Stent

• US 6,514,285 B1
• Filed: 03/06/2000
• Issued: 02/04/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 03/11/1993
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Medinol Limited (Medinol USA Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Medinol Limited (Medinol USA Incorporated)
• Inventors: Pinchasik, Gregory
• Primary Examiner(s): Dawson, Glenn K.
• Application Number:
  US09/519,084
• Time in Patent Office: 1,065 Days
• Field of Search: 606/108, 606/191-200, 623/1.13, 623/1.14, 623/1.28, 623/1.32, 623/1.44, 623/1.36, 623/1.12, 623/1.15, 623/1.18, 623/1.19, 623/1.2, 623/1.22
• US Class Current: 623/1.22
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2/88 the wire-like elements formed as helical or spiral coils forming a net-like or mesh-like structure A61F2/90
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2/885 comprising a coil including a plurality of spiral or helical sections with alternate directions around a central axis
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2/95 Instruments specially adapted for placement or removal of stents or stent-grafts
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2002/9505 having retaining means other than an outer sleeve, e.g. male-female connector between stent and instrument
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2002/9511 the retaining means being filaments or wires
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2210/0033 electrically, e.g. heated by resistor
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2250/0039 differing in diameter
• CPC Class Codes: B21F 3/00 Coiling wire into particular forms
• CPC Class Codes: B21F 3/02 helically
• CPC Class Codes: B21F 3/04 externally on a mandrel or the like
• CPC Class Codes: B21F 45/008 of medical instruments, e.g. stents, corneal rings medical science A61

Abstract

A stent and a method of making it from a wire, which method includes winding the wire on a mandrel, heating to form a coiled spring, and reversing the winding direction of the coiled spring to form the reversed coiled spring stent. The stent so formed may be reheated over a special mandrel so as to partly relax the outer portion of some or all of the stent coils. The stent may be made up of two or more sections, with adjoining section wound in opposite senses. Such a stent may be deployed by winding the stent onto a catheter, immobilizing the two ends of the wire and one or more intermediate points, bringing the stent to the location where it is to be deployed, and releasing first the intermediate point or points and then the end points. The release of the wire may be accomplished by heating the thread immobilizing the wire so that the thread breaks and releases the wire.

Claims

1. A stent comprising a coiled wire comprising a plurality of coils, characterized in that said wire includes at least one section which is wound in one sense and at least one section which is wound in the opposite sense wherein the outer portion of at least some of the plurality of coils have a rigidity that is less than the rigidity of the inner portion of at least some of the plurality of coils, deployment of said stent taking place by tightly winding the stent onto a catheter and subsequently allowing the stent to resume its normal dimensions.

2. A stent as in claim 1 wherein said wire includes two sections with each of said sections representing substantially half of said wire.

3. A stent as in claim 1 wherein said wire includes at least two sections which are wound in one sense and at least two sections which are wound in the opposite sense.

4. A stent as in claim 1 wherein said wire includes a plurality of sections, each section being made up of substantially a single loop.

5. A stent as in claim 4 wherein the stent is connected to a flexible film to form a tube-like member.

6. The stent of claim 1, wherein, said wire is enveloped in a material shaped so that when the stent is fully deployed, portions of the envelope material occupy gaps between adjoining coils of the stent.