Patent ID: 8052670

Claim:
A medical device for use within a tubular structure of a human body, the device comprising: at least one monolithic memory metal tube configured and sized to be inserted within the tubular structure of the human body, the metal tube including at least one of a memory effect and superelasticity and having at least one expandable section with a plurality of metal members separated by openings and capable of contraction and expansion to an expanded shape to form a retrieval basket for retrieving particles to be removed from the human body, the metal members being sufficiently rigid to substantially maintain the expanded shape of the expandable section when placed within and in contact with the tubular structure of the human body, the expandable section being free of interior structure that is axially movable within the expandable section to expand and/or contract the expandable section, the metal tube having only a single lumen, the metal tube having a central longitudinal axis and a distal end, the expandable section being configured to catch a solid particle having a maximum cross-sectional dimension greater than a maximum cross-sectional dimension of the distal end of the metal tube transverse to the central longitudinal axis of the metal tube.