Stent having a multiplicity of undulating longitudinals
First Claim
1. A stent structure for maintaining patency of a vessel of a human body comprising a multiplicity of structures forming longitudinals extending in a substantially longitudinal direction, at least a portion of at least one of said longitudinals having an undulating shape.
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Accused Products
Abstract
The present invention provides for an expandable stent (10 or 20) for use in an artery or other vessel of a human body. The stent structure (10 or 20) maintains the patency of the vessel within which the stent (10 or 20) is expanded radially outward. One embodiment of the present invention is a stent (10) having a multiplicity of frames (12) joined together by at least two undulating longitudinal structures (14L and 14R) which can readily change their length in the longitudinal direction so as to provide increased longitudinal flexibility for the stent (10) for easy passage through and placement within a curved vessel such as a coronary artery. The stent (20) is an embodiment of the present invention having frames (22) joined with longitudinal structures (24B, 24T and 24R) and formed from a single, thin-walled piece of metal by means of laser cutting or chemical etching. Because the stent (20) is fabricated from a single piece of metal, it provides a multiplicity of closed perimeter cells that are formed as a continuous metal structure.
459 Citations
26 Claims
- 1. A stent structure for maintaining patency of a vessel of a human body comprising a multiplicity of structures forming longitudinals extending in a substantially longitudinal direction, at least a portion of at least one of said longitudinals having an undulating shape.
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7. A stent structure for maintaining patency of a vessel of a human body comprising:
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(a) a frame displaceable in a radial direction for contiguous interface with an inner wall of said vessel of said human body; and
,(b) a multiplicity of longitudinals secured to said frame, at least two of said longitudinals having an undulating contour for enhancing longitudinal flexibility. - View Dependent Claims (8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
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- 15. A pre-deployment stent structure having a longitudinal axis comprising at least two longitudinal structures each having at least one straight section and at least one undulating section with each said straight section being joined continuously to said at least one undulating section, the straight sections of all of the longitudinal structures being generally parallel to the longitudinal axis of the stent, the undulating section of each longitudinal structure extending generally in a circumferential direction and being of a generally curved shape so as to allow each undulating longitudinal structure to readily change length during insertion of the stent structure into a curved vessel of a human body.
- 22. A pre-deployment balloon expandable stent structure adapted for percutaneous delivery to the curved coronary arteries, the stent structure being generally in the form of a thin-walled metal tube having a longitudinal axis, the stent structure having a multiplicity of closed perimeter cells, each cell having one or more undulating sections, each undulating section having a generally curved shaped and having a first end point and a second end point wherein a line drawn from the first end point to the second end point is generally parallel to the stent'"'"'s longitudinal axis.
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26. A balloon expandable coronary stent comprising:
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(a) a stent in the form of a thin-walled metal tube capable of being mounted on an expandable balloon for percutaneous delivery of the stent into a coronary artery, the stent having a plurality of zig-zag segments, the zig-zag segments capable of being expanded by the balloon; and
,(b) a plurality of longitudinally undulating sections of a generally curved shape positioned between and connecting the zig-zag segments, wherein the plurality of longitudinally undulating sections can expand and contract in length while being passed through a curved coronary artery.
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Specification