Elastic guide catheter transition element
AssigneeSciMed Life Systems, Inc.
InventorTodd A. Berg
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A guiding catheter for use in coronary angioplasty and other cardiovascular interventions which incorporates a transition element in the shaft of the device. The transition element which has a different flexibility than the sections immediately proximal and distal to it, creates a zone in the catheter shaft which is either more or less flexible than the rest of the shaft. The transition element allows a portion of the shaft to be made more rigid or more flexible, without changing the flexibility of the other portions of the shaft. The transition element also allows for a differential flexibilty to be added to the catheter shaft.
Claims15
An intravascular guiding catheter which comprises:
- a) a flexible inner tube;
- b) a support member coupled to said inner tube;
- c) an outer tube congruent to said inner tube, having a proximal section, a transition section, and a distal section;
- d) wherein the transition section, located between the proximal and distal sections of said outer tube, is comprised of a material having different physical properties than the material of said proximal and distal sections;
- and
- e) said proximal and distal sections being comprised of materials having the same physical properties.
An intravascular guiding catheter for the placement of devices in the coronary arteries, comprising:
- a) an inner tube;
- b) an outer tube, having a proximal end and a distal end;
- c) a transition section located between the proximal and distal ends of said outer tube and wherein the transition section is less than 360.degree. about said inner tube;
- d) said transition section being comprised of a material having different physical properties than said outer tube;
- e) said transition section creating bending planes within the catheter shaft, such that the catheter has the ability to bend in one plane but resists bending in another plane.
An intravascular catheter which comprises:
- a) an inner tube;
- b) a support member coupled to said inner tube;
- c) an outer tube congruent to said inner tube, having a proximal section, a transition section, and a distal section;
- d) wherein said transition section, located between said proximal and distal sections, is comprised of a material which is more flexible than the material of said proximal section and which is more flexible than the material of said distal section.
An intravascular catheter which comprises:
- a) an inner tube;
- b) a support member coupled to said inner tube;
- c) an outer tube congruent to said inner tube, having a proximal section, a transition section, and a distal section;
- d) wherein said transition section, located between said proximal and distal sections, is comprised of a material which is less flexible than the material of said proximal section and which is less flexible than the material of said distal section.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.