Guidance and delivery system for high-energy pulsed laser light
First Claim
1. A deflectable catheter having a distal tip and a proximal end, comprising:
- a fiber optic core extending from the distal tip of the catheter to the proximal end thereof;
hollow means for encasing said core;
said hollow means including a deflecting region;
said core being fixed to said hollow means at a distal end of said deflecting region; and
control means mounted at proximal end of said core and said hollow means for applying a tension to said core so as to cause deflection of the deflecting region;
said fiber optic core being fixed to the distal tip of the catheter so as to permit laser energy to be emitted in a forward direction of the catheter.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A deflectable guidewire for a catheter includes a core extending from the proximal end of the guidewire toward the distal end thereof; a hollow sheath for encasing the core; the hollow core including a deflecting region at the distal end of the guidewire, the deflecting region having a first side and a second side, the first side being on an opposite side of a plane extending axially through the hollow means than the second side; the first side of the deflecting region being able to be compressed a greater distance than the second side of the deflecting region; the core being fixed to the hollow sheath at the distal side of the deflecting region; and a control handle mounted at the proximal end of the core and the hollow sheath for applying tension to the core with respect to the hollow sheath so that the tension causes the first side of the deflecting region to compress a greater amount than the second side, thus deflecting the deflecting region. In one embodiment, the core may include laser conducting optical fibers. Other features of the present invention include arranging the optical fibers in the catheter in such a way that bending stresses are distributed evenly throughout the fibers when the catheter is bent. One method of doing this is to arrange the fibers in rows or layers wherein each row or layer is twisted in a direction that is opposite to the direction of the adjacent rows or layers. It has also been found that flexibility is increased without unacceptable transmission losses by using optical fibers having a diameter of about fifty microns.
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Citations
26 Claims
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1. A deflectable catheter having a distal tip and a proximal end, comprising:
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a fiber optic core extending from the distal tip of the catheter to the proximal end thereof; hollow means for encasing said core; said hollow means including a deflecting region; said core being fixed to said hollow means at a distal end of said deflecting region; and control means mounted at proximal end of said core and said hollow means for applying a tension to said core so as to cause deflection of the deflecting region; said fiber optic core being fixed to the distal tip of the catheter so as to permit laser energy to be emitted in a forward direction of the catheter. - View Dependent Claims (2)
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3. A deflectable catheter having a distal tip and a proximal end, comprising:
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a fiber optic core that includes a plurality of optical fibers; said core being fixed to the distal tip of the catheter and extending to the proximal end thereof so as to convey laser energy from the proximal end of the catheter and emit the laser energy from the distal tip in a forward direction; said optical fibers being arranged in rows, wherein each row is twisted in a direction that is opposite to a direction of adjacent rows; hollow means for encasing said core; said hollow means including a deflecting region, said deflecting region having a first side and a second side, said first side being on an opposite side of a plane extending axially through said hollow means than said second side; said first side of said deflecting region being more compressible than said second side of said deflecting region; said core being fixed to said hollow means at a distal end of said deflecting region; and control means mounted at the proximal end of said core and said hollow means for applying tension to said core with respect to said hollow means so that said tension causes said first side of said deflecting region to compress a greater amount than said second side, thus deflecting the deflecting region. - View Dependent Claims (4, 5)
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6. A deflectable catheter having a distal tip and a proximal end, comprising:
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a fiber optic core extending from the distal tip of the catheter to the proximal end thereof; hollow means for encasing said core; said hollow means including a deflecting region, said deflecting region having a first side and a second side, said first side being on an opposite side of a plane extending axially through said hollow means than said second side; said first side of said deflecting region being more compressible than said second side of said deflecting region; said core being fixed to said hollow means at a distal end of said deflecting region; and control means mounted at it proximal end of said core and said hollow means for applying tension to said core with respect to said hollow means so that said tension causes said first side of said deflecting region to compress a greater amount than said second side, thus deflecting the deflecting region; said fiber optic core being fixed to the distal tip of the catheter so as to permit laser energy to be emitted in a forward direction of the catheter. - View Dependent Claims (7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22)
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23. A deflectable catheter having a distal tip and a proximal end, comprising:
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a fiber optic core having an outer diameter and extending from the distal tip of the catheter to the proximal end thereof; hollow means having an inner diameter for encasing said core; said hollow means including a deflecting region; said core being fixed to said hollow means at a distal end of said deflecting region; control means mounted at a proximal end of said core and said hollow means for applying a tension to said core so as to cause deflection of the deflecting region; and said fiber optic core being exposed at a distal tip of the core so as to permit emission of laser energy in a forward direction; and wherein a difference between the outer diameter of the core and the inner diameter of the hollow means enables adequate bending of the deflecting region and enables the core to provide support for the hollow means during deflection of the hollow means. - View Dependent Claims (24, 25, 26)
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Specification