Radioactive medical device and process

Abstract

An implantable medical device according to the systems and methods described herein may include a metal body or stent that does not contain significant quantities of iron or chromium and that is initially formed from a non-radioactive structural material. A non-radioactive activatable additive (the precursor isotope) may be added into or onto the body of the medical device. Neutron activation of the body of the medical device with the incorporated non-radioactive isotope may then be accomplished, and, if the metal body of the medical device contains a significant quantity of nickel, a coating of a high-density material may be applied over the radioactive body of the medical device. In an alternate embodiment, a coating of certain types of high-density material may be applied prior to neutron activation. The coating of high-density material may serve several useful purposes, including containment of undesirable beta particles from spurious long-lived radioactive species, creation of a biologically inert surface, and enhancement of the x-ray radiopacity to improve the visibility of the implantable medical device.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.