Catheter including contractible electroactive elements

Abstract

In some examples, a catheter includes an elongated body that includes a proximal portion and a distal portion, and one or more electroactive elements in at least one of the proximal portion or the distal portion of the elongated body. The one or more electroactive elements each include a contractive material configured contract in response to an application of an electrical signal to the respective electroactive element. The contraction of the electroactive elements is configured to change a dimension or a shape of the elongated body. The electroactive elements may be distributed around the elongated body at the distal portion of the elongated body, such as in different axial or radial positions. The electroactive elements may comprise a nickel titanium (NiTi) alloy having a Ni:Ti composition of about 50:50.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.