortic portion to the annulus portion at a plurality of points that are spaced from one another in a direction that is annular of the annulus portion, the annulus portion including, at each of said points, a pair of arm members that begin at that point and that diverge from one another opposite the first direction with an included angle between the arm members of less than 90°

until each arm member connects to (1) an annularly adjacent arm member that started from another, annularly adjacent one of the points, or (2) a commissure post structure of the annulus portion, the annulus portion including no structure other than commissure post structure between annularly adjacent ones of the arm members that connect to one another or to a commissure post structure and that start from different ones of the points.

21. The frame structure defined in claim 20 further comprising a plurality of open-centered, closed perimeter cells between the arm members that start from each of the points, the cells being configured to allow the included angle between those arm members to collapse and re-expand.

22. The frame structure defined in claim 21 wherein the strut members are grouped in a plurality of pairs, each pair being associated with a respective one of the commissure post structures, with that commissure post structure being between the strut members in the associated pair.

23. The frame structure defined in claim 22 wherein an open space is provided between a duality of the strut members that are annularly adjacent to one another, each of the strut members in the duality being one of the strut members in a respective different one of said pairs of the strut members, the open space helping the frame structure avoid obstructing a patient'"'"'s coronary artery when the frame structure is implanted in a patient.