Patent ID: 8747350

Claim:
A medical device comprising: a body having a proximal end, a distal end, and a number of lumens therein, the lumens including: a working channel lumen; at least one control wire lumen; a slotted guidewire lumen; and a flexible support having a proximal end and a distal end and extending from the distal end of the body toward the proximal end of the body, the flexible support defined by a number of rings that extend circumferentially around the device, hinges that join adjacent pairs of rings together, and a slot extending through the rings and along the flexible support so as to intersect the proximal end of the flexible support, wherein the flexible support slot is aligned with the slotted guidewire lumen such that a guidewire, when extending from a position proximally of the proximal end of flexible support to a position proximally of the distal end of the flexible support, may be removed in a laterally outwardly manner from the slotted guidewire lumen through the flexible support slot; wherein the hinges of adjacent pairs of rings are circumferentially staggered about a circumference of the rings.