Patent ID: 11944538
Assignee: EDWARDS LIFESCIENCES CORPORATION
Field: Medical technology (Instruments)
Classification: CPC A | IPC A

Claim 0:
1. A method of reducing regurgitation between native leaflets of an atrioventricular heart valve, comprising:
advancing a sheath into the body;
advancing a delivery catheter through the sheath, the delivery catheter having an internal lumen and a distal end portion, the catheter being made of material suitable for long-term implant in the human body, the catheter having a valve leaflet coaptation element mounted over the distal end portion, the coaptation element having a smooth outer cover of a biocompatible material, and a flexible inner support comprising super-elastic struts to allow the coaptation element to collapse into a compressed configuration for passage through the sheath, the coaptation element being made of material suitable for implant in the human body;
positioning the coaptation element within the heart valve;
permitting the coaptation element to radially expand from the compressed configuration to an enlarged configuration for filling a gap between the native leaflets of the heart valve; and
fixing a position of the coaptation element relative to the heart valve by connecting the coaption element to a proximal anchor, wherein the proximal anchor is secured to surrounding tissue.