Patent ID: 9731094
Date: 2017-08-15
CPC Classifications: A61M

Claim:
1. A medical assembly, comprising: an introducer sheath comprising a tubular inner liner having a proximal portion, a distal portion, and an outer surface, said inner liner having a passageway extending therethrough; a first reinforcing element positioned along said outer surface of said inner liner, said first reinforcing element disposed at said proximal portion of said inner liner and extending in a distal direction therefrom, said first reinforcing element comprising a braid formed of a plurality of interwoven filaments, said braid having a length that extends at least 70% of a length of the introducer sheath; a second reinforcing element positioned longitudinally adjacent to said first reinforcing element along said outer surface of said inner liner, said second reinforcing element comprising a helical coil, said helical coil having a plurality of coil turns, and having a length that does not exceed 30% of a length of the sheath, wherein a proximal end of said coil is positioned distal to a distal end of said braid; and an outer jacket positioned longitudinally around said first and second reinforcing elements, and connected to the outer surface of said inner liner between said interwoven filaments and said coil turns; and an expandable stent housed within said passageway at said coil for deployment to a target site within a body passageway of a patient, said stent exerting an outward force upon said introducer sheath along a length of said stent, said stent thereby radially expanding to a diameter of said body passageway upon withdrawal of said introducer sheath; wherein said length of said coil is substantially equal to said length of said stent, said braid resisting axial stretching during withdrawal of said introducer sheath, and said coil resisting radial constriction of said stent during withdrawal of said introducer sheath.