Mitral valve annuloplasty ring having a posterior bow
First Claim
1. An annuloplasty ring for implantation in a mitral valve annulus, said annuloplasty ring comprising:
- a rounded ring body having an anterior section adapted to be implanted on the anterior aspect of the mitral valve annulus, and a posterior section adapted to be implanted on the posterior aspect of the mitral valva annulus;
wherein the ring body is oriented about a central flow axis, the flow axis defining an upward direction and a downward direction, the downward direction corresponding to the direction of blood flow through the mitral valve annulus; and
, wherein in the posterior section the ring body bows downward out of a plane perpendicular to the central flow axis, and wherein the downward bow in off-center in the posterior section and exhibits smooth curvilinear transitions to the adjacent ring body sections.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A mitral heart valve annuloplasty ring having a posterior bow that conforms to an abnormal posterior aspect of the mitral annulus. The ring may be generally oval having a major axis and a minor axis, wherein the posterior bow may be centered along the minor axis or offset in a posterior section. The ring may be substantially planar, or may include upward bows on either side of the posterior bow. The ring may include a ring body surrounded by a suture-permeable fabric sheath, and the ring body may be formed of a plurality of concentric ring elements. The ring is semi-rigid and the posterior bow is stiff enough to withstand deformation once implanted and subjected to normal physiologic stresses. The ring elements may be bands of semi-rigid material. A method of repairing an abnormal mitral heart valve annulus having a depressed posterior aspect includes providing a ring with a posterior bow and implanting the ring to support the annulus without unduly stressing the attachment sutures.
424 Citations
23 Claims
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1. An annuloplasty ring for implantation in a mitral valve annulus, said annuloplasty ring comprising:
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a rounded ring body having an anterior section adapted to be implanted on the anterior aspect of the mitral valve annulus, and a posterior section adapted to be implanted on the posterior aspect of the mitral valva annulus;
wherein the ring body is oriented about a central flow axis, the flow axis defining an upward direction and a downward direction, the downward direction corresponding to the direction of blood flow through the mitral valve annulus; and
,wherein in the posterior section the ring body bows downward out of a plane perpendicular to the central flow axis, and wherein the downward bow in off-center in the posterior section and exhibits smooth curvilinear transitions to the adjacent ring body sections. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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14. A method of repairing a mitral heart valve annulus that has a posterior aspect that is depressed downward along the blood flow axis relative to an anterior aspect, comprising:
implanting an annuloplasty ring having an anterior section sized to fit the anterior aspect of the annulus and a posterior section sized to the posterior aspect, wherein the ring posterior section bows downward parallel to the central axis relative to the anterior section. - View Dependent Claims (15, 16, 17, 18, 19)
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20. A method of repairing a mitral heart valve annulus that has a downwardly depressed posterior aspect, an anterior aspect, and a blood flow axis, comprising:
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inspecting the shape of the mitral annulus;
selecting a three-dimensional annuloplasty ring based on the shape of the mitral annulus, the annuloplasty ring having an anterior section and a posterior section generally arranged around a central axis, the central axis defining an upward direction and a downward direction, wherein the ring posterior section bows downward out of a plane perpendicular to the central axis; and
implanting the annuloplasty ring so that the ring posterior section attaches to the posterior aspect of the mitral valve annulus and the posterior section bows in the blood flow direction.
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21. An annuloplasty ring for implantation in a mitral valve annulus, said annuloplasty ring comprising:
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a rounded ring body having an anterior section adapted to be implanted on the anterior aspect of the mitral valve annulus and a posterior section adapted to be implanted on the posterior aspect of the mitral valve annulus;
wherein the ring body is oriented about a central flow axis, the flow axis defining an upward direction and a downward direction, the downward direction corresponding to the direction of blood flow through the mitral valve annulus wherein the ring body comprises a plurality of bands concentrically disposed that have a substantially larger height in the flow axis dimension than in the dimension perpendicular to the flow axis, and wherein the bands have varying heights so that the ring body is more flexible in the posterior section than around the remainder of the ring body; and
,wherein in the posterior section the ring body bows downward out of a plane perpendicular to the central flow axis. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23)
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Specification