Crimpable intraluminal endoprosthesis having helical elements

A stent having a generally cylindrical main body, the main body comprising:

• a plurality of helical segments, at least one helical segment crossing another helical segment, wherein the helical segments contract and expand in a direction parallel to the circumference of the main body when the stent is crimped and expanded, wherein at least one helical segment is comprised of a plurality of R-shaped filaments and wherein the stent has a crimped diameter and an expanded diameter that is 3-6 times the crimped diameter.

A stent having a generally cylindrical main body, the main body comprising:

• a plurality of helical segments, at least one helical segment crossing another helical segment, wherein the helical segments contract and expand in a direction parallel to the circumference of the main body when the stent is crimped and expanded, wherein at least a portion of one helical segment nestles between two other helical segments when the stent is crimped and wherein the stent has a crimped diameter and an expanded diameter that is 3-6 times the crimped diameter.

A balloon expandable stent having a geometry for crimping it to a delivery device, the stent comprising:

• a plurality of contiguous filaments forming a plurality of circumferentially expandable helical segments, at least one helical segment having a first portion that nests within another portion of the same helical segment and a second portion that nestles between two other helical segments.

A stent comprising:

• a plurality of first elements comprised of one or more generally R-shaped filament segments;
• a plurality of second elements comprised of one or more generally Z-shaped filament segments;
• a plurality of struts joining at least some the first elements together to form one or more generally first helical segments and joining at least some of the second elements to form one or more generally helical second segments, wherein the struts are integral parts of the first and second elements.