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:
Nov. 27, 2001
Filed:
Jul. 06, 1998
Jay S. Daulton, San Jose, CA (US);
Dawn Henderson, Palo Alto, CA (US);
VNUS Medical Technologies, Inc., San Jose, CA (US);
Abstract
A coil is located at the distal working end of an electrode catheter. The coil includes two parallel electrically conductive strips separated by a narrow gap. The strips are covered with insulation, and are connected respectively to electrical leads having opposite polarity. Electrodes are formed by removing portions of the insulation from the strips. The coil can be expanded to define an increased effective diameter at the working end of the catheter. An RF field produced along the helical path defined by the strips of the coil is unaffected by the expanded state of the coil. The energy from the RF field heats the surrounding venous tissue and causes a reduction in the diameter of the vein. The expanded coil mechanically prevents the vein from shrinking beyond the effective diameter defined by the expanded coil and the patency of the vein is maintained for venous function.