Patent ID: 8137337

Claim:
A urinary catheter, comprising: (a) a tubular member having a proximal end and a distal end, said tubular member defining a longitudinal channel extending between said proximal and distal ends, adapted for passage of body fluids therethrough; (b) a retaining mechanism insertable in the urinary tract of a patient and positioned at said proximal end of said tubular member, said retaining mechanism being integrally and unitarily formed of a tubular flexible material controllably and selectively assuming an “open” position and a “closed” position; (c) an activation mechanism positioned at said distal end of said tubular member and being selectively reconfigurable between alternative fixed configurations wherein each configuration defines an open flow path through said urinary catheter and maintaining each of said fixed configurations devoid of a restraining force member, said activation mechanism being formed of a shape memory composition; for maintaining said activation mechanism in at least one of said selected configurations, and (d) an actuation linkage comprising a wire extending through said longitudinal channel of said tubular member and coupling said retaining and activation mechanisms each to the other, said actuation linkage reciprocally displaceable in said longitudinal channel bi-directionally relative to said tubular and retaining mechanism under control of said activation mechanism, thereby actuating said retaining mechanism to assume one of said “open” and “closed” positions thereof.