Edwards Lifesciences Corporation

Target Therapeutics, Inc.

Stryker Nv Operations Limited

Stryker Corporation

Boston Scientific Scimed, Inc.

Scimed Life Systems, Inc.

Kim D Nguyen

Duy Nguyen

Thanh Van Nguyen

Richard O Murphy

Tri D Tran

Hanh Ho

My Doan

Harold F Carrison

Robert M Abrams

Gene L Samson

Michael P Wallace

Uriel Hiram Chee

Erik T Engelson

Hong Doan

Edward J Snyder

Henry Bourang

Clifford Teoh

Son M Gia

Thanh Huy Le

Liem Ho

Tung Thanh Le

Kevin D Rupp

Thomas J Palermo

Michael C Murad

Sonny Tran

Brian C Gray

Erik E Bulman

Michael R Bialas

Jeff Lindstrom

Hanh Doan

Alejandro J Froimovich Rosenberg

Roger Farnholtz

Quang Ngoc Vu

Robert Hergenrother

Maria Lillian Saravia

Gil Senesh

Brendan Michael Dalbow

Praveen De Silva

Lien Huong Thi Hoang

Jeanette Jasmine Corona

Ashley Akemi Ishigo

Gonzalo German Angelico

Sovanpheap Mak

Taylor Michael Winters

Kristen Hicks

June Lim

Chi J Chung

Rose Y Wong

Vicky Hong Do

Carla Susana Cerqueira

Victoria Mariko Low

Andrea Fernandez

Karl J Britzman

Haley Nicole Whitehead

Thomas H Burke

Shannon Nicole Hoye

Jeannette Jasmine Corona

Neal H Avery

David John Loos

Embodiments of an expandable sheath can be used in conjunction with a catheter assembly to introduce a prosthetic device, such as a heart valve, into a patient. Such embodiments can minimize trauma to the vessel by allowing for temporary expansion of a portion of the introducer sheath to accommodate the delivery apparatus, followed by a return to the original diameter once the prosthetic device passes through. Some embodiments can include a sheath with inner and outer layers, where a folded portion of the inner layer extends through a slit in the outer layer and a portion of the outer layer overlaps the folded portion of the inner layer. Some embodiments include an elastic outer cover positioned outside the outer layer. Embodiments of the present expandable sheath can avoid the need for multiple insertions for the dilation of the vessel, thus offering advantages over prior art introducer sheaths.

Expandable sheath for introducing an endovascular delivery device into a body

Methods and systems for attaching a radiopaque marker to a prosthetic heart valve to indicate a location of a commissure of the prosthetic heart valve are disclosed. As one embodiment, a prosthetic heart valve can include a frame including a plurality of struts forming a plurality of cells of the frame arranged between an inflow end and an outflow end of the frame, a plurality of leaflets arranged within the frame, at least one commissure comprising an attachment member arranged across a selected cell of the plurality of cells of the frame and attached to struts of the frame forming the selected cell, and commissure tabs of two adjacent leaflets coupled to the attachment member, and a radiopaque marker arranged on the attachment member of the commissure. The marker is configured to indicate a location of the commissure of the prosthetic heart valve.

Commissure marker for a prosthetic heart valve

Disclosed herein are expandable introducer sheaths and methods of making and using the same. The sheaths minimize trauma to a patient's vasculature by allowing for temporary expansion of a portion of the sheath to accommodate passage of a delivery system for a cardiovascular device, then return to a non-expanded state after the passage of the device. The sheath includes an elongated annular member through which the cardiovascular device and its delivery system pass. In an embodiment, the annular inner member can be formed by coextruding a first and second material. The first material includes a fold, and the second material radially spaces the different parts of the fold from each other during fabrication and provides support for maintaining the tubular structure. The second material is removed once the coextrusion process is complete.

Methods of making an expandable sheath

A delivery apparatus for implanting a radially compressible and expandable prosthetic heart valve in a native heart valve of the heart includes a handle portion and an elongated shaft extending from and movable relative to the handle portion. The shaft includes a proximal end portion coupled to the handle portion and a distal end portion configured to mount a prosthetic heart valve in a radially compressed state. The handle portion includes a control member movable longitudinally with respect to the handle portion, the control member engaging a gear assembly operable to convert longitudinal motion of the control member to rotational motion of the gear assembly. The gear assembly engages the elongated shaft such that rotational motion of the gear assembly causes corresponding longitudinal motion of the elongated shaft relative to the handle portion.

Delivery system for prosthetic heart valve

Embodiments of an expandable sheath can be used in conjunction with a catheter assembly to introduce a prosthetic device, such as a heart valve, into a patient. Such embodiments can minimize trauma to the vessel by allowing for temporary expansion of a portion of the introducer sheath to accommodate the delivery apparatus, followed by a return to the original diameter once the prosthetic device passes through. Some embodiments can include a sheath with an intermediate layer including an expandable mesh tube, an outer polymeric layer extending over at least a portion of the intermediate layer, and an inner polymeric layer extending within the intermediate layer. The intermediate layer and the inner polymeric layer are configured to establish an enlarged lumen to allow passage of the prosthetic heart valve.

An introducer sheath has a radially unexpanded and a radially expanded configuration, where the sheath locally expands from the unexpanded configuration to the expanded configuration when a device is advanced through a lumen thereof, and locally contracts back to the unexpanded configuration after the device advances past that location. Embodiments of the introducer sheath include an outer tubular layer comprising a longitudinal cut therethrough, and an inner tubular layer comprising at least one pleat extending through the longitudinal cut to an outside surface of the outer tubular layer. Embodiments of the inner tubular layer are adhered to an inner surface of the outer tubular layer, with the pleat not adhered to an outer surface of the outer tubular layer.

Expandable introducer sheath

Growing community of inventors

Irvine, CA, United States of America

Kim D Nguyen