Patent ID: 9028523
Filing Date: 2015-05-12
Classification: A61B

Abstract:
1. A medical device for forming a longitudinal pathway from an external orifice to a bodily opening having a length and a diameter defined by tissue of an internal bodily lumen, the medical device comprising: an expandable member operable between a collapsed configuration and an expanded configuration, the expandable member having a proximal end and a distal end; and a flexible sheath having a length suitable for forming the pathway, the flexible sheath including a proximal portion and a distal portion, the distal portion of the sheath connected to the expandable member, the proximal portion of the sheath not connected to the expandable member, the sheath collapsible over a substantial portion of its length and operable between a collapsed configuration and an expanded configuration; wherein the expandable member includes first, second and third cages, and wherein the first and third cages are stents, and wherein the second cage comprises a plurality of strands extending longitudinally between the first and third cages to connect the cages and space the cages apart, the first and third cage configured to have an outer diameter larger than the diameter of the bodily opening in an expanded configuration of the stents, the plurality of strands of the second cage configured to have a length greater than the length of the bodily opening.