Patent ID: 8177807

Claim:
Apparatus for filtering emboli from blood flowing through a vessel, the apparatus comprising: a guide wire having proximal and distal regions, and proximal and distal stops on the distal region; and a filter element configured to rotate and translate on the guide wire between the proximal and distal stops, wherein an elastomeric element of the filter element and the proximal stop are adapted to permit advancement of the filter element from the proximal region by passing in vivo over the proximal stop, the proximal stop and the elastomeric element thereafter prohibiting proximal retraction of the filter element over the proximal stop; and wherein the proximal stop has proximal and distal ends, the distal end having a greater radial dimension than the guide wire and the proximal end having a radial dimension approximately equal to the guide wire with a proximally decreasing taper between the distal end and the proximal end.