Patent ID: 11957587
Assignee: EDWARDS LIFESCIENCES CORPORATION
Field: Medical technology (Instruments)
Classification: CPC A | IPC A

Claim 10:
11. A heart valve sizer, comprising:
a handle;
a shaft extending distally from the handle to a distal end;
a distal sizing element coupled to the distal end of the shaft, the sizing element having a larger diameter than the shaft, wherein the sizing element is size-adjustable between a first, radially-retracted configuration and a second, radially-expanded configuration; and
a sizer cover having a proximal end and a distal end, the proximal end being coupled to the shaft at a location proximal to the sizing element and the distal end extending to and widening to a larger diameter at a location on the sizing element, the sizer cover comprising a plurality of separate elongated legs formed by strips of material each of which has a larger circumferential dimension than a radial dimension, each leg being coupled to both the shaft and the sizing element so as to provide an aggregate conical guard against entanglement of the sizing element with structures of a human heart, and the distal ends of the legs are configured to expand and contract in response to conversion of the sizing element between its first, radially-retracted configuration and its second, radially-expanded configuration.