Patent ID: 8808366

Claim:
A prosthetic heart valve, comprising: a stent having a proximal end, a distal end, an expanded condition and a collapsed condition, the stent including: a plurality of proximal cells at the proximal end; a plurality of support struts, each support strut having a first end connected to one of the proximal cells and a second end; a plurality of distal cells at the distal end, the distal cells being longitudinally spaced apart from the proximal cells; and at least one support post connected to a multiplicity of the proximal cells, the support post including a collapsible portion having a first configuration when the stent is in the collapsed condition and a second configuration when the stent is in the expanded condition, the support post having a first length when the collapsible portion is in the first configuration and a second length less than the first length when the collapsible portion is in the second configuration; and a valve structure connected to the at least one support post.