Patent ID: 7840261

Claim:
A guide catheter system for placing a pacemaker lead into the heart of a patient, said pacemaker lead having a lead tip and a lead wire, the guide catheter system comprising: a guide catheter having a proximal end and a distal end, and an off-center lumen extending from the distal end to the proximal end; a deflection tube disposed within the distal tip of the catheter; a pullwire extending from the distal end to the proximal end, said pullwire operably coupled to the deflection tube; a handle fixed to the proximal end of the guide catheter, said handle comprising a grasping channel for grasping a circumferential portion of the guide catheter along a grasped length of the guide catheter, said circumferential portion being less than the full circumference of the guide catheter for the grasped length thereby defining an exposed portion of the guide catheter; a pull wire operator disposed on the handle and operably connected to the pullwire; and a cutter for cutting the guide catheter, said cutter having a blade sized and dimensioned to pass through the grasping channel of the handle while cutting the catheter body longitudinally.