Edwards Lifesciences Corporation

Caesarstone Sdot-yam Ltd.

Kulicke and Soffa Investments, Inc.

Cardiodex, Ltd.

Eran Goldberg

Tamir S Levi

Tal Reich

David Maimon

Liron Tayeb

Boaz Manash

Dan Rottenberg

Dikla Kersh

Arie Tylis

Elena Sherman

Ralph Schneider

Noam Nir

Danny M Garmahi

Amir Blumenfeld

Itai Pelled

Kevin D Rupp

Hernan Altman

Noa Axelrod

Hagar Adika

Tal Regev

Nikolay Gurovich

Hengchu Cao

Yair A Neumann

Eitan Atias

Mohammad Jafari

Eyal Leiba

Noa Axelrod Manela

Adi Carmi

Oren H Wintner

Liat Eliahu Buskila

Yaakov Gal

Ruti Harel

Yaacov Ron

Alon Golan

Shimon Eckhouse

Ziv Yohanan

Michael Bukin

Assaf Bash

Tomer Saar

Dustin P Armer

Michael G Valdez

Ofir Witzman

Maurice Buchbinder

Amnon Yadin

Eason Michael Abbott

Oren Cohen

Michael D Franklin

Khen Perlmutter

Nikolai Gurovich

John Joseph Desrosiers

Elazar Levi Schwarcz

Noam Miller

Anatoly Dvorsky

Ilan Tamir

Daniel James Murray

Julie Logan

Gideon Levinson

Noam Mizrahi

Aharon Cohen

Danny Garnahi

Gideon Sagi

Jeong Soo Lee

Haim Yushtein

A prosthetic heart valve has a radially expandable and collapsible annular frame, the frame having an inflow end and an outflow end and defining a longitudinal axis along a lumen of the prosthetic heart valve when it is in the expanded configuration. A leaflet structure is positioned within the frame and secured thereto. The prosthetic heart valve also has a laminate sealing member including a plurality of layers heat-bonded together to encapsulate at least a portion of the frame. The laminate sealing member extends along the longitudinal axis in an upstream direction and doubles back toward the outflow end of the frame at a fold line to form a cuff, and an edge portion of the laminate sealing member is secured to a main portion of the laminate sealing member downstream of the fold line such that the cuff forms an inflow end of the laminate sealing member.

Laminated sealing member for prosthetic heart valve

A prosthetic heart valve and associated methods for assembling a prosthetic heart valve including a plurality of leaflets is disclosed. As one example, a prosthetic heart valve includes a frame; a plurality of commissure support elements, each connected the frame and including two axially-extending members spaced apart from one another to form a window; and a plurality of leaflets, each leaflet comprising a body and two opposing commissure tabs, each commissure tab arranged adjacent to another commissure tab to form a pair of commissure tabs that are disposed in a commissure support element to form a commissure. Each commissure tab includes a series of overlapping layers that include a first set of two overlapping layers that extends through the window and a second set of two overlapping layers that extends away from the first set of two overlapping layers and over an outer side of a corresponding axially-extending member.

Prosthetic heart valve leaflet commissure assemblies and methods

An expandable docking station includes an annular valve seat having an end, an annular outer wall comprising struts disposed around the valve seat, and links that connect the end of the annular valve seat to the annular outer wall. Each of the links extends from the struts of the annular outer wall directly toward a longitudinal axis that runs longitudinally through a center of the docking station, and to a corresponding one of a plurality of circumferentially spaced axially extending legs at least partially defining the annular valve seat. The outer wall is configured to conform to an interior shape of a blood vessel, when expanded inside the blood vessel, such that the outer wall can expand in multiple locations to conform to multiple bulges of the blood vessel and can contract in multiple locations to conform to multiple narrowed regions of the blood vessel.

Docking stations for transcatheter valves

An expandable sheath is disclosed herein, which has a first polymeric layer and a braided layer positioned radially outward of the first polymeric layer. The braided layer includes a plurality of filaments braided together. The expandable sheaths further include a resilient elastic layer positioned radially outward of the braided layer. The elastic layer is configured to apply radial force to the braided layer and the first polymeric layer. The expandable sheath further includes a second polymeric layer positioned radially outward of the elastic layer and bonded to the first polymeric layer such that the braided layer and the elastic layer are encapsulated between the first and second polymeric layers. Methods of making and using the devices disclosed herein are also disclosed, as are crimping devices that may be used in methods of making the devices disclosed herein.

Expandable sheath

Disclosed herein are reinforced expandable introducer sheaths and methods of using the same. The sheaths minimize trauma to the patient's vasculature by including a reinforcing member to improve the push force of the sheath while reducing the chances of kinking during delivery of a prosthetic device. The sheath can include a plurality of expandable rings aligned along the longitudinal axis of the sheath and coupled together to form an elongated tubular structure. The sheath can also include a plurality of radial members circumferentially arranged to form a tubular support structure. The radial members slidingly interconnected around the circumference of the tubular structure to facilitate radial expansion of the sheath.

Advanced sheath patterns

The active introducer sheath systems disclosed herein are expanded by activating a translation mechanism at the handle. The sheath has an inner cylindrical structure of comingled fixed and mobile elongate rods bound together by an attachment line. Activating the translation mechanism causes the mobile rods to move axially with respect to the fixed rods, changing the internal tension in the attachment line. Increased tension draws the fixed and mobile rods closer together, decreasing the diameter of the cylindrical structure. Decreased tension in the attachment line enables the fixed and mobile rods to move apart, increasing the diameter of the cylindrical structure. A prosthetic device, such as a prosthetic heart valve, can be routed through the expanded sheath and to the implantation site. During implantation, the sheath can be contracted back to its original outer diameter, and expanded again for retrieval of the delivery apparatus.

Active introducer sheath system

The expandable sheath and methods of use disclosed herein are used to deliver a prosthetic device through a patient's vasculature. The sheath is constructed to be expandable in the circumferential direction, while maintaining sufficient stiffness in the longitudinal direction to withstand pushing and resist kinking. The sheath includes a plurality of curved arms extending outwardly from a longitudinally extending spine. The curved arms move away from the longitudinal axis of the sheath when pushed radially outwardly by a passing prosthetic device, and move back toward the longitudinal axis once the prosthetic device has passed.

Expandable sheath and methods of using the same

An anchoring system and related methods are provided for treatment of dilated hearts and of functional valve regurgitation, the system comprising one or more self-expandable or manually expandable anchors and associated devices for fixating a valve splint within the heart. For example, a spade-shaped assembly may be configured to be deployed in a right ventricle of the heart and to stabilize a puncturing instrument to puncture the septum. Various puncturing instruments may also be part of the anchoring system, including one or more of a flexible needle having a multiplicity of slits disposed along the length of the needle, a trocar catheter with a retractable head, and a catheter needle having a blunt introducer to protect nearby tissue within the heart during advancing a guidewire. A cutter catheter and puncture location catheter may also be part of the system and be used during treatment.

Systems and devices for setting an anchor

Ultrasound probe systems and methods for using an ultrasound probe to assist during treatment of conditions of the human heart are provided. The method may comprise loading a medical instrument into a guide fastened to the ultrasound probe. The ultrasound probe may be inserted into a patient by way of an incision. The distal end of the ultrasound probe may be navigated to a location adjacent to an exterior surface of the heart. A treatment site may be identified on the exterior surface of the heart based on images obtained from an ultrasound transducer disposed within a distal end of the ultrasound probe. The medical instrument may be advanced within the guide to the treatment site and the medical instrument used for treatment. After treatment, the medical instrument may be withdrawn from the treatment site.

Heart reshaping system

An implantable prosthetic valve that is radially collapsible to a collapsed configuration and radially expandable to an expanded configuration comprises an annular frame having an inflow end and an outflow end, a leaflet structure positioned within the frame and secured thereto, and a laminate sealing member comprising an encapsulating material. The laminate sealing member has a main portion that encapsulates at least a portion of the frame and an end portion extending from the inflow end of the frame, and the end portion of the laminate sealing member is folded to form a cuff adjacent the inflow end of the frame and secured to the main portion of the laminate sealing member.

Docking stations for transcatheter valves are described. The docking stations can include an expandable frame, at least one sealing portion, and a valve seat. The expandable frame can be configured to conform to an interior shape of a portion of the circulatory system when expanded inside the circulatory system. The sealing portion can be configured to contact an interior surface of the circulatory system to create a seal. The valve seat can be connected to the expandable frame and can be configured to support an expandable transcatheter valve. The docking stations are adaptable to different anatomies/locations to allow implantation of a transcatheter valve in a variety of anatomies/locations.

Growing community of inventors

Nesher, Israel

Eran Goldberg