The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Jun. 20, 1995
Filed:
Oct. 26, 1993
Alexander K Khair, San Diego, CA (US);
Darryl A Anderson, Riverside, CA (US);
Medtronic, Inc., Minneapolis, MN (US);
Abstract
A hollow, cylindrical protector for a dilatation catheter balloon. The disclosed protector is made from silicone tubing having a coating on at least an inner surface thereof for enhancing the lubricity of the protector and thus facilitating easy installation of the protector over a dilatation catheter's balloon. In this way, the risk of damage to the balloon resulting from protector installation is reduced. In the disclosed embodiment, the inner surface of a silicone balloon protector is coated via vacuum deposition or the like with parylene. The parylene-coated protector is then slid over a deflated and wrapped dilatation catheter balloon. The catheter is then subjected to elevated temperatures for the purposes of heat-setting. The elevated temperatures cause the silicone protector to be reduced in diameter, further reducing the balloon's profile. Also, the compression and heating causes the balloon material to heat-set, increasing the reliability of symmetrical deflation and re-wrap of the balloon.