Patent ID: 8147507

Claim:
A rotational atherectomy device for removing a stenotic tissue from a vessel of a patient, the device comprising; an abrasive element mounted to a distal end portion of a rotatable, flexible, hollow drive shaft including a torque transmitting coil and a fluid impermeable lumen coaxial with the torque transmitting coil for communicating fluid to the distal end portion of the drive shaft, the drive shaft having a circumference and the entire abrasive element extending around less than half of the circumference of the drive shaft and being fixedly positioned relative to the circumference of the drive shaft; proximal and distal support elements fixedly positioned on the same drive shaft along the distal end portion of the drive shaft such that the abrasive element is positioned between and spaced apart from the proximal and distal support elements, the distal support element being located at a distal end of the drive shaft and both support elements being spaced away from the abrasive element, the drive shaft having a longitudinal axis and the abrasive element and each of the support elements having their individual centers of mass, the center of mass of the abrasive element being spaced radially away from the longitudinal axis of the drive shaft while the center of mass of the distal support element and the center of mass of the proximal support element each coincide with the longitudinal axis of the drive shaft, wherein a fluid impermeable wall portion of the fluid impermeable lumen extends to a distal end of the drive shaft, and a movable element is arranged in the fluid impermeable lumen and has a size larger than a distal opening at the distal end of the drive shaft so that the movable element is retained inside the fluid impermeable lumen, wherein the movable element is adjustable to an occlusion position at the distal end of the drive shaft so as to at least partially occlude the fluid impermeable lumen.