Patent ID: 7749196

Claim:
An apparatus for percutaneous catheterization over a wire guide, comprising: a catheter having proximal and distal open ends, and having a lumen extending longitudinally therethrough; an inner cannula having proximal and distal open ends, and having a lumen extending longitudinally therethrough, said inner cannula sized to be received within the lumen of said catheter, the distal open end of said inner cannula being sized to receive said wire guide therethrough, said inner cannula having a generally linear main body portion and a tapered distal portion, said tapered distal portion having an outer diameter that decreases toward the cannula distal end and is sized to extend through the distal open end of said catheter to provide a generally smooth diametrical transition between said catheter and said wire guide; and a stiffening cannula having proximal and distal open ends, and having a lumen extending longitudinally therethrough, the lumen of said stiffening cannula sized to receive said wire guide therethrough, said stiffening cannula being sized to be received within the lumen of said inner cannula and extending along the generally linear body portion of the inner cannula to a terminal point, the stiffening cannula being structured such that a distal section of said stiffening cannula has a greater flexibility than the flexibility of a proximal section of said stiffening cannula.