Patent ID: 8062465

Claim:
A method of fabricating a stent delivery assembly, comprising: disposing a sheath over a stent, the stent comprising a stent substrate; disposing the stent and the sheath over a central axial section of an expandable member, leaving a distal axial section and proximal axial section of the expandable member uncovered by the stent and the sheath; inflating the distal axial section, wherein only the distal axial section is directly heated; and inflating the proximal axial section, wherein only the proximal axial section is directly heated, wherein either the stent comprises a retention layer disposed over at least a portion of the stent substrate, or the expandable member comprises a retention layer disposed over at least a portion of the expandable member, the retention layer comprising a polymeric material, and wherein the retention layer is heated to a temperature close to, at or above a Tm, a Tg, or a Ts of the polymeric material of the retention layer, wherein the inflated distal axial section, inflated proximal axial section, and retention layer facilitate adhesion of the stent to the expandable member.