Stent and method for manufacturing the stent

Abstract

A stent includes a stent body having a circumference and struts disposed helically about the circumference in turns. At least two of the struts have respective strut ends. At least two paddle-shaped markers extend away from a respective one of the strut ends. The markers have respective marker extreme ends and different overall longitudinal lengths substantially aligning the marker extreme ends approximately along a single circumference of the stent body. A method for manufacturing a helical stent includes the steps of providing a stent body with struts disposed about the circumference thereof in turns and with bridges connecting the struts in adjacent turns. The stent body is expanded and, thereafter, some of the bridges, in particular, sacrificial bridges, are removed.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION [0001] This application claims the priority, under 35 U.S.C. § 119, of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60 / 606,261 filed Sep. 1, 2004, the entire disclosure of which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT [0002] n / a FIELD OF THE INVENTION [0003] The invention lies in the field of vascular stents. In particular, the invention is in the field of helical stents for peripheral arteries, the biliary tree, and other body lumens. [0004] Stents have been developed for use in various lumens of the body, including the biliary tree, venous system, peripheral arteries, and coronary arteries. Stents are used to open or hold open a lumen that has been blocked (occluded) or reduced in size (stenosed) by some disease process, such as atherosclerosis or cancer. Previously developed stents for use in the biliary, venous, and arterial systems have been of two broad classes:...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

The present invention provides a helical stent and a method for manufacturing the stent that improves upon previous devices. The stent is designed to be used in peripheral arteries, biliary tree, and other body lumens. It is self-expanding and can be used in arteries where flexure is important. The stent has a reduced state and an expanded state, and the markers on the stent have different imaging characteristics. The stent body has a longitudinal axis and the markers extend away from the strut ends. The stent can be used in multiple helix or s-shaped struts. The stent is suitable for use in coronary arteries and can also have drug-eluting coatings. The technical effects of the invention include improved flexibility, reduced restenosis, and reduced risk of complications.

Problems solved by technology

Other manufacturing techniques have been proposed, such as vacuum or chemical deposition of material or forming a tube of machined flat material, but those “exotic” methods have not been widely commercialized.

However, Palmaz teaches use of a stent that is very difficult to manufacture because of the great number of very small openings in the covering film or “web.”

Because prior art stent designs have large gaps between stent parts, drug elution about these parts does not adequately cover all of the tissue within the bounds of the stent.

In his report “Era of Drug-Coated and Drug-Eluting Stents” (TCT 2002), G. Grube states that the typical open-cell configuration gives poor distribution of the drug into the arterial wall because of the large open gaps when the stent is situated in a bend of the artery.

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