Systems for treating disorders of the ear, nose and throat
First Claim
1. A system for treating a disease or disorder of the ear, nose or throat of a human or animal subject, said system comprising:
- a guide catheter that is insertable into the head of the subject, said guide catheter having a substantially rigid shaft, a proximal opening, a distal opening and a lumen extending between the proximal opening and the distal opening;
a handle having bore, a portion of the handle being insertable into the proximal opening of the guide catheter such that the bore of the handle is in alignment with the lumen of the guide catheter;
a working catheter having a substantially rigid proximal shaft portion and a distal shaft portion that is sufficiently flexible to assume various shapes and a guidewire lumen;
a guidewire that is advanceable through the guidewire lumen;
a member attached to the guidewire to a) facilitate grasping of the guidewire, b) limit the extent to which the guidewire is advanceable through the guidewire lumen and c) hold the guidewire in a substantially fixed position relative to the working catheter when the guidewire has been fully advanced; and
the working catheter being insertable through the bore of the handle and through the lumen of the guide catheter to a position where some of the distal shaft portion but none of the substantially rigid proximal portion extends out of the distal end of the guide catheter and some of the substantially rigid proximal shaft portion but none of the distal shaft portion extends out of the proximal end of the guide catheter.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
Devices, systems and methods useable for dilating the ostia of paranasal sinuses and/or other passageways within the ear, nose or throat. A dilation catheter device and system is constructed in a manner that facilitates ease of use by the operator and, in at least some cases, allows the dilation procedure to be performed by a single operator. Additionally, the dilation catheter device and system may be useable in conjunction with an endoscope and/or a fluoroscope to provide for easy manipulation and positioning of the devices and real time visualization of the entire procedure or selected portions thereof. In some embodiments, an optional handle may be used to facilitate grasping or supporting a device of the present invention as well as another device (e.g., an endoscope) with a single hand.
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Citations
30 Claims
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1. A system for treating a disease or disorder of the ear, nose or throat of a human or animal subject, said system comprising:
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a guide catheter that is insertable into the head of the subject, said guide catheter having a substantially rigid shaft, a proximal opening, a distal opening and a lumen extending between the proximal opening and the distal opening; a handle having bore, a portion of the handle being insertable into the proximal opening of the guide catheter such that the bore of the handle is in alignment with the lumen of the guide catheter; a working catheter having a substantially rigid proximal shaft portion and a distal shaft portion that is sufficiently flexible to assume various shapes and a guidewire lumen; a guidewire that is advanceable through the guidewire lumen; a member attached to the guidewire to a) facilitate grasping of the guidewire, b) limit the extent to which the guidewire is advanceable through the guidewire lumen and c) hold the guidewire in a substantially fixed position relative to the working catheter when the guidewire has been fully advanced; and the working catheter being insertable through the bore of the handle and through the lumen of the guide catheter to a position where some of the distal shaft portion but none of the substantially rigid proximal portion extends out of the distal end of the guide catheter and some of the substantially rigid proximal shaft portion but none of the distal shaft portion extends out of the proximal end of the guide catheter. - 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, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30)
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Specification