FLEXIBLE ENDOLUMINAL DEVICE

• US 20170181874A1
• Filed: 03/15/2017
• Published: 06/29/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 11/16/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: W. L. Gore & Associates (W.L. Gore & Associates)
• Original Assignee: W. L. Gore & Associates (W.L. Gore & Associates)
• Inventors: Zukowski, Stanislaw L.
• Granted Patent: US 10,639,177 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2/07 Stent-grafts
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2/852 Two or more distinct overlapping stents
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2/89 the wire-like elements comprising two or more adjacent rings flexibly connected by separate members
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2250/0019 differing in hardness, e.g. Vickers, Shore, Brinell
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2250/0029 differing in bending or flexure capacity
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2250/0039 differing in diameter
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2250/0063 Nested prosthetic parts
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2250/0098 radio-opaque, e.g. radio-opaque markers
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 25/0054 with regions for increasing flexibility

Abstract

The present disclosure describes endoluminal devices, such as stents and stent grafts capable of being bent smoothly, with various benefits resulting therefrom.

Claims

1. An implantable device comprising:

a first ring having a first ring radial strength;

a second ring having a second ring radial strength, and

a interconnection coupling the first ring and the second ring,

wherein the first ring is adjacent to the second ring, the adjacent first and second rings having the same diameter and the first ring radial strength being less than the second ring radial strength, such that the first ring is configured to nest with the second ring.

2. The implantable device of claim 1, wherein the polymeric interconnection comprises a fluoropolymer.

3. The implantable device of claim 2, wherein the first ring is partially taped with the interconnection.

4. The implantable device of claim 2, wherein the second ring is fully taped with the interconnection.

5. The implantable device of claim 1, wherein the first ring and the second ring have different material properties.

6. The implantable device of claim 1, wherein the first ring and the second ring have different non-diameter dimensional characteristics, such as different cross-sections.

7. The implantable device of claim 1 wherein the first ring and the second ring are non-concentric.

8. The implantable device of claim 1 wherein the polymeric interconnection is in contact with a ring abluminal surface and an adjacent ring luminal surface.

9. The implantable device of claim 1 wherein the implantable device is selected from a group consisting of a stent and a stent-graft.

10. An endovascular treatment method, the method comprising:

delivering an implantable device to a treatment site in body lumen of a patient, the implantable device including a first ring having a first ring radial strength and a first diameter, a second ring adjacent to the first ring and having a second ring radial strength that is greater than the first radial strength, and a interconnection coupling the first ring and the second ring, wherein the first ring is adjacent to the second ring; and

bending the implantable device from a non-nested configuration to a nested configuration including the first and second rings nesting with one another.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein in the nested configuration the first ring is nested within the second ring only along a longitudinal portion of the first ring that is intended to be oriented on an inner curve of the body lumen.

12. The method of claim 10, including the first ring nesting with in the second ring in a circumferentially non-uniform manner.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein the non-nested configuration includes the first diameter of the first ring being the same as the second diameter of the second ring.

14. The method of claim 10, wherein the interconnection is in contact with both an abluminal surface of the first ring and a luminal surface of the second ring when the implantable device is in the nested configuration, the interconnection assisting the first ring in diving under the second ring to nest with the second ring during bending of the implantable device.

15. The method of claim 10, wherein bending the implantable device to the nested configuration includes not producing a kink in the implantable device.

16. The method of claim 10, wherein bending the implantable device from the non-nested to the nested configuration includes bending a first portion of the implantable device in a first direction and bending a second portion of the implantable device in a second direction.