Patent ID: 8221448

Claim:
An embolic protection filter comprising: a filter body having an inlet end and an outlet end, the inlet end of the filter body having one or more inlet openings sized to allow blood and embolic material enter the filter body when the filter body is in an expanded position, the outlet end of the filter body having a plurality of outlet openings sized to allow through passage of blood but to retain undesired embolic material within the filter body; and a filter support being movable between a collapsed position for movement through the vascular system and an extended outwardly projecting position to support the filter body in the expanded position; wherein the filter body comprises the inlet end, the outlet end and an intermediate section extending from the distal end of the inlet end to the proximal end of the outlet end, at least part of the intermediate section comprising a cylindrical shape configured to make tubular contact between the filter body and an interior wall of a vasculature when the filter body is in the expanded position, in the expanded position the intermediate section comprises three parts, a proximal cylindrically shaped section, a distal cylindrically shaped section, and a linking section extending between the proximal cylindrically shaped section and the distal cylindrically shaped section, both the proximal and distal cylindrically shaped sections configured to make tubular contact between the filter body and an interior wall of a vasculature when the filter body is in the expanded position, and an outside diameter of the linking section is smaller than an outside diameter of both the proximal cylindrically shaped section and the distal cylindrically shaped section.