Patent ID: 8556960

Claim:
A valve prosthesis suitable for implantation, comprising: a frameless conduit adapted to attach to a vein wall; and at least one leaflet disposed within the conduit to selectively restrict blood flow through the conduit, the at least one leaflet configured to capture blood in a pocket formed by the at least one leaflet, wherein the conduit has an upper conduit portion in which said at least one leaflet is disposed, the upper conduit portion defining an inlet opening for blood inflow and being defined by upper conduit wall portions, and a lower conduit portion occurring below a base of the at least one leaflet, the base of the at least one leaflet defining a lowermost point of the pocket formed by the at least one leaflet, the lower conduit portion defining an outlet opening for blood outflow and being defined by lower conduit wall portions extending below the base of the at least one leaflet; wherein the pocket formed by the at least one leaflet is configured with an upper opening facing in the direction of the inlet opening and is configured to capture blood flowing from the upper conduit portion to the lower conduit portion to selectively restrict blood flow through the conduit; and wherein a single sheet of flexible material forms the base of the at least one leaflet and at least a part of the lower conduit wall portions.