Patent ID: 7131993

Claim:
A stent comprising: a plurality of serpentine circumferential bands, each serpentine circumferential band having a proximal end portion, a distal end portion, a plurality of proximal turns at said proximal end portion and a plurality of distal turns at said distal end portion; and a plurality of connector columns, each connector column located between two adjacent serpentine circumferential bands, each connector column comprising a plurality of connector struts including a first type of connector strut and a second type of connector strut, each connector strut coupled at a first end to a serpentine circumferential band and coupled at a second end to another serpentine circumferential band, wherein the second type of connector strut spans a greater circumferential distance than the first type of connector strut, wherein the first end of at least one second type of connector strut is circumferentially offset from the second end; wherein the number of proximal turns in a serpentine circumferential band is a multiple of 3, and wherein the number of connector struts in a connector column is a multiple of 2, and wherein the number of connector struts in a connector column is less than the number of proximal turns in an adjacent serpentine circumferential band.