Patent ID: 7951119

Claim:
An apparatus for introducing a medical device into a body lumen, comprising: an elongate tubular member including a proximal end, a distal end and a lumen, the distal end being sized for introduction into a body lumen, the lumen extending between the proximal end and the distal end and being sized to receive the medical device therein; and a valve being fitted within the proximal end of the tubular member, the valve comprising: a tubular body being engaged within the proximal end of the tubular member and including an open end, an end wall and a passage, the open end being approximately aligned with a proximal termination of the proximal end of the tubular member, the passage extending between the open end and the end wall and defining a central longitudinal axis of the tubular body, the end wall including a hole formed therein that communicates with the passage of the tubular body of the valve and with the lumen of the tubular member, the hole being radially offset from the central longitudinal axis of the tubular body, and a flap extending over the hole in the end wall, opposite a side of the end wall that faces the open end, the flap being movable away from the hole when the medical device is introduced through the passage and the hole.