Patent ID: 6565552
Filing Date: 2003-05-20
Classification: A61B,A61M

Abstract:
A method for increasing blood flow to a patient's cerebral vasculature, comprising the steps of:providing a constrictor free of a catheter, the constrictor adapted for releasable attachment to a catheter, the constrictor being expandable; attaching the constrictor to a catheter having a proximal end and a distal end; inserting the distal end of the catheter into the descending aorta; locating the constrictor downstream from the takeoff of the brachiocephalic artery; and expanding the constrictor without rupturing the constrictor to at least partially occlude blood flow in the aorta during systole and diastole, wherein blood pressure in the proximal aorta increases and blood pressure in the distal aorta decreases.