Intravascular stents

A longitudinally flexible stent for implanting in a body lumen and expandable from a contracted condition to an expanded condition, comprising:

• a plurality of adjacent cylindrical elements, each cylindrical element having a circumference extending about a longitudinal stent axis and being substantially independently expandable in the radial direction;
• wherein the plurality of adjacent cylindrical elements are arranged in alignment along the longitudinal stent axis and form a generally serpentine wave pattern transverse to the longitudinal axis containing a plurality of alternating valley portions and peak portions;
• the plurality of adjacent cylindrical elements alternate between a pattern of double-curved portions, inverted double-curved portions, and inverted Y-shaped portions, to form the body of the stent;
• and
• a plurality of interconnecting members extending between the adjacent cylindrical elements and connecting adjacent cylindrical elements to one another, interconnecting members of each alternating, inverted double-curved portion within each cylindrical element forming a continuous spine extending from one end of the stent to the other.

A longitudinally flexible stent for implanting in a body lumen and expandable from a contracted condition to an expanded condition, comprising:

• a plurality of adjacent cylindrical elements, each cylindrical element having a circumference extending about a longitudinal stent axis and being substantially independently expandable in the radial direction;
• wherein the plurality of adjacent cylindrical elements are arranged in alignment along the longitudinal stent axis and form a generally serpentine wave pattern transverse to the longitudinal axis containing a plurality of alternating valley portions and peak portions, the valley portions including alternating Y-shaped portions and double-curved portions, and the peak portions including alternating, inverted Y-shaped portions and inverted double-curved portions;
• and
• a plurality of interconnecting members extending between the adjacent cylindrical elements and connecting adjacent cylindrical elements to one another, interconnecting members of each double-curved portion within each cylindrical element forming a continuous spine extending from one end of the stent to the other.

A method of making a longitudinally flexible stent for implanting in a body lumen and expandable from a contracted condition to an expanded condition, the method comprising the steps of:

• providing a plurality of adjacent cylindrical elements, wherein each cylindrical element has a circumference extending around a longitudinal stent axis and is substantially independently expandable in the radial direction;
• arranging the plurality of adjacent cylindrical elements in alignment along the longitudinal stent axis;
• forming a serpentine wave pattern transverse to the longitudinal axis containing a plurality of alternating valley portions and peak portions on each of the cylindrical elements, the valley portions including alternating double-curved portions and Y-shaped portions and the peak portions including alternating, inverted double-curved portions and inverted Y-shaped portions;
• providing a plurality of interconnecting members extending between the adjacent cylindrical elements;
• and
• connecting the adjacent cylindrical elements to one another, interconnecting members being connected to the double-curved portions to connect a cylindrical element to the Y-shaped portion of an adjacent cylindrical element and interconnecting members being connected to the alternating, inverted double-curved portion to connect the cylindrical element to the alternating, inverted Y-shaped portion of an adjacent cylindrical element.

A longitudinally flexible stent for implanting in a body lumen and expandable from a contracted condition to an expanded condition, comprising:

• a plurality of adjacent cylindrical elements, each cylindrical element having a circumference extending about a longitudinal stent axis and being substantially independently expandable in the radial direction;
• wherein the plurality of adjacent cylindrical elements are arranged in alignment along the longitudinal stent axis and form a generally serpentine wave pattern transverse to the longitudinal axis and each cylindrical element has a plurality of alternating valley portions and peak portions, the valley portions including alternating double-curved portions and Y-shaped portions and the peak portions including alternating, inverted double-curved portions and inverted Y-shaped portions;
• and
• a plurality of interconnecting members extending between the adjacent cylindrical elements and connecting the adjacent cylindrical elements to one another.