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AssigneeKensey Nash Corporation
InventorsJohn E. Nash, William T. Fisher, H. Michael Cunningham, Gregory Walters
Estimating the term…
A tubular instrument, e.g., a catheter including a hollow wall portion forming the distal end of the instrument and terminating at a distal opening, having a connector arranged to be used with a guide-wire. The guide-wire has a distal end portion and a proximal end portion, the distal end portion of the guide-wire being arranged to be extended to some interior position within the body of a living being, with the proximal end portion of the guide-wire being located outside the being's body. The connector is located at the distal end of the instrument and is arranged to be readily manipulated by a twisting action to connect the instrument onto the guide-wire for sliding movement therealong. In particular, the connector establishes a path into which a portion of the guide-wire can be inserted from a lateral direction by merely twisting the instrument, without requiring access to either end of the guide-wire. In one embodiment the path is a spiral channel formed in the hollow wall portion of the instrument. In another embodiment the connector is a spiral member located on the outside of the distal end of the instrument, spaced slightly from the outer surface of the instrument to form the path or channel into which the guide-wire is inserted.
A tubular instrument arranged to be used with a guide-wire or other elongated guide member, the guide-wire or other elongated guide member having a distal end portion and a proximal end portion, the distal end portion of the guide-wire or other elongated guide member being arranged to be extended to some interior position within a lumen in the body of a living being, with the proximal end portion being located outside the body of the being, said tubular instrument having an end portion arranged to readily connect said instrument to said guide-wire or other elongated guide member so that said tubular instrument can be guided to a desired position within the body of the being along the guide-wire or other elongated guide member, said tubular instrument having a connector at said distal end, said connector establishing a path into which a portion of the guide-wire or other elongated guide member can be inserted from a lateral direction by a twisting action without requiring access to either end of the guide-wire or other elongated guide member, said path being shaped to enable said instrument to be placed on the guide-wire or other elongated guide member and then twisted to insert the guide-wire into said path, said connector comprises a member extending outside and about a portion of said distal end portion of said instrument to form said path.
A connector for use with a tubular instrument to slidably mount said tubular instrument onto a guide-wire or other elongated guide member, the guide-wire or other elongated guide member having a distal end portion and a proximal end portion, the distal end portion of the guide-wire or other elongated guide member being arranged to be extended to some interior position within a lumen in the body of a living being, with the proximal end portion being located outside the body of the being, said tubular instrument having a distal end portion at which said connector is arranged to be located, said connector establishing a path into which a portion of the guide-wire or other elongated guide member can be inserted from a lateral direction by a twisting action without requiring access to either end of the guide-wire or other elongated guide member, said path being arranged so that when the instrument is in place on the guide-wire or other elongated guide member the guide-wire or other elongated guide member extends through the opening in the distal end of the instrument, through a portion of the instrument, and out of said proximal end of said path.
A tubular instrument having a longitudinal axis and being arranged to be used with a guide-wire or other elongated guide member having a longitudinal axis, the tubular instrument including a hollow wall portion forming the distal end of the instrument, the hollow wall terminating at a distal opening, the guide-wire or other elongated guide member having a distal end portion and a proximal end portion, the distal end portion of the guide-wire or other elongated guide member being arranged to be extended to some interior position within a lumen in the body of a living being, with the proximal end portion being located outside the body of the being, said tubular instrument having an end portion arranged to readily connect said instrument to said guide-wire or other elongated guide member so that said tubular instrument can be guided to a desired position within the body of the being along the guide-wire or other elongated guide member, said tubular instrument having a connector at said distal end, said connector establishing a path into which a portion of the guide-wire or other elongated guide member can be inserted from a lateral direction by a twisting action without requiring access to either end of the guide-wire or other elongated guide member, said connector including a pair of fingers projecting outward from said longitudinal axis of the instrument and spaced from each other, each of said fingers terminating in a free end, the free ends of said fingers being directed towards each other and defining said path therebetween, said path being a channel formed in said hollow wall portion and communicating with the opening, the distal end of said channel being in the form of a flared mouth having a width greater than the width of said channel to facilitate the insertion of the guide-wire or other elongated guide member into said channel.
A connector for use with a tubular instrument to slidably mount said tubular instrument onto a guide-wire or other elongated guide member, the guide-wire or other elongated guide member having a distal end portion and proximal end portion, the distal end portion of the guide-wire or other elongated guide member being arranged to be extended to some interior position within a lumen in the body of a living being, with the proximal end portion being located outside the body of the being, said tubular instrument having a distal end portion at which said connector is arranged to be located, said connector establishing a path into which a portion of the guide-wire or other elongated guide member can be inserted from a lateral direction by a twisting action without requiring access to either end of the guide-wire or other elongated guide member.
A method of mounting a tubular instrument onto a guide-wire having a distal end and a proximal end from a lateral direction by a twisting action without requiring access to either end of said guide-wire, said instrument having a distal end portion, said guide-wire being located within the body of a living being so that said distal end portion is at some internal position and said proximal end portion is located outside of the body of said being, said method comprising:
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.