Boston Scientific Corporation

Radius Medical Technologies, Inc.

Radius Medical LLC

C. R. Bard, Inc.

Richard M DeMello

Christopher A Rowland

James B Daigle

Earl F Bardsley

David W Daniels

James C Wang

Charles B Warich

Albert Chin

Thomas A Svatek

Bruce W Flight

Douglas J Daniels

Robert E Reid

John F Hartnett

Jonathan R DeMello

Maureen Finlayson

George T Roberts

Arthur R Madenjian

Richard R Heuser

Fernando A De Toledo

Ralph J Barry, Jr

Sally C Thornton

Gerry D Ouellette

Kenneth A Spector

Maureen A Finlayson

Andrew Kapravy

Frederick W Trombley, Iii

Wilfred Samson

Andrea T Slater

Michael Lang

Robert J Ham

Jon Burkhardt

A coaxial stabilizing and sealing catheter provides increased support to a guide catheter that is seated in an ostium of a branch artery by extending through and out of a distal end of the guide catheter and anchoring in position within the branch artery that is being treated. The stabilizing and sealing catheter includes, as part of a relatively flexible distal section, a balloon that locks a distal end of the stabilizing and sealing catheter in place to provide support to therapeutic devices that are introduced and further seals the branch artery to prevent blood from entering the branch artery. A sealing cuff at a proximal end of the stabilizing and sealing catheter provides a seal between an exterior of the stabilizing and sealing catheter and an interior of the guide catheter. In addition, a fixing mechanism is utilized to lock the guide catheter in place to exchange therapeutic devices.

Stabilizing and sealing catheter for use with a guiding catheter

A coaxial stabilizing and sealing catheter provides increased support to a guide catheter that is seated in an ostium of a branch artery by extending through and out of a distal end of the guide catheter and anchoring in position within the vessel that is being treated. The stabilizing and sealing catheter includes, as part of a relatively flexible distal section, a balloon that locks the distal end of the stabilizing and sealing catheter in place to provide support to the therapeutic devices that are introduced and further seals the artery to prevent blood from entering the artery. A sealing cuff at a proximal end of the stabilizing and sealing catheter provides a seal between the exterior of the stabilizing and sealing catheter and the interior of the guide catheter. In addition, a fixing mechanism it utilized to lock the guide catheter in place to exchange therapeutic devices.

A coaxial guidewire for use in accessing smaller vessels within a patient's body, consists of an inner core wire and an outer hollow wire. The distal end of the inner core wire tapers and supports a spring coil. The core wire, including the spring coil, fits within a 25-gauge needle that is used to locate an artery of the patient. When the needle is removed over the inner core wire, the outer hollow wire, having a distal end that tapers to the outer diameter of the spring coil, fits over the inner wire and is advanced until the distal end of the outer wire meets the spring coil of the core wire. A dilator and introducer sheath combination may then be fed over the assembled coaxial guidewire. When the distal end of the sheath is in the desired position, the dilator and the coaxial guidewire are removed.

Coaxial guidewire for small vessel access

A device and method for treating tissue at a treatment site. The device and method include supplying controlled energy to a heating portion of the device positioned within a tissue wall at the treatment site. The size of the heating portion and energy supplied provides for ablation of the tissue to form a cavity within the tissue wall without ablating the surfaces of the tissue wall. Treatment fluid can then be supplied through the device to the cavity to supplement growth of blood vessels or retard such growth at the treatment site. The device can also be used to create an injury zone at a treatment site without ablating tissue, wherein the injury zone can be injected with treatment fluid. The device and method has use anywhere within the body, especially in the regions of the heart.

Device and method for myocardial revascularization

A small-diameter surgical snare device that is capable of fitting through existing balloon or guiding catheters includes metal tubing along a section of a core wire. The distal end of the core wire connects to one or more snare wires that form the snaring loop. The distal end of the snaring loop supports a radiopaque coil or collar that makes the end of the loop visible under fluoroscopy. The snaring loop may consist of one or two wires or an overlap of a tapered end of the core wire. A radiopaque coil is attached to a distal end of the metal tubing, to provide flexibility and visibility to a distal region of the device. Alternatively, a polyimide tube and a short radiopaque marker may be included at a distal end of the metal tubing. The polyimide tube fits inside of the metal tubing, to add strength and torsion control to the distal region of the device, while the radiopaque marker adds visibility. In all embodiments, a shrink tube is fit over the radiopaque coil or marker that is supported by the distal end of the metal tubing, to ensure that the coil does not stretch when the snaring loop is extended during use.

Small diameter snare

A composite guidewire includes a solid central core of super elastic material and one or more core overlays of non-super elastic material. A coupling tube fits over the proximal end of the core, and a coil, which may be radiopaque, fits over the distal end of the core and attaches to a distal end of the coupling tube. A flat safety wire that is positioned between the distal portion of the coupling tube and the core also attaches to the distal end of the tube. The safety wire extends the length of the coil and attaches to both the distal and the proximal ends of the coil. The guidewire's proximal end may be a non-super elastic core extension shaped at its distal end to overlap and mechanically inter-lock with a proximal end of the core and the coil and safety wire may extend beyond the distal end of the core.

Composite guidewire

Implements, particularly medical instruments, formed at least in part of elongated polymer members, exhibit high torque fidelity after processing with tension, heat, and twisting. The processing orients the polymer in generally helical paths so that torque imposed at the proximal end can be transmitted to the distal end without substantial whipping, even if the implement follows a long and tortuous pathway. Applications include medical guidewires, catheters, and driveshafts.

Polymeric implements for torque transmission

Endoscopic guidewire for a catheter

A guidewire adapted to be inserted into a vascular vessel or into a catheter that is to be inserted into a vascular vessel or the like. The guidewire comprises a coil of flexible radiotransparent wire having a proximal section and a distal section. The proximal section is formed of a coil of wire having abutting turns and distal section is formed by the same coil of wire with the turns of wire being spaced from each other. A layer of radiopaque material of predetermined length is disposed in a predetermined location on the distal section, the interior of the layer being interstitially disposed within the outer surface of the coil. A hemispherical tip is disposed at the distal end of the distal section. A small braze is made at the juncture between the proximal section and the distal section to prevent spreading of the coils from the abutting relationship in the proximal end of said guidewire.

Fluoroscopically viewable guidewire

A kink resistant balloon catheter for insertion into a bodily conduit. The catheter (10) includes a shaft (20), a radiopaque distal tip (35), a dilatation balloon (33) between the shaft and the distal tip, and a removable core wire (40). The shaft includes a kink resistant, cross-wound multifilar (CWMF) coil (21) enclosed by a polymeric sleeve (22) and defining a central lumen (28) for delivery of a fluid inflation medium for inflating the balloon. A fixed core wire (36) interconnects the CWMF coil and the distal tip. In a method for widening constricted bodily passages using the novel balloon catheter, the removable core wire is inserted to assist positioning of the catheter, and is removed to permit rapid inflation and deflation of the balloon.

Kink resistant balloon catheter and method for use

An exchange guidewire for positioning and exchanging medical catheters within a bodily passage during a medical procedure which uses an endoscope. The guidewire includes a wire of a length sufficient for exchange of the catheters through the endoscope, a radiopaque flexible coil fixed to the distal end of the wire, and a pattern of stripes endoscopically discernable along the guidewire. Optionally, a shrink-wrap, low-friction sleeve jackets the guidewire, the pattern of indicia being endoscopically discernable along the length of the jacketed guidewire. The position of the exchange guidewire indicia relative to the endoscope optical lens may be monitored by viewing the stripes endoscopically. A method of positioning and exchanging medical catheters within a bodily passage during a medical procedure which uses an endoscope is also disclosed.

Zebra exchange guidewire

A guidewire assembly for measuring the size of occlusions in blood vessels which includes a guidewire having a flexible, distal end disposable in a blood vessel. The guidewire has a core wire disposed within it which extends to the distal tip. A linear array of radiopaque markers is disposed adjacent the distal tip of the core wire. The markers are spaced from each other at predetermined distances, whereby to enable the user to accurately measure the size and diameter of occlusions in blood vessels using radiological techniques.

Fluoroscopically viewable guidewire for catheters

Dilation balloon devices that employ a metal tube for introduction of inflation fluid from distal end into a balloon have special features that enable introduction through very small passages. A distal core wire is shown forming part of a guide wire extending into the distal end of the tube. The core wire is fixed at the distal end of the tube, and has a proximal extension bridging across a fluid opening formed in the wall of the tube. The wire extension serves to transfer stress from the distal end of the device, across the fluid opening, to adjacent proximal portions of the tube, to prevent stress build-up at the opening that might lead to fracture of the tube during bending. In various embodiments, the device includes a bushing seal at the distal end of the balloon; a helical coil surrounds part or all of the length of the device, with strategic tapers along its length; a shrink tubing is used rather than a coil; and a pair of cross-wound multifilar coils are employed. A balloon having a very thin wall, even in its transition section, is formed from a specially prepared tubular preform.

Growing community of inventors

Acton, MA, United States of America

Richard M DeMello