Cook Medical Technologies LLC

Thomas Lysgaard

Steen Aggerholm

David G Burton

Tue Thuren Bödewadt

Per Elgaard

Scott E Boatman

David A Drewes

Allan Torp

Per Hendriksen

James C Merk

Ralf Spindler

Arne Molgaard-Nielsen

Kjeld Hjort

Anders Scheel Klausen

Brent A Mayle

Arne Mølgaard Nielsen

Bente Weber Christensen

Frank Svendsen

Christina Rauf Hansen

Arne Moelgaard-Nielsen

Anne-Mette Hoppe Sönnichsen

James Merk

Brent Mayle

Arne Nielsen

Tue Thuren BÖDEWADT

Tue BÖDEWADT

Bente Christensen

A balloon catheter includes a balloon which is both of high strength and radiopaque. The balloon includes an outer strengthened layer which includes a strengthening element at least partially embedded within the layer. Concentrically within the strengthened layer there is a radiopaque layer which includes a high concentration of radiopaque material distributed in the radiopaque layer. The strengthened layer acts as a support to the radiopaque layer which is otherwise be unable to withstand the pressure to which the balloon is normally inflated for deployment and in the course of a medical procedure. The structure provides a high strength radiopaque balloon with a relatively thin balloon wall optimizing balloon flexibility and wrappability. There is also disclosed a method of making a balloon which uses an internal support layer in a raw tubing which is then removed following formation of a balloon.

High strength balloon

A balloon catheter assembly comprises a balloon having attached to or in its wall one or more filar elements, extending from one end of the balloon to the other. The filar elements are made of a material which is at least as flexible as the material forming the walls of the balloon. In the event of circular burst of the balloon, the filar element(s) prevent disconnection of the material of the balloon into two or more separate pieces. The filar element(s) become attached to or in the material of the balloon wall when the raw material is inflated to the shape of a mold. The filar elements may comprise a natural fiber, a synthetic fiber or a metal wire.

Medical balloon with incorporated fibers

In at least one embodiment of the present invention a balloon catheter is provided. The balloon catheter comprises a shaft having a lumen formed therethrough. Connected to the shaft is an inflatable balloon. The inflatable balloon has a balloon wall defining a balloon interior surface and a balloon exterior surface that is opposite the interior surface. In fluid communication with the balloon wall is the lumen for inflating the balloon to define an inflated state and for collapsing the balloon to define a deflated state. The balloon wall is textured in the deflated state such that the balloon interior surface is spatially registered with the balloon exterior surface. The balloon in the inflated state is tensioned to have a surface roughness substantially less than a surface roughness of the balloon in the deflated state.

Balloon catheter and method for making same

A delivery system includes an inflatable delivery balloon formed with a plurality of constraining elements which create constrained regions in a body portion of the balloon, interposed between unconstrained regions. The constrained regions create recesses for receiving a medical device or part of a medical device. The constraining elements are preferably formed by woven or braided material, advantageously embedded within the wall of the inflatable balloon. The constraining elements provide a structure that will not flatten upon inflation of the balloon and also a structure which can readily be folded or wrapped for endoluminal delivery purposes, and which retains flexibility of the delivery device.

Delivery system for implantable medical device

A non-compliant high strength balloon () includes a reinforcement member () formed of a sleeve of woven or braided strengthening elements (). There are provided circumferential strengthening elements () which are pre-tensed in order to remove any undulations within the strengthening elements () and to ensure that these have a precise annular size. On the other hand, the longitudinal strengthening elements () have undulations therein. The pre-tensing of the strengthening elements () ensures that the balloon will not stretch during pressurization thereof, which can occur when the circumferential strengthening elements have undulations therein, which will be natural artefacts of a weaving or braiding process. The undulations in the longitudinal strengthening elements () provides the balloon with increased longitudinal flexibility.

Non-compliant high strength medical balloon

A balloon catheter includes a first balloon positioned inside of a second balloon, both of which are mounted about a catheter and fluidly connected to respective inflation lumens. In a first inflated configuration, the second balloon is inflated and has a shape that includes a plurality of bulb segments, with each two consecutive bulb segments being separated by a waist hoop. In a second inflated configuration both the inner and outer balloons are inflated, and the inner balloon bears radially outwardly against the waist hoop of the outer balloon such that the waist hoop of the outer balloon has a larger diameter in the second inflated configuration than in the first inflated configuration. The bulb segment separated by waist hoops enable the balloon catheter to conform to curved passageways, such as during the implementation of a stent.

Curved passageway conforming balloon catheter with nested balloons

The technical disclosure relates to catheters useful for engaging a vessel from within a lumen defined by the vessel. A catheter includes an elongate shaft, an inflatable balloon disposed on the distal end of the elongate shaft, a guide disposed on the external surface of the balloon, and an engaging member having a distal end releasably secured by the guide such that the guide maintains the engaging member distal end adjacent the outer surface of the balloon when the balloon is in an uninflated configuration but releases the engaging member distal end as the balloon moves from an uninflated configuration to an inflated configuration. The technical disclosure also relates to methods of using a catheter.

Balloon catheter with dynamic vessel engaging member

A medical balloon for a balloon catheter is described. The balloon has at least a first layer made from a first material and a second layer made from a second material, said first and second layers being in overlying relationship with one another and being integral with one another; wherein the first layer has a softening or melting temperature which is higher than a softening or melting temperature of the second layer. A method of forming the medical balloon is also described, including locating a raw tubing in a mold; preheating and inflating the raw tubing so as to cause it to stretch; heating the raw tubing to soften or melt the second layer; setting the inflated raw tubing to form the medical balloon; and cooling the set balloon.

Medical balloon

A medical balloon has a strengthening sleeve formed of circumferential fibres and longitudinal fibres. The circumferential fibres have a greater thickness than the longitudinal fibres and preferably have a greater cross-sectional area or volume. In one embodiment, the circumferential fibres are twice as thick as the longitudinal fibres. The use of thinner longitudinal fibres reduces the thickness of the strengthening sleeve and as a result enables a thinner balloon wall, whilst still retaining the circumferential strength of the balloon. Reduced balloon wall thickness improves the foldability and wrappability of the balloon for deployment purposes, and therefore provides a balloon with a smaller diameter for deployment purposes, with improved trackability through a patient's vasculature.

High strength balloon with asymmetric strengthening

A medical balloon includes an outer layer and an inner layer. The outer layer has a surface texture or formation such as a scoring element. The inner layer is made of a reflow material which during production of the balloon from a raw tubing will soften and flow into internal recesses in the outer layer, thereby filling these recesses and providing support to the outer layer formations so as to avoid flattening of these formations during use of the balloon. The balloon can be manufactured in a single formation step from a raw tubing having the outer and inner reflow layer coextruded.

Medical balloon assembly and method of making a medical balloon

A balloon catheter is provided for dilating hardened stenoses. The balloon catheter has dilation elements integrally formed on the outer surface of the balloon. The dilation elements have cross-sectional shapes that improve the performance of the balloon catheter.

Integral dilation element for a balloon catheter

A medical balloon () of a balloon catheter assembly () includes a balloon wall () formed of at least two layers (). The first layer () is made of an impervious polymeric material. The second layer (), which is integral with the first layer () is made of a radiopaque and/or echogenic material and a polymeric material. In the preferred embodiment, there is provided 60 to 80% by weight of radiopaque material in the second layer (). It has been found that these concentrations of radiopaque material provide good visibility of the balloon under ultrasonic imaging.

Growing community of inventors

Solroed Strand, Denmark

Thomas Lysgaard