Patent ID: 9433751
Filing Date: 2016-09-06
CPC Classification: A61B,A61M

Claim Text:
1. A steerable catheter for contacting tissue comprising: an elongated, flexible tubular catheter body having proximal and distal ends and a lumen extending there through; a tip section at the distal end of the catheter body, the tip section comprising a flexible plastic tubing having first and second pairs of diametrically-opposed lumens extending there through, wherein the first pair of diametrically-opposed lumens is in a plane generally perpendicular to the plane containing the second pair of diametrically-opposed lumens, and a tip electrode; a control handle at the proximal end of the catheter body; first and second puller wires, each extending through one of the lumens of the first pair of diametrically-opposed lumens and through the lumen of the catheter body, each having a proximal end anchored to the control handle and a distal end anchored to the tip section, whereby the first puller wire is longitudinally moveable relative to the catheter body to cause deflection of the tip section in a plane in a first direction and the second puller wire is longitudinally moveable relative to the catheter body to cause deflection of the tip section in the plane in a second direction opposite the first direction; and first and second tubular orientation sheath members each having proximal and distal ends, each comprised of a thin walled polymide tube, each extending through one of the lumens of the second pair of diametrically opposed lumens, each having an outer diameter substantially the same as the inner diameter of the lumen through which it extends and wherein each tubular orientation sheath member is bonded along a substantial portion of the tubular orientation sheath member to the wall of one of the lumens and wherein the tubular orientation sheath members are located and configured to reduce bending of the tip section in a direction other than across the plane in which the tubular orientation sheaths are contained, thereby providing greater contact force of the tip electrode against the tissue.