Patent ID: 9636139
Date: 2017-05-02
CPC Classifications: A61B

Claim:
1. A tissue-removing catheter comprising: an elongate catheter body configured for insertion into a body lumen of a subject, the catheter body having opposite distal and proximal ends, a longitudinal axis extending between the distal and proximal ends, and a window adjacent the distal end; a cutting element located generally at the distal end of the catheter body for rotation generally about the longitudinal axis of the catheter body, the cutting element having a proximal end portion, a distal end portion, and a longitudinal axis extending between the proximal and distal end portions; a rotatable drive shaft received in the catheter body and operatively connected to the cutting element for selectively imparting rotation to the cutting element relative to the catheter body about the longitudinal axis of the cutting element; and a deployment mechanism for selectively moving the cutting element between a retracted position, in which the cutting element does not extend through the window, and a cutting position, in which the cutting element extends at least partially through the window, the deployment mechanism including: