Patent ID: 8318088

Claim:
A method of radiation sterilizing a plurality of stent-catheter assemblies, the method comprising: positioning a plurality of stent-catheter assemblies on a fixture, each stent-catheter assembly being in a planar configuration within corresponding packages supported on the fixture, each package including a planar front surface and a planar back surface, wherein the packages form a stack in which the planar front surface of each package is disposed against the planar back surface of another of the packages, and wherein the stents of the assemblies are positioned at a position in each package such that the stents are exposed to the same or substantially the same radiation; and exposing the packages, while on the fixture, to an incoming radiation beam, the radiation beam traveling in a direction at an acute angle to the planar front surfaces, wherein the radiation beam travels toward the planar front surfaces and travels away from the planar back surfaces, wherein during the exposing step, the radiation beam defines a radiation exposure area limited to a portion of the stack of the packages.