Ave Connaught

James Duffy

Geraldine Standish

Maria Carleton

Gigliano Garutti

Daniele Manara

James Cattabriga

Naill Duffy

An endoluminal stent is formed in a modular construction to include at least one elongate spine and a plurality of general tube-defining modules attached to the spine, or spines, in a longitudinal array. The modules are constructed along a spine-like structure so as to form a bifurcate shape for implantation in branching or bifurcating vessels. Each module defines, in cooperation with a spine, a closed ring-like structure. Each of the modules is radially expandable from a reduced diameter, low profile configuration, in which it is readily navigated through the body passages, to an expanded diameter engageable with the inner luminal surface of the body lumen. The stent, being of modular construction, can be built to individual specifications for a specific patient. Modules are formed from a wire shaped in a flat serpentine configuration that is then wrapped in a cylindrical configuration with its free ends connected to a spine. The modules are expandable, as by a balloon, from a low profile to an expanded configuration. During expansion, the modules can wipe against the inner surface of the lumen to smooth sharp points or edges. A spine of the stent defines a substantially greater mass than that of the individual modules such that the spine can be readily observed under X-ray or fluoroscopy. The modular construction enables a wide range of variation in the characteristics of the stent, including longitudinal flexibility, radial expansion characteristics, among others.

Bifurcated stent

Systems and methods for mounting a stent onto the balloon of a balloon catheter. In one embodiment, a kit is provided that includes two instruments, a first being a loader tool and a second being a profiler tool. The loader tool can be a handheld device that includes a handle at one end of the tool. A tube extends outwardly from the handle, and a wire extends is axially through the tube and projects outwardly from the tube. A balloon catheter can slide along the central wire until the balloon is delivered into the interior of the tube. A stent that is disposed about the periphery of the tube can be mounted onto the balloon by grasping the handle of the loader tool and pulling the handle and tube away from the catheter and stent whine the catheter and stent are maintained in a fixed relationship. To facilitate this mounting process, a profiler tube is included that allows a physician to provide the balloon with the proper profile to allow for, or to facilitate, the delivery of the balloon into the interior of the tube of the loader tool.

Device and method for mounting a stent onto a balloon catheter

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Trim, Ireland

James Duffy