Brachytherapy catheter with twisted lumens and methods of use
AssigneeMedtronic AVE, Inc.
InventorsMark L. Stiger, Sam Ciamacco, Jr.
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Abstract
An over-the-wire catheter provides substantially shadow-free delivery of radiation to a body lumen by having a treatment region wherein a guidewire tube and a radiation source tube form a parallel double helix configuration. When a radiation source is inserted into the radiation source tube and a guidewire is present in the guidewire tube, no portion of the treatment site will be obscured from all radiation emitted by the radiation source because, within the treatment region, the guidewire and the radiation source are not in a conventional, axially parallel configuration. Optionally, a balloon may be mounted about or adjacent the treatment region of the catheter, the balloon providing centering and/or dilatation functions.
Claims4
A catheter for intraluminal treatment comprising:
- an elongate catheter body having proximal and distal ends;
- and first and second lumens extending through the catheter body, wherein at least a portion of the first lumen and at least a portion of the second lumen are arranged in parallel relationship to form first and second helical elements, respectively, of a double helix configuration, the double helix configuration comprises at least a treatment region disposed adjacent the catheter body distal end;
- and
- the first lumen is adapted to slidably receive a guidewire therethrough.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.