Intravascular stent

• US 8,021,414 B2
• Filed: 07/25/2002
• Issued: 09/20/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 04/26/1996
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Boston Scientific Scimed (Boston Scientific Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Boston Scientific Scimed (Boston Scientific Corporation)
• Inventors: Jang, G. David
• Primary Examiner(s): PREBILIC, PAUL B
• Application Number:
  US10/206,432
• Publication Number:
  US 20020193870A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,344 Days
• Field of Search: 623/1.13, 623/1.16, 623/1.17, 623/23.7, 623/1.3, 623/1.31, 606/198
• US Class Current: 623/1.16
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2/91 made from perforated sheet material or tubes, e.g. perforated by laser cuts or etched holes
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2/915 with bands having a meander structure, adjacent bands being connected to each other
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2/958 Inflatable balloons for placing stents or stent-grafts
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2002/91525 within the whole structure different bands showing different meander characteristics, e.g. frequency or amplitude
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2002/91533 characterised by the phase between adjacent bands
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2002/91558 connected peak to peak
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2230/0054 V-shaped
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2250/0018 differing in elasticity, stiffness or compressibility

Abstract

A stent in a non-expanded state has a first and second expansion column, each consisting of a plurality of expansion strut pairs. An expansion strut pair includes a first expansion strut, a second expansion strut and a joining strut that couples the first and second expansion struts at one end. Expansion strut pairs include expansion strut pair first and second corners formed where the joining strut couples the first and second expansion struts. A connecting strut column, formed of a plurality of connecting struts couples the first and second expansion columns. Connecting struts include a proximal section, a distal section and an intermediate section. The proximal section is coupled to the corner of an expansion strut pair of the first expansion column, and the distal section is coupled to the joining strut of an expansion strut pair of the second expansion column intermediate the expansion strut pair first corner and the expansion strut pair second corner.

Claims

1. A stent comprising:

a plurality of adjacent cylindrical elements, each cylindrical element extending around a longitudinal stent axis, wherein each cylindrical element is formed from struts arranged in a serpentine wave pattern, each of the struts having a length;

wherein the plurality of adjacent cylindrical elements are arranged in alignment along the longitudinal stent axis, and wherein a plurality of cylindrical elements include sequentially increasing inner diameters to create a tapered profile;

a plurality of interconnecting members extending between the adjacent cylindrical elements and connecting the adjacent cylindrical elements to one another, the interconnecting members and cylindrical elements defining a plurality of asymmetric cells which have no geometrical symmetry; and

wherein the plurality of struts of a cylindrical element at the tapered profile has an increased length along the longitudinal stent axis relative to the struts in an adjacent cylindrical element.

2. The stent of claim 1, wherein the serpentine wave pattern of a cylindrical element is out of phase with the serpentine wave pattern of an adjacent cylindrical element.

3. A stent comprising a plurality of expansion columns, the plurality of expansion columns having an outer surface and defining a flowpath therethrough, each expansion column comprising a plurality of interconnected expansion struts, adjacent expansion columns connected via connection struts, at least a portion of both the outer surface and the flowpath having a tapered profile extending from a first end of the stent toward the middle of the stent, the middle of the stent having a larger diameter than the first end of the stent, wherein the thickness of the struts increases from the middle of the stent to the first end of the stent.

4. A stent having an outer surface facing in a radially outward direction, an inner surface facing in a radially inward direction, the stent comprising a plurality of expansion columns, each expansion column comprising a plurality of interconnected expansion struts, adjacent expansion columns connected via connection struts, at least a portion of the stent having a tapered profile extending from a first end of the stent toward the middle of the stent, the middle of the stent having a larger diameter than the first end of the stent, wherein the stent has a thickness as measured in a radial direction,. and the widths of the struts, as measured along the outer surface of the stent, increase from the middle of the stent to the first end of the stent.

5. A stent comprising a plurality of expansion columns, each expansion column comprising a plurality of interconnected expansion struts, adjacent expansion columns connected via connection struts, at least a portion of the stent having a tapered region in which the diameter of the stent decreases, wherein the lengths of the connection struts progressively decrease from a first end of the tapered region to a second end of the tapered region, a portion of the tapered region having a larger diameter and a portion of the tapered region having a smaller diameter, the portion having the larger diameter having longer connector struts and the portion having the smaller diameter having shorter connector struts.

6. The stent of claim 5 further comprising connection struts which include at least one section which is non-parallel to the longitudinal axis of the stent.

7. The stent of claim 5 further comprising connection struts which include at least one curved section.

8. The stent of claim 5 further comprising connection struts which include two curved sections.

9. The stent of claim 5 wherein the expansion columns and the connection struts form a plurality of asymmetric cells.