Expandable tip assembly for thrombus management
First Claim
1. An expandable tip assembly adapted to address an occlusive thrombus within a blood vessel without distal embolic protection, comprising:
- a variable-stiffness hypotube having a proximal portion, a distal portion and a lumen sized and adapted to receive a guidewire;
wherein the distal portion of the hypotube has a greater flexibility than the proximal portion;
wherein the greater flexibility is provided by spiral laser cuts spaced along the distal portion of the hypotube;
wherein a spacing between the spiral cuts decreases from a proximal end of the distal portion to a distal end of the distal portion;
an expandable and reconstrainable scaffold coupled to the distal end of the hypotube, the scaffold being adapted to radially self-expand from a non-expanded configuration to an expanded configuration upon unsheathing of the scaffold and to transition from the expanded configuration to the non-expanded configuration upon re-sheathing of the scaffold;
wherein the scaffold comprises a generally cylindrical configuration;
wherein the scaffold comprises a laser-cut tube;
wherein the scaffold comprises an open distal end without a distal embolic protection member or device;
wherein a proximal end of the scaffold comprises a cut-out section adapted to facilitate re-sheathing of the scaffold;
wherein the scaffold comprises a plurality of open cells defined by struts and connected by bridges;
wherein each strut has two ends, with each end connected to one of the bridges;
wherein the scaffold has a chronic outward force (COF) per unit length that does not decrease by more than 75% from a scaffold diameter of 1.5 mm to a scaffold diameter of 4.5 mm; and
wherein the open cells are sized to promote at least one of vessel reperfusion or thrombus removal.
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Accused Products
Abstract
Systems, methods, and devices for the treatment of acute ischemic stroke that provide immediate blood flow restoration to a vessel occluded by a clot and, after reestablishing blood flow, address the clot itself. Immediate blood flow restoration advantageously can facilitate natural lysis of the clot and also can reduce or obviate the concern for distal embolization due to fragmentation of the clot. Several embodiments of the invention provide for progressive, or modular, treatment based upon the nature of the clot. For example, the progressive treatment can include immediate restoration of blood flow, in-situ clot management, and/or clot removal depending on the particular circumstances of the treatment. The in-situ clot management can include, for example, lysis, maceration, and/or removal.
679 Citations
25 Claims
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1. An expandable tip assembly adapted to address an occlusive thrombus within a blood vessel without distal embolic protection, comprising:
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a variable-stiffness hypotube having a proximal portion, a distal portion and a lumen sized and adapted to receive a guidewire; wherein the distal portion of the hypotube has a greater flexibility than the proximal portion; wherein the greater flexibility is provided by spiral laser cuts spaced along the distal portion of the hypotube; wherein a spacing between the spiral cuts decreases from a proximal end of the distal portion to a distal end of the distal portion; an expandable and reconstrainable scaffold coupled to the distal end of the hypotube, the scaffold being adapted to radially self-expand from a non-expanded configuration to an expanded configuration upon unsheathing of the scaffold and to transition from the expanded configuration to the non-expanded configuration upon re-sheathing of the scaffold; wherein the scaffold comprises a generally cylindrical configuration; wherein the scaffold comprises a laser-cut tube; wherein the scaffold comprises an open distal end without a distal embolic protection member or device; wherein a proximal end of the scaffold comprises a cut-out section adapted to facilitate re-sheathing of the scaffold; wherein the scaffold comprises a plurality of open cells defined by struts and connected by bridges; wherein each strut has two ends, with each end connected to one of the bridges; wherein the scaffold has a chronic outward force (COF) per unit length that does not decrease by more than 75% from a scaffold diameter of 1.5 mm to a scaffold diameter of 4.5 mm; and wherein the open cells are sized to promote at least one of vessel reperfusion or thrombus removal. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25)
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Specification