Patent ID: 7922755

Claim:
A catheter for delivering a plurality of radially expandable prostheses to a treatment site, said catheter comprising: a sheath having a proximal end, a distal end, an opening at the distal end, and a passage in communication with the opening; an expandable member near the distal end of the sheath, the plurality of radially expandable prostheses positionable over the expandable member and movably disposed in the passage, the plurality of radially expandable prostheses comprising a first set of at least two radially expandable prostheses and a second set of at least one radially expandable prosthesis proximal the first set; and a valve member near the distal end of the sheath adapted for selectively retaining the second set of at least one prosthesis within the passage and to engage the plurality of prostheses whereby the plurality of prostheses may be moved relative to the expandable member by moving the sheath, wherein proximal retraction of the sheath relative to the expandable member moves the valve member thereby causing the first set of at least two prostheses to pass through the opening of the sheath and forming an axial gap between a proximal-most end of the first set of at least two prostheses and a distal-most end of the second set of at least one prosthesis, the second set of at least one prosthesis remaining unexpanded and being retained in the passage, and wherein the first set of at least two prostheses remain unexpanded and are simultaneously radially expandable by the expandable member after being passed through the opening of the sheath.