Abstract:
A stent assembly has a first stent body and a second stent body. The first stent body defines a first lumen having a first longitudinal axis therethrough, and the second stent body defines a second lumen having a second longitudinal axis therethrough. An end of the second stent body is hingedly engaged to a portion of the first stent body, and the first lumen and the second lumen are in fluid communication with one another. The stent assembly has a undeployed and a deployed state. In the undeployed state the first longitudinal axis and the second longitudinal axis are substantially parallel to one another and the second lumen is positioned entirely within the first lumen. In the deployed state the second longitudinal axis forms an oblique angle with the first longitudinal axis.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
       [0001]     Not Applicable  
       STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH  
       [0002]     Not Applicable  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0003]     1. Field of the Invention  
         [0004]     In some embodiments this invention relates to implantable medical devices, their manufacture, and methods of use. Some embodiments are directed to delivery systems, such as catheter systems of all types, which are utilized in the delivery of such devices.  
         [0005]     2. Description of the Related Art  
         [0006]     A stent is a medical device introduced to a body lumen and is well known in the art. Typically, a stent is implanted in a blood vessel at the site of a stenosis or aneurysm endoluminally, i.e. by so-called “minimally invasive techniques” in which the stent in a radially reduced configuration, optionally restrained in a radially compressed configuration by a sheath and/or catheter, is delivered by a stent delivery system or “introducer” to the site where it is required. The introducer may enter the body from an access location outside the body, such as through the patient&#39;s skin, or by a “cut down” technique in which the entry blood vessel is exposed by minor surgical means.  
         [0007]     Stents, grafts, stent-grafts, vena cava filters, expandable frameworks, and similar implantable medical devices, collectively referred to hereinafter as stents, are radially expandable endoprostheses which are typically intravascular implants capable of being implanted transluminally and enlarged radially after being introduced percutaneously. Stents may be implanted in a variety of body lumens or vessels such as within the vascular system, urinary tracts, bile ducts, fallopian tubes, coronary vessels, secondary vessels, etc. Stents may be used to reinforce body vessels and to prevent restenosis following angioplasty in the vascular system. They may be self-expanding, expanded by an internal radial force, such as when mounted on a balloon, or a combination of self-expanding and balloon expandable (hybrid expandable).  
         [0008]     Stents may be created by methods including cutting or etching a design from a tubular stock, from a flat sheet which is cut or etched and which is subsequently rolled or from one or more interwoven wires or braids.  
         [0009]     Within the vasculature it is not uncommon for stenoses to form at a vessel bifurcation. A bifurcation is an area of the vasculature or other portion of the body where a first (or parent) vessel is bifurcated into two or more branch vessels. Where a stenotic lesion or lesions form at such a bifurcation, the lesion(s) can affect only one of the vessels (i.e., either of the branch vessels or the parent vessel) two of the vessels, or all three vessels. Many prior art stents however are not wholly satisfactory for use where the site of desired application of the stent is juxtaposed or extends across a bifurcation in an artery or vein such, for example, as the bifurcation in the mammalian aortic artery into the common iliac arteries.  
         [0010]     The art referred to and/or described above is not intended to constitute an admission that any patent, publication or other information referred to herein is “prior art” with respect to this invention.  
         [0011]     All US patents and applications and all other published documents mentioned anywhere in this application are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.  
         [0012]     Without limiting. the scope of the invention a brief summary of some of the claimed embodiments of the invention is set forth below. Additional details of the summarized embodiments of the invention and/or additional embodiments of the invention may be found in the Detailed Description of the Invention below.  
         [0013]     A brief abstract of the technical disclosure in the specification is provided as well only for the purposes of complying with 37 C.F.R. 1.72. The abstract is not intended to be used for interpreting the scope of the claims.  
       BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0014]     In at least one embodiment, the invention is directed to a stent assembly having a first stent body and a second stent body. The first stent body defines a first lumen having a first longitudinal axis therethrough, and the second stent body defines a second lumen having a second longitudinal axis therethrough. An end of the second stent body is hingedly engaged to a portion of the first stent body, and the first lumen and the second lumen are in fluid communication with one another. The stent assembly has a undeployed and a deployed state. In at least one embodiment, in the undeployed state the first longitudinal axis and the second longitudinal axis are substantially parallel to one another and the second lumen is positioned entirely within the first lumen. In at least one embodiment, in the deployed state the second longitudinal axis forms an oblique angle with the first longitudinal axis. For the purpose of this application, the term “oblique” refers to an angle of between 1 and 180 degrees and explicitly includes angles of about 90 degrees.  
         [0015]     In at least one embodiment, the second stent body can be defined by an inner region and an outer region wherein the outer region may be a portion of the first stent body and the inner region may be engaged to a portion of the first stent body.  
         [0016]     In at least one embodiment, the first stent body is substantially tubular in shape. In at least one embodiment, the tube has an oval cross-section.  
         [0017]     In at least one embodiment, in the undeployed shape the second stent body has a substantially ovoid cross-sectional shape. In some embodiments the unexpanded stent body has a substantially flattened cross-sectional shape. In at least one embodiment, in the deployed state the second stent body has a substantially round cross-sectional shape. Other possible shapes include hexagonal, triangular, square, rhombus, etc.  
         [0018]     In at least one embodiment, the first stent body is comprised of a plurality of interconnected first stent members. In at least one embodiment, adjacent first stent members define a plurality of openings through the first stent body in fluid communication with the first lumen.  
         [0019]     In at least one embodiment, each of the openings has an area. In at least one embodiment, at least one of the openings can be characterized as a side branch opening having an area greater than that of each of the other openings.  
         [0020]     In at least one embodiment, the side branch opening is immediately adjacent to the end of the second stent body which is hingedly or otherwise flexibly engaged to a portion of the first stent body. In at least one embodiment, the side branch opening is in fluid communication with the first lumen and the second lumen.  
         [0021]     In at least one embodiment, the second stent body is comprised of a plurality of interconnected second stent members wherein adjacent second stent members define a plurality of openings through the second stent body. In at least one embodiment, the openings are in fluid communication with the second lumen. In at least one embodiment, the first stent members form a first stent configuration and the second stent members form a second stent configuration. In at least one embodiment, the first stent configuration is visually distinct from the second stent configuration. In at least one embodiment, the first stent configuration and the second stent configuration are visually substantially similar.  
         [0022]     In at least one embodiment, the first stent configuration and the second stent configuration have different expansion characteristics.  
         [0023]     In at least one embodiment, at least a portion of at least one of the first stent body and the second stent body is substantially self-expandable from the undeployed state to the deployed state.  
         [0024]     In at least one embodiment, at least a portion of at least one of the first stent body and the second stent body is substantially expandable from the undeployed state to the deployed state by application of a radially outward acting force.  
         [0025]     In at least one embodiment, the second stent body is defined by an inner region and an outer region such that in the undeployed state the inner region and the outer region can be a portion of the first stent body and in the deployed state the second stent body can have a substantially round cross-sectional shape.  
         [0026]     In at least one embodiment, a bifurcated stent delivery system has a catheter shaft having a device receiving portion and a stent disposed about the device receiving portion. In at least one embodiment, the stent has a stent body and a primary longitudinal axis wherein a portion of the stent body is a flap hingedly attached to an attachment portion of the stent body. The stent has a deployed state and an undeployed state. In at least one embodiment, in the undeployed state the flap extends in a direction substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis. In at least one embodiment, in the deployed state the flap expands into a tubular shape and has a secondary longitudinal axis which extends in a direction oblique to the longitudinal axis.  
         [0027]     In at least one embodiment, the flap is constructed of alternating first stent members and second stent members, in the undeployed state the first and second stent members substantially the same distance from the primary longitudinal axis, in the deployed state the first stent members and the second stent members on opposite sides of a plane passing through the secondary longitudinal axis.  
         [0028]     In at least one embodiment, the flap is an integral part of the stent body.  
         [0029]     In at least one embodiment, the flap is constructed of a different material than the rest of the stent body.  
         [0030]     In at least one embodiment a stent system includes a stent device, a catheter, and a push and/or pull device(s). The stent device has an expanded state and an unexpanded state and comprises multiple wires loosely attached to one another. The stent device is self-expanding. The stent device is in the unexpanded state when disposed within the catheter. The stent device is in the expanded state when unrestrained outside the catheter. When disposed within the catheter the wires are in direct contact with the walls of the inner lumen of the catheter. The push and/or pull device can be removably attached to at least one wire. Distal movement of the push device forces the stent out the end of the catheter and into the expanded state. Proximal movement of the pull device forces the stent into the catheter and into the unexpanded state.  
         [0031]     In at least one embodiment, the push device and the pull device are the same.  
         [0032]     In at least one embodiment, the wires are attached by the geometry of each wire, by rings, by swaging, by swaged connectors, by welds, by adhesive bonding, by mechanical attachments other than swaging (e.g. tolerance fits, press fit, etc.) and/or cuffs.  
         [0033]     In at least one embodiment, the stent device is capable of moving from the expanded state to the unexpanded state multiple times while within a body lumen.  
         [0034]     In at least one embodiment, the wires are pre-formed over a mandrel, form, mold, etc. In at least one embodiment, the wires are customly formed to match the treatment site of the body lumen.  
         [0035]     In at least one embodiment, the stent device is substantially longer in the unexpanded state than when in the expanded state.  
         [0036]     In at least one embodiment, the stent device is up to 200 mm long.  
         [0037]     In at least one embodiment, the stent system includes a sheath. The sheath at least partially disposed within the catheter and in the unexpanded state the stent device disposed within the sheath.  
         [0038]     In at least one embodiment, the sheath can be proximally pulled back to release the stent device into a body lumen for expansion.  
         [0039]     These and other embodiments which characterize the invention are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed hereto and forming a part hereof. However, for further understanding of the invention, its advantages and objectives obtained by its use, reference should be made to the drawings which form a further part hereof and the accompanying descriptive matter, in which there is illustrated and described embodiments of the invention. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING(S)  
       [0040]     A detailed description of the invention is hereafter described with specific reference being made to the drawings.  
         [0041]      FIG. 1  is a side view of a flat representation of an embodied stent.  
         [0042]      FIG. 2  is a cross-sectional view of an inventive stent.  
         [0043]      FIG. 3  is a cross-sectional side view of an inventive flap.  
         [0044]      FIG. 4  is a side view of an embodied stent.  
         [0045]      FIG. 5  is a perspective top view of an embodied stent.  
         [0046]      FIG. 6  is a perspective top view of an embodied flap.  
         [0047]      FIG. 6   a  is a cross-sectional view of the flap lumen.  
         [0048]      FIG. 7  is a side view of stent with an inflation balloon disposed within the flap lumen.  
         [0049]      FIG. 8  is a top view of an embodied stent.  
         [0050]      FIG. 9  is a side view of stent with an inflation balloon disposed within the flap lumen.  
         [0051]      FIG. 10  is a cross-sectional side view of a stent delivery apparatus.  
         [0052]      FIG. 11  is a cross-sectional side view of a stent delivery apparatus.  
         [0053]      FIG. 12  is a cross-sectional side view of a stent delivery apparatus.  
         [0054]      FIG. 13  is a cross-sectional side view of a stent delivery apparatus  
         [0055]      FIG. 14  is a cross-sectional side view of a stent delivery apparatus 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0056]     While this invention may be embodied in many different forms, there are described in detail herein specific preferred embodiments of the invention. This description is an exemplification of the principles of the invention and is not intended to limit the invention to the particular embodiments illustrated.  
         [0057]     For the purposes of this disclosure, like reference numerals in the figures shall refer to like features unless otherwise indicated.  
         [0058]     In  FIG. 1 a  flat representation of an embodied stent  10  having longitudinal axis  16  is shown. The stent  10  has two hinge points  12 . The hinge points  12  allow a portion or flap  14  of the stent  10  to pivot out from the remainder of the stent  10 . In the undeployed the flap  14  is disposed about the longitudinal axis at substantially the same radial distance as the rest of the stent  10 . In some embodiments as illustrated in  FIG. 2 , the flap  14  may be a second stent body which includes in the undeployed state an independent secondary lumen. The second stent body  14  resides within the primary lumen of the stent  10 . In this embodiment, the primary and the secondary lumens have separate and parallel longitudinal axes  16   a  and  16   b.    
         [0059]     In some embodiments, as shown in  FIG. 3 , a secondary guidewire  18  is woven through the struts  20  of the flap  14  in an alternating sequence. In some instances the guidewire  18  is woven between adjacent struts  20  of the flap  14  and in other embodiments, the guidewire alternates between every two or more struts. The secondary guidewire  18  can serve multiple purposes. The guidewire  18  can guide an expansion balloon as it is advanced between alternating struts or alternating groups of struts  20  such that the flap  14  can be expanded and/or deployed by the expansion of the expansion balloon.  
         [0060]     Additionally, the guidewire  18  can be woven through the flap  14  as well as a portion of the primary stent body and thus prevent the flap  14  from pivoting outward or opening prior to deployment. The secondary guidewire  18  can then be partially retracted such that the guidewire  18  is no longer woven into the primary stent body as well as the flap  14  to allow the flap  14  to pivot about the hinge  12  and be deployed.  
         [0061]     In  FIG. 4  another representative stent  10  having a flap  14  is shown. The stent  10  can be of any of a variety of stents including coil stents, segmented stents, block stents, etc. As shown the flap  14  pivots about hinge points  12 . In some embodiments, frangible members  23  can be used to assist in holding the flap in place during delivery. In embodiments having frangible members, the frangible members  23  can be designed to dissolve within a specific period of time or to be broken with the application of radial outward force within the stent  10 . The frangible members can be disposed opposite the hinged side of the flap  14 . The frangible members can also be disposed along the sides of the flap  14 . The frangible members may be struts which are made of a different material than the rest of the stent and/or are made smaller/narrower than other portions of the stent. The different material or size difference creates a weaker portion that breaks upon expansion of the stent  10 .  
         [0062]     A perspective top view of an embodied stent  10  is shown in  FIG. 5  wherein the flap  14  is illustrated as having strut members  20  substantially parallel to one another and connected to one another by frame  22 . The flap  14  can be of a separate and distinct pattern from the primary stent portion. This can enable the flap to have different expansion characteristics than the primary stent body. The stent  10  can be made of a single piece of tubing such that before deployment the flap is incorporated into the wall of the primary stent body.  
         [0063]     As shown in  FIGS. 6 and 6   a , in the expanded state or the deployed state the struts  20  of the flap  14  can expand such that adjacent struts bow in opposite directions within the frame  22 . In some embodiments, the flap  14  in an expanded or deployed state might have an ovoid shape. Other possible shapes include hexagonal, triangular, square, rhombus, etc. In some embodiments adjacent groups of struts bow in opposite directions upon expansion. This expansion can be self-expansion or can also be through the use of an expansion balloon as shown in  FIG. 7 .  
         [0064]     In  FIG. 7  the flap is expanded by expansion of an inflation balloon  24  which is advanced about the secondary guidewire  18 . The guidewire  18  can be woven between adjacent struts  20  such that expansion of the advanced balloon  24  forces adjacent struts to bow in opposing directions thereby creating a secondary lumen  26  similar to that shown in  FIG. 6   a.    
         [0065]     Both the primary and secondary lumen can be inflated by the same balloon. Two different balloons can also be used in some embodiments. In some embodiments a smaller more specialized balloon (e.g. &lt;1.0 DIA) is used in expanding the secondary lumen of flap  14  and/or is used to initially open the secondary lumen so another inflation balloon can be inserted. Multiple balloon catheters such as those disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,780,174 to Mauch are known in the art and are herein incorporated by references.  
         [0066]     In some embodiments as shown in  FIGS. 8 and 9 , the flap  14  is not integral with the primary stent body portion  10 ′. In some embodiments, the flap  14  is attached to the outside of the primary stent body  10 ′ at hinge point  12 . In this embodiment, less of the primary stent body is repositioned into a secondary lumen thereby maximizing the scaffolding within the primary lumen.  
         [0067]     In at least one embodiment, a strut is removed from the primary stent body  10 ′ such that an inflation balloon  24  can pass through the wall of primary stent body  10 ′ and advance between the struts  20  of flap  14 . In some embodiments, the flap  14  and the primary stent body  10 ′ can be constructed of different materials such that varying performance criteria can be attained. The flap can also be constructed of a NiTi alloy and self-expanded upon withdrawal of a sheath.  
         [0068]     In some embodiments, an attached flap  14  rather than an integral flap  14  allows the flap to be longer as structural support is not being repositioned from the primary stent body  10 ′ to the secondary lumen.  
         [0069]     As shown in  FIG. 10 , the various embodied stents  10  can be a part of a stent delivery system  26  having a catheter shaft  28  with stent receiving region  30 . The stent  10  can be disposed about a balloon.  24 . While only a single balloon is shown here, multiple balloons can be used. One balloon can be used to expand the primary body portion of stent  10  while another balloon is used for entering the secondary lumen and expanding the flap.  
         [0070]     In some embodiments, the stent device is formed from a series of wires  40  that may or may not be joined together. The wires are formed in a geometric pattern to form a self expanding stent. The wires comprising the stent device can be preformed outside of a delivery system on a mandrel, form, mold, etc. The wires  40  can be formed around a mold or fixture either individually or separately. The wires  40  can be stressed or formed to a non-plastically deformed state that will provide the desired radial strength, profile, diameter, scaffolding, etc. The wires  40  are can be arranged together such that they will not detach from one another. The wires can then be pulled into a low profile delivery system  45  or catheter. The catheter  45  can then be inserted into the body to an affected area where the stent device  10  can be deployed by being pushed out of the delivery system  45  or, as shown in  FIG. 12 , by drawing back a sheath  50  and leaving the stent device  10  in place.  
         [0071]     The stent devices  10  of  FIGS. 11-12  have several embodied advantages. One embodied advantage is that if the necessary target area is not attained on the first delivery attempt the stent device  10  can be retrieved by pulling the wires  40  of the stent device  10  back into the catheter  45 .  
         [0072]     In at least one embodiment, the stent device  10  can be extremely long (up to 200 mm); the device  10  can be constructed without welds which addresses fatigue issues within welds or other connecting points in extremely long stents. In one embodiment the stent device  10  is constructed without welds, but rather by changes in direction of the geometry of the wires  40 . In some embodiments full or partial loops keep the wires  40  from detaching from one another while at the same time maintaining individual movement of the wires  40 . Thus, less stress is placed on juncfion areas of the device. In some embodiments the wires could be formed or joined together with rings, swaged connectors or cuffs.  
         [0073]     In some embodiments as shown in  FIG. 13 , the flap  14  is formed from one or more wires  40  similar to those of  FIGS. 11 and 12  which may or may not be joined together. In some embodiments, the wires are welded together or joined together with rings, swaged connectors, or cuffs. In some embodiments, the flap  14  is not integral to the stent body portion  10 ′. The flap  14  may be attached to the stent body portion  10 ′ outside the body or within the body, even in the area of the treatment site.  
         [0074]     In some embodiments, the flap  14  may be integral with the primary stent body portion  10 ′. The flap  14  may be attached to the outside of the primary stent body  10 ′, in some cases at a hinge point as the flap  14  of  FIG. 9  is attached. The flap may be constructed of the same or of a different material than that of the primary stent body  10 ′.  
         [0075]     Whether integral or not to the stent body portion  10 ′, prior to delivery the wires  40  of flap  14  may be restrained within a catheter. In some embodiments, the wires  40  are retained within a sheath  50  and then delivered upon retraction of the sheath as shown in  FIG. 13 . The sheath  50  and stent device of  FIG. 13  may be disposed within a catheter or other delivery assembly.  
         [0076]     In  FIG. 14  one or more wires  40  of flap  14  are contained within the catheter  45  or the sheath  50 . As shown, the one or more wires  40  of flap  14  may be pushed distally in order to be delivered. In at least one embodiment, an optional push rod  55  can assist in pushing the wires  40  forward for delivery. A push rod  55  can be particularly useful in distally pushing the wires  40  when the wires are attached to the primary stent body  10 ′ at connection  60 .  
         [0077]     In at least one embodiment, a sheath  50  can be an optional feature and can extend distally beyond the end of the catheter. In at least one embodiment, the flap  14  may be delivered by both pushing the at least one wire  40  forward using the wire(s) or the push rod  55  described above and by retracting the sheath  50 .  
         [0078]     In at least one embodiment, a strut is removed from the primary stent body  10 ′ such that an inflation balloon  24  can pass through the wall of primary stent body  10 ′ and advance between the struts  20  of flap  14 . In some embodiments, the flap  14  and the primary stent body  10 ′ can be constructed of different materials such that varying performance criteria can be attained. The flap can also be constructed of a NiTi alloy and self-expanded upon withdrawal of a sheath.  
         [0079]     In some embodiments, an attached flap  14  rather than an integral flap  14  allows the flap to be longer as structural support is not being repositioned from the primary stent body  1 O′ to the secondary lumen.  
         [0080]     In some embodiments the wires of the stent device  10  may comprise filament tubes or filament rods. The wires, filament tubes, and/or filament rods may be constructed of Nitinol or other shape memory metal, titanium, stainless steel, Elgiloy, NP35N, Hastelloy, or other alloyed metals. Shape memory polymers such as cross linked polyurethanes, polynorbomene, poly dimethacrylate, and biodegradable shape memory polymers such as oligo(ε-caprolactone)diol.  
         [0081]     In some embodiments, the wires could be pre-stressed to a plastic state and formed inside the body. This can allow the system to be built inside of the legion or affected area.  
         [0082]     In some embodiments the stent, the delivery system or other portion of the assembly may include one or more areas, bands, coatings, members, etc. that is (are) detectable by imaging modalities such as X-Ray, MRI, ultrasound, etc. In some embodiments at least a portion of the stent and/or adjacent assembly is at least partially radiopaque.  
         [0083]     In some embodiments the at least a portion of the stent is configured to include one or more mechanisms for the delivery of a therapeutic agent. Often the agent will be in the form of a coating or other layer (or layers) of material placed on a surface region of the stent, which is adapted to be released at the site of the stent&#39;s implantation or areas adjacent thereto.  
         [0084]     A therapeutic agent may be a drug or other pharmaceutical product such as non-genetic agents, genetic agents, cellular material, etc. Some examples of suitable non-genetic therapeutic agents include but are not limited to: anti-thrombogenic agents such as heparin, heparin derivatives, vascular cell growth promoters, growth factor inhibitors, Paclitaxel, etc. Where an agent includes a genetic therapeutic agent, such a genetic agent may include but is not limited to: DNA, RNA and their respective derivatives and/or components; hedgehog proteins, etc. Where a therapeutic agent includes cellular material, the cellular material may include but is not limited to: cells of human origin and/or non-human origin as well as their respective components and/or derivatives thereof. Where the therapeutic agent includes a polymer agent, the polymer agent may be a polystyrene-polyisobutylene-polystyrene triblock copolymer (SIBS), polyethylene oxide, silicone rubber and/or any other suitable substrate.  
         [0085]     The above disclosure is intended to be illustrative and not exhaustive. This description will suggest many variations and alternatives to one of ordinary skill in this art. The various elements shown in the individual figures and described above may be combined or modified for combination as desired. All these alternatives and variations are intended to be included within the scope of the claims where the term “comprising” means “including, but not limited to”.  
         [0086]     Further, the particular features presented in the dependent claims can be combined with each other in other manners within the scope of the invention such that the invention should be recognized as also specifically directed to other embodiments having any other possible combination of the features of the dependent claims. For instance, for purposes of claim publication, any dependent claim which follows should be taken as alternatively written in a multiple dependent form from all prior claims which possess all antecedents referenced in such dependent claim if such multiple dependent format is an accepted format within the jurisdiction (e.g. each claim depending directly from claim  1  should be alternatively taken as depending from all previous claims). In jurisdictions where multiple dependent claim formats are restricted, the following dependent claims should each be also taken as alternatively written in each singly dependent claim format which creates a dependency from a prior antecedent-possessing claim other than the specific claim listed in such dependent claim below.  
         [0087]     This completes the description of the preferred and alternate embodiments of the invention. Those skilled in the art may recognize other equivalents to the specific embodiment described herein which equivalents are intended to be encompassed by the claims attached hereto.