APPARATUS AND METHODS FOR IMPROVED LOADING OF A TRANSCATHETER HEART VALVE

• US 20190053900A1
• Filed: 08/20/2018
• Published: 02/21/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 08/21/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: St. Jude Medical Cardiology Division Incorporated (Abbott Laboratories)
• Original Assignee: St. Jude Medical Cardiology Division Incorporated (Abbott Laboratories)
• Inventors: Finn, Ryan, Gale, Caytlin
• Granted Patent: US 11,109,968 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2/2418 Scaffolds therefor, e.g. support stents
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2/2427 Devices for manipulating or deploying heart valves during implantation
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2/2436 Deployment by retracting a sheath
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2/9522 Means for mounting a stent or stent-graft onto or into a placement instrument
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2/9524 Iris-type crimpers
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2/9525 using a funnel
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2/9526 using a mandrel
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2220/0075 sutured, ligatured or stitched, retained or tied with a rope, string, thread, wire or cable
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2220/0091 connected by a hinged linkage mechanism, e.g. of the single-bar or multi-bar linkage type

Abstract

An assembly for collapsing a prosthetic heart valve includes a compression member having a plurality of arms pivotable between a first orientation in which side edges of adjacent arms are spaced apart from one another and a second orientation in which the adjacent arms contact one another. A translating member is movable along the arms to pivot the arms from the first orientation to the second orientation to collapse the prosthetic heart valve. A separation tool includes ribs defining channels sized to receive the struts of a stent of a prosthetic heart valve to keep the struts separated from one another as the prosthetic heart valve is collapsed.

Claims

1. A device for collapsing a prosthetic heart valve, comprising:

a compression member including a support having a central axis and a plurality of arms connected to the support, each of the arms having an inner surface facing the central axis, a pair of side edges, and a free end, the arms being pivotable between a first orientation in which the side edges of adjacent arms are spaced apart from one another and a second orientation in which the side edges of the adjacent arms contact one another; and

a translating member assembled to the compression member and movable along the arms from an initial position in which the arms are in the first orientation to a final position in which the arms are in the second orientation, movement of the translating member from the initial position to the final position pivoting the arms from the first orientation to the second orientation.

2. The device of claim 1, wherein the free ends of the arms in the second orientation define an aperture.

3. The device of claim 1, wherein the inner surfaces of the arms collectively define a compression surface in the second orientation of the arms, the compression surface decreasing uniformly in diameter from a first end adjacent the support to a second end adjacent the free ends of the arms.

4. The device of claim 1, wherein each of the arms extends in a length direction between the support and the free end of the arm and includes an outer side facing away from the central axis, the outer side including a plurality of grooves oriented transverse to the length direction and spaced apart from one another along a length of the arm.

5. The device of claim 4, wherein the plurality of grooves on the arms collectively define a threaded portion and the translating member includes threads engageable with the threaded portion so that rotation of the translating member relative to the compression member moves the translating member from the initial position toward the final position.

6. The device of claim 5, wherein the threaded portion extends from the support to a location spaced from the free ends of the arms.

7. The device of claim 4, wherein the outer side of each of the arms includes a rib that tapers in thickness from a small thickness relatively close to the support to a large thickness relatively close to the free end of the arm.

8. The device of claim 1, wherein each arm is connected to the support by a living hinge.

9. A method for collapsing a prosthetic heart valve, comprising:

inserting the prosthetic heart valve in an expanded condition into an opening of a compression member, the compression member including a support having a central axis and a plurality of arms pivotably connected to the support, each arm having a free end and a pair of side edges, the plurality of arms being in a first orientation with the side edges of adjacent arms spaced apart from one another; and

pivoting the plurality of arms from the first orientation to a second orientation in which the side edges of the adjacent arms contact one another, the pivoting step compressing the prosthetic heart valve from the expanded condition to a collapsed condition.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein each arm is connected to the support by a living hinge.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the pivoting step includes advancing a translating member along the plurality of arms from an initial position relatively close to the support to a final position relatively distant from the support.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the advancing step includes rotating the translating member relative to the compression member.

13. The method of claim 9, wherein the prosthetic heart valve includes a stent and an outer cuff, the stent including a plurality of struts, and the pivoting step pushes the outer cuff between the struts to an interior of the stent at predetermined locations.

14. A method of collapsing a prosthetic heart valve including a stent having struts, the method comprising:

inserting a separation tool into an opening of a loading base, the separation tool including a shaft having a plurality of ribs extending along a length of the shaft and projecting radially outward from the shaft, adjacent ribs defining channels sized to receive selected ones of the struts;

inserting the prosthetic heart valve into the opening; and

collapsing the prosthetic heart valve so that the selected ones of the struts of the stent are received within respective ones of the channels of the separation tool and separated from one another by the ribs.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the shaft has nine ribs.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the shaft has three ribs.