Trachreal prosthesis

• US 5,258,027 A
• Filed: 12/21/1992
• Issued: 11/02/1993
• Est. Priority Date: 01/24/1991
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Willy Rüsch AG
• Original Assignee: Willy Rüsch AG
• Inventors: Berghaus, Alexander
• Primary Examiner(s): Green, Randall L.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nguyen, Dinh X.
• Application Number:
  US07/997,102
• Time in Patent Office: 316 Days
• Field of Search: 623/11, 623/66, 128/200.26, 128/207.14, 128/207.15
• US Class Current: 623/9
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2/04 Hollow or tubular parts of organs, e.g. bladders, tracheae, bronchi or bile ducts A61F2/18, A61F2/20 take precedence; devices, other than stent-grafts, providing patency to, or preventing collapsing of, tubular structures of the body other than stent-grafts, e.g. stents A61F2/82; instruments specially adapted for placement or removal of stents or stent-grafts A61F2/95
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2002/046 Tracheae

Abstract

The tracheal prosthesis is intended to replace damaged, diseased or missing tracheal and/or bronchial segments. The tracheal prosthesis comprises a plastic shaft which is embraced by hoops. The hoops 9 stabilize the thin film-like material wall. As in the case of the human trachea, the hoops leave an area of the plastic shaft uncovered so that a particularly resilient circumferential surface is obtained between the hoops, resembling the membranaceous part of the human trachea. The ends of the tracheal prosthesis are reinforced by spring elements. These spring elements ensure that the tracheal prosthesis is retained safely in the natural tracheal and/or bronchial stumps. The inner surface of the tracheal prosthesis is hydrophilized.

Claims

1. A tracheal prosthesis shaped and configured to replace natural tracheal and bronchial segments, said tracheal prosthesis comprising:

a plastic shaft including a lumen and means for joining free ends thereof to tracheal stumps in a person said plastic shaft comprising a thin, resilient material wall surrounded by hoops, said hoops being horseshoe-like shaped and spaced from one another in an axial direction along said plastic shaft and connected to the material wall, said horseshoe-like hoops being non-complete substantially circular collars having tapered ends.

2. The tracheal prosthesis according to claim 1, wherein the hoops are made from a porous, large pore plastic material.

3. The tracheal prosthesis according to claim 1, wherein the plastic shaft is made from silicon and has a wall thickness of 0.3 mm to 1.2 mm.

4. The tracheal prosthesis according to claim 1, wherein the hoops are made from a plastic material with a metal insert disposed in a core thereof.

5. The tracheal prosthesis according to claim 1, wherein an inner surface of the lumen is provided with a hydrophilic coating.

6. The tracheal prosthesis according to claim 1, wherein a spring element is disposed proximate the free ends of the said material wall.

7. The tracheal prosthesis according to claim 1, wherein a free end of the plastic shaft terminates into a V-shaped shaft section comprising a second lumen in a leg of said V-shaped shaft section and a third lumen in another leg of said V-shaped shaft section, said second and third lumens communicating with the lumen of the plastic shaft.

8. The tracheal prosthesis according to claim 1, wherein ends of the hoops are bonded to a jacket.

9. The tracheal prosthesis according to claim 1 wherein the hoops are made from polyethylene.

10. The tracheal prosthesis according to claim 1 wherein the hoops are made from a plastic material with a metal insert disposed on an inner surface thereof.

11. A tracheal shaped and configured to replaces natural prosthesis tracheal and bronchial segments, said tracheal prosthesis comprising:

a resilient elongate plastic shaft having a lumen defined by an inner surface, said inner surface being coated with a hydrophilic coating;

means for joining free ends of the shaft with tracheal stumps; and

hoop means, surrounding said shaft, configured to provide stability to said shaft and enabling the tracheal prosthesis to expand in response to increase in pressure inside the prosthesis and return to an original dimension after expansion, said hoop means comprising a plurality of deformable hoops axially spaced from one another along

wherein said deformable hoops comprises non-complete substantially circular collars having tapered ends and

said shaft, said resilient elongate plastic shaft being of sufficient resilience to enable uninhibited expansion of said hoop means.

12. The tracheal prosthesis according to claim 11, wherein the hoops are made of a porous, large-pore plastic material.

13. The tracheal prosthesis according to claim 11, wherein the plastic shaft is made of silicon and has a wall thickness of 0.3 mm to 1.2 mm.