163results about How to "Improve radiopacity" patented technology

The present invention is a temporary intraluminal filter guidewire for use during interventional procedures, such as angioplasty or stent deployment. A braided filter is mounted near the distal end of a steerable guidewire, which guides a therapeutic catheter. An actuator rod slides over the guidewire and is removably connected to the filter. The rod controls relative displacement of the filter ends, causing transformation of the filter between a deployed configuration and a collapsed configuration. Wire having enhanced radiopacity is included in the filter to provide visualization under fluoroscopy.

A stent or other intraluminal medical device having markers formed from housings integral with the stent and marker inserts having a higher radiopacity than the stent provides for more precise placement and post-procedural visualization in a vessel, by increasing the radiopacity of the stent under X-ray fluoroscopy. The housings are formed integral to the stent and the marker inserts are made from a material close in the galvanic series to the stent material and sized to substantially minimize the effect of galvanic corrosion.

A method and devices for relieving pressure in the left atrium of a patient's heart is disclosed. The method includes using an ablative catheter in a minimally invasive procedure to prepare an opening from the coronary sinus into a left atrium of the patient's heart. Once the opening is prepared, the opening may be enlarged by a technique such as expanding a balloon within the opening. A stent is then placed within the coronary sinus of the patient, with a transverse portion expanding within the opening, allowing blood to flow from the left atrium to the coronary sinus and then to the right atrium. Pressure within the left atrium is thus relieved.

An implantable stent includes a plurality of elongate wires braided to form a hollow tubular structure having a tubular wall to define an interior surface and an exterior surface and having opposed open first and second ends, wherein the opposed open first and second ends are atraumatic ends The atraumatic ends of the stent are desirably free of any loose wire ends. The wires include composite wires to enhance visibility of the wires to provide improved external imaging of the wires in the body. The elongate composite wires of the stent may be metallic wires having an outer metallic portion including a first metal, such as nitinol, and an inner metallic core portion including a second metal, which is a radiopaque material, such as gold, barium sulfate, ferritic particles, platinum, platinum-tungsten, palladium, platinum-iridium, rhodium, tantalum or combinations thereof.

An implantable stent includes multiple circumferential segments that surround a bore and are connected in series along a length to form a tubular wall. Multiple adjacent alternating opposite facing crowns arranged along each segment's circumference are bridged by struts. The struts include a series of staggered arcuate edges with limited flats to provide a limited region of maximum width between significantly extended reducing diameter tapers at either end where they transition into the crowns. Connections between adjacent segments are wider and stiffer than the struts and strut-crown transitions in the segments. The crowns include inner and outer radii with off-set centers along a common axis to provide medial crown peaks along the axis that are wider than the narrowed crown shoulders on either side of the axis and from which the tapered struts extend. Material strain and flexure along the stent during lateral bending is distributed mainly within the segments, e.g. along the struts or crowns, versus at the connections between segments. Material strain and deformation during radial expansion is principally concentrated at the crown shoulders and tapered transition region with the struts. Particular closed-open-closed arrangements along the stent length are disclosed, though with fewer stent connections in the relatively “closed” end-portions along the stent than are provided by other typically “open” cell stents in prior use. Enhanced combinations of performance characteristics are provided regarding visibility, trackability, expansion characteristics, fatigue failures, coating integrity, and local drug delivery from the stent.

A clot retrieval device comprises an elongate shaft 104 and an expandable clot retrieval element 2101 on the shaft, the clot retrieval element comprising a framework formed from a substrate material such as Nitinol and having a plurality of struts 2105 and crowns 2102, at least some of the struts 2105 comprises at least one widened portion 2104 of the substrate material to provide enhanced radiopacity. The framework is coated with a radiopaque material such as gold. The device is rendered radiopaque with reduced damping effects.

A method of depositing shape memory or superelastic thin films by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) and medical devices made thereby, including stents, grafts, stent-grafts, stent covers, occlusive and filter membranes and drug-delivery devices. The method entails a thin film is deposited on a substrate surface using a CVD reaction in the production of a film of nickel-titanium shape memory or superelastic alloy. Such nickel-titanium-based shape memory or superelastic alloys may be binary nickel-titanium alloys or may include additional compounds to form ternary, quaternary, or higher level alloys.

A striped braided element comprising: a first set of members having a common direction of winding, the center axis of said first set of members being axially displaced relative to each other in relation to a common braiding axis; and a second set of members having an opposite direction of winding, the center axis of the second set of members being axially displaced relative to each other in relation to the common braiding axis, the braided element exhibiting a uniform uninterrupted braid pattern and an average uniform distance between the center axis of members having a common direction of winding at a particular circumferential section along the common braiding axis; characterized by having at least one stripe comprising two adjacent members of the same set exhibiting a significantly reduced distance between the center axis of the adjacent members in the particular circumferential section.

The present disclosure relates to devices and methods for implanting a prosthesis into a heart of a mammal, such as a person. The disclosure includes a prosthesis that acts as a pressure vent between the left and right atria of the heart. The disclosure also includes a mounting tool for mounting the prosthesis onto a loading tool, the loading tool useful for loading the prosthesis onto a device for delivering the prosthesis into the patient's heart. Control devices and methods for using these devices are also disclosed. The intracardiac pressure vents disclosed allow sufficient flow from the left atrium to the right atrium to relieve elevated left atrial pressure and resulting patient symptoms. The devices also limit the amount of flow from the right atrium to the left atrium to minimize the potential for thrombi or other embolic material from entering arterial circulation.

Improved radiopaque coatings particularly suitable for polymer substrates are described. A modified ion plasma deposition (IPD) method is used to provide coatings with macroparticle-dense surfaces that have excellent radiopacity. The coatings are particularly adapted to polymer surfaces because of high adherence and resistance to peeling and flaking.

Disclosed is an expandable transluminal sheath, for introduction into the body while in a first, low cross-sectional area configuration, and subsequent expansion of at least a part of the distal end of the sheath to a second, enlarged cross-sectional configuration. The distal end of the sheath is maintained in the first, low cross-sectional configuration and expanded using a radial dilatation device. In an exemplary application, the sheath is utilized to provide access for a diagnostic or therapeutic procedure such as ureteroscopy or stone removal.

A stent having marker tabs formed from a micro-alloyed combination of materials provides for more precise placement and post-procedural visualization in a vessel, by increasing the radiopacity of the stent under X-ray fluoroscopy. A unique micro-alloying process is utilized to form the tabs, comprising a first alloy and a second alloy, wherein one of these alloys is radiopaque. This substantially eliminates the possibility of galvanic action between the tab and the stent. This process is also applicable to other medical devices.

The present disclosure relates to devices and methods for implanting a prosthesis into a heart of a mammal, such as a person. The disclosure includes a prosthesis that acts as a pressure vent between the left and right atria of the heart. The disclosure also includes a mounting tool for mounting the prosthesis onto a loading tool, the loading tool useful for loading the prosthesis onto a device for delivering the prosthesis into the patient's heart. Control devices and methods for using these devices are also disclosed. The intracardiac pressure vents disclosed allow sufficient flow from the left atrium to the right atrium to relieve elevated left atrial pressure and resulting patient symptoms. The devices also limit the amount of flow from the right atrium to the left atrium to minimize the potential for thrombi or other embolic material from entering arterial circulation.

An aneurysm buttressing arrangement for covering an aneurysm opening in an intracranial aneurysm, for temporary placement thereadjacent, to prevent escape of embolitic agents from that aneurysm. The arrangement comprises an elongated delivery wire having a proximal end and a tracking distal end wire, a scaffold of expandable wires arranged proximal to and in spaced adjacent relationship to the distal end of the delivery wire, wherein the scaffold of wires has a tapered proximal end and a tapered distalmost end, the scaffold being expandable upon deployment from a delivery catheter, and collapsible for withdrawal into a delivery catheter, the tracking distal end wire extending distally from the scaffold about one-half to about ten centimeters.

The present disclosure relates to devices and methods for implanting a prosthesis into a heart of a mammal, such as a person. The disclosure includes a prosthesis that acts as a pressure vent between the left and right atria of the heart. The disclosure also includes a mounting tool for mounting the prosthesis onto a loading tool, the loading tool useful for loading the prosthesis onto a device for delivering the prosthesis into the patient's heart. Control devices and methods for using these devices are also disclosed. The intracardiac pressure vents disclosed allow sufficient flow from the left atrium to the right atrium to relieve elevated left atrial pressure and resulting patient symptoms. The devices also limit the amount of flow from the right atrium to the left atrium to minimize the potential for thrombi or other embolic material from entering arterial circulation.