Patent ID: 8419679

Claim:
A method for deploying a stent within a patient's blood vessel, the method comprising: providing an apparatus for removing emboli from a vessel during an interventional procedure, the apparatus comprising a single catheter, a self-expanding stent, and a sheath, the single catheter comprising: a single catheter shaft configured to be advanced along the patient's blood vessel, the single catheter shaft having a proximal portion, a distal portion, a proximal end, a distal end, and a lumen extending from the proximal end to the distal end; an occlusion element directly connected to and located on a distal portion of the single catheter shaft, the occlusion element having a contracted state and an expanded state; one or more aspiration ports located on a distal portion of the single catheter shaft, and one or more of the aspiration ports being located distal of the occlusion element; and a dilation element directly connected to and located on a distal portion of the single catheter shaft, the dilation element having a contracted state and an expanded state, and the dilation element being located distal of the occlusion element; the stent being disposed on the catheter distal of the occlusion element, and the sheath being disposed over the stent and the occlusion element; advancing the catheter to a target site within the patient's blood vessel; moving the sheath proximally relative to the stent so that the sheath is no longer disposed over the stent or the occlusion element and allowing the stent to self-expand; expanding the occlusion element; expanding the dilation element; while the occlusion element is expanded, contracting the dilation element and then aspirating blood through the one or more aspiration ports; and after the blood has been aspirated, contracting the occlusion element.