173 results about "Arterial wall" patented technology

A device and method for protecting a blood vessel, and hence bodily tissues, against damage caused by particulate such as an embolus. The device may be a stent, for insertion in a large artery such as the ascending aorta, and may be combined with a filter. In one embodiment, the device includes an outer wire frame rather than a stent. The stent may be made of at least one layer of mesh, which is typically attached or mounted to the arterial wall. Typically only part of the stent is attached (for example at a reinforcing ring structure). Typically the size of the apertures of the mesh at the top portion of the stent is smaller than the bottom portion of the stent. The device and method are particularly useful in preventing blockages of flow to the brain, but have other uses as well. An electric charge may be placed on the device, for example, to prevent blood components from collecting.

An apparatus for locally controlling smooth muscle tone includes a first electrode for insertion into an artery; a barrier for preventing the first electrode from contacting an arterial wall; a second electrode; a power supply; and a controller for coupling the power supply to the electrodes. The controller is configured to cause the electrode to maintain a waveform for controlling polarization of smooth muscle tone.

An apparatus for deploying a needle within a lumen is provided. The apparatus includes a housing having a threaded bushing radially disposed therein. The bushing rigidly couples with a nose cone having a guide tip disposed at an end opposite the bushing for penetrating an arterial wall of a lumen. During operation, a user incrementally advances the bushing within the housing, thereby incrementally advancing the guide tip into the lumen. The nose cone also includes a flex guide having a slot configuration which couples with the guide tip which deploys into the lumen along with the guide tip.

A device capable of capturing and facilitating the removal of a thrombus in blood vessels (or stones in biliary or urinary ducts, or foreign bodies) uses a soft coil mesh with the aid of a pull wire or string to engage the surface of a thrombus, and remove the captured thrombus. The soft coil mesh is formed by an elongated microcoil element that forms the helical elements of a macrocoil element. The microcoil element provides a relatively elastic effect to the helical elements forming the macrocoil and allows for control of gripping forces on the thrombus while reducing non-rigid contact of the device with arterial walls. The use of multiple coil mesh elements, delivered through a single lumen or multiple lumens, preferably with separate control of at least one end of each coil, provides a firm grasp on a distal side of a thrombus, assisting in non-disruptive or minimally disrupted removal of the thrombus upon withdrawal of the device.

Method and apparatus are provided to treat atherosclerosis wherein the artery is partially closed by dilating the artery while preserving the vital and sensitive endothelial layer thereof. Microwave energy having a frequency from 3 GHz to 300 GHz is propagated into the arterial wall to produce a desired temperature profile therein at tissue depths sufficient for thermally necrosing connective tissue and softening fatty and waxy plaque while limiting heating of surrounding tissues including the endothelial layer and / or other healthy tissue, organs, and blood. The heating period for raising the temperature a potentially desired amount about 20° C., within the atherosclerotic lesion may be less than about one second. In one embodiment of the invention, a radically beveled waveguide antenna is used to deliver microwave energy at frequencies from 25 GHz or 30 GHz to about 300 GHz and is focused towards a particular radial sector of the artery. Because the atherosclerotic lesions are often asymmetrically disposed, directable or focussed heating preserves healthy sectors of the artery and applies energy to the asymmetrically positioned lesion faster than a non-directed beam. A computer simulation predicts isothermic temperature profiles for the given conditions and may be used in selecting power, pulse duration, beam width, and frequency of operation to maximize energy deposition and control heat rise within the atherosclerotic lesion without harming healthy tissues or the sensitive endothelium cells.

An intravascular catheter system includes an intravascular catheter that can be easily and safely navigated through severely occluded arteries. The system uniquely includes both an optical fiber for use in providing data for guiding the catheter and a conventional metal guide wire for use in navigating the catheter through the artery passageway. The system further includes optical imaging of the arterial occlusion during guidance of the catheter through the artery passageway. More particularly the system provides a visual indication to the surgeon to determine if the catheter assembly is approaching the arterial wall.