Stent for treating vulnerable plaque
First Claim
1. A stent for reinforcing a fibrous cap in a body lumen, comprising:
- a tubular member having a distal end, a proximal end, and an outer surface and an inner surface extending therebetween to form the stent;
a cover having a length, an arc segment, and a radial thickness;
the cover being attached to a portion of the outer surface so that as the stent expands from a first delivery diameter to a second implanted diameter the cover differentially restricts stent expansion creating asymmetrical circumferential deployment; and
wherein the length of the cover is equal to the length of the stent.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
An intravascular stent is configured for asymmetrical differential deployment and to align with a fibrous cap to treat vulnerable plaque. The stent is configured so that reduced expansion forces are imparted during deployment to the fibrous cap, thereby reducing the likelihood of cap rupture. The stent includes cylindrical rings connected by links and a cover attached to a portion of the stent to differentially restrict stent expansion when the stent is expanded from a delivery diameter to an implanted diameter thereby creating asymmetrical circumferential deployment. The portion of the stent having the cover imparts lower expansion forces from the stent expansion onto the fibrous cap area than other portions of the stent not having the cover.
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Citations
24 Claims
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1. A stent for reinforcing a fibrous cap in a body lumen, comprising:
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a tubular member having a distal end, a proximal end, and an outer surface and an inner surface extending therebetween to form the stent; a cover having a length, an arc segment, and a radial thickness; the cover being attached to a portion of the outer surface so that as the stent expands from a first delivery diameter to a second implanted diameter the cover differentially restricts stent expansion creating asymmetrical circumferential deployment; and wherein the length of the cover is equal to the length of the stent.
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2. A stent for reinforcing a fibrous cap in a body lumen, comprising:
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a tubular member having a distal end, a proximal end, and an outer surface and an inner surface extending therebetween to form the stent; a cover having a length, an arc segment, and a radial thickness; the cover being attached to a portion of the outer surface so that as the stent expands from a first delivery diameter to a second implanted diameter the cover differentially restricts stent expansion creating asymmetrical circumferential deployment; and the stent includes a plurality of rings connected together by links and the stent rings and links have a variable radial thickness; and wherein the cover has a variable thickness that mirrors the variable thickness of the stent rings and links providing a smooth outer surface along an outer surface of the stent cover.
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3. A stent for reinforcing a fibrous cap in a body lumen, comprising:
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a tubular member having a distal end, a proximal end, and an outer surface and an inner surface extending therebetween to form the stent; a cover having a length, an arc segment, and a radial thickness; the cover being attached to a portion of the outer surface so that as the stent expands from a first delivery diameter to a second implanted diameter the cover differentially restricts stent expansion creating asymmetrical circumferential deployment; and wherein the cover contains a sensor to measure any of temperature, blood flow, and blood pressure.
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4. A stent for reinforcing a fibrous cap in a body lumen, comprising:
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a tubular member having a distal end, a proximal end, and an outer surface and an inner surface extending therebetween to form the stent; a cover having a length, an arc segment, and a radial thickness; the cover being attached to a portion of the outer surface so that as the stent expands from a first delivery diameter to a second implanted diameter the cover differentially restricts stent expansion creating asymmetrical circumferential deployment; and wherein the cover is formed from a metallic material taken from the group of materials consisting of stainless steel, tantalum, nickel-titanium, cobalt-chromium, titanium, platinum, and gold.
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5. A stent for reinforcing a fibrous cap in a body lumen, comprising:
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a plurality of cylindrical rings aligned along a common longitudinal axis, each cylindrical ring having curves and bar-arms that form undulations; a plurality of links for connecting adjacent cylindrical rings; and a first section and a second section; the rings and links in the first section having a higher material density relative to the rings and links in the second section so that as the stent is expanded from a first delivery diameter to a second implanted diameter, the higher density first section differentially restricts stent expansion creating asymmetrical circumferential deployment. - View Dependent Claims (6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21)
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22. A method of expanding a stent to create asymmetrical circumferential deployment in a body lumen having a fibrous cap, comprising:
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providing a stent having a plurality of cylindrical rings aligned along a common longitudinal axis, each ring having curves and bar-arms that form undulations, a plurality of links for connecting adjacent rings, and a first section and a second section; the first section having a first radial force component and the second section having a second radial force component; aligning the first section of the stent with the fibrous cap; expanding the stent into contact with the body lumen so that the first section substantially apposes the fibrous cap and the second section apposes that portion of the body lumen away from the fibrous cap. - View Dependent Claims (23)
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24. A stent for reinforcing a fibrous cap in a body lumen, comprising:
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a tubular member having means for expanding from a first delivery diameter to a second implanted diameter; means associated with the tubular member for creating asymmetrical circumferential deployment; and wherein the means for creating asymmetrical differential deployment includes rings having short bar arms and rings having long bar arms, the short bar arms creating less expansion forces than the long bar arms when the stent is expanded.
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Specification