Medtronic Vascular, Inc.

Medtronic Ave, Inc.

Patrick Duane

Noel Coyle

Niall F Duffy

Declan P Costello

Gerry Clarke

David Quinn

John MacNamara

Robert H Murray

Paula McDonnell

Mark Casley

Rodney Bell

Kevin Boyle

Ashish Varma

Richard Gribbons

Kevin Treacy

Ash Varma

Patrick J Carmody

A balloon catheter includes an inflation shaft and an elongated guidewire shaft. A relatively short, distal portion of the guidewire shaft is attached to, or enveloped within, a distal portion of the inflation shaft. A proximal portion of the guidewire shaft is detached from and independent of a proximal portion of the inflation shaft. The detached portion of the guidewire shaft contains perforations at pre-determined points along its length that define removable segments thereof. The removable segments remain attached to the guidewire shaft under normal conditions, but may be torn away from the guidewire shaft to provide access to a guidewire within a guidewire lumen thereof.

Catheter with a convertible proximal catheter shaft

A balloon catheter includes a full-length inflation shaft and a guidewire shaft for fast catheter and guidewire exchange. The proximal portions of the inflation shaft and the guidewire shaft are detached from one another. The detached proximal shaft portions transition within a conversion portion of the catheter shaft and become coaxial within a distal portion of the catheter shaft. The proximal portion of the guidewire shaft may contain a continuous, longitudinally extending slot that acts as a guide member or guidewire track. Alternatively, the proximal portion of the guidewire shaft maybe removable from the catheter at a conversion joint via a snap-fit connection. Both embodiments allow for catheter exchange without removing the guidewire from a body lumen, or allow guidewire exchange without removing the catheter from the body lumen.

Catheter with detached proximal inflation and guidewire shafts

A catheter and guide wire exchange system including a catheter that has a guide wire lumen with a guide way extending along a length of the proximal shaft. A guide member is slidably disposed about the proximal shaft for directing a guide wire into or out of the guide way and the guide wire lumen. A transition section joins the trilumen proximal shaft to a coaxial distal shaft.

Catheter and guide wire exchange system with improved proximal shaft and transition section

A temporary intraluminal protection apparatus for use during interventional catheterization procedures, such as angioplasty or stent deployment. A protection element is mounted near the distal end of an elongate shaft, and includes a concave proximal end. To protect distal side branches adjacent a treatment site, the distal end of an inflated balloon of a balloon catheter is receivable within the concave proximal end of the protection element. A tubular actuator slides over the shaft to engage the protection element, causing transformation thereof between an open configuration and a closed configuration.

Apparatus for temporary intraluminal protection

A catheter and guide wire exchange system including a catheter having a guide wire lumen with a guide way extending along the length of a stiffened proximal shaft portion, and a guide member slidably disposed about the proximal shaft for directing a guide wire into or out of the guide way and the guide wire lumen. The guide member may be slid along the proximal shaft portion and the guide wire in zipper-like fashion so that the guide wire is contained within the guide wire lumen distal to the guide member and with the guide wire and catheter being separated proximal of the guide member.

Catheter and guide wire exchange system

Growing community of inventors

Galway, Ireland

Patrick Duane