Patent ID: 6981987

Claim:
A stent, comprising: a helical structure having a plurality of coils, said structure having a longitudinal axis and said coils having a pitch, said structure having an internal longitudinal passage wherein said structure is made from a filament having a cross-section and an outer surface, said filament comprising: a soft flexible elongated member having an outer surface; and a bioabsorbable or biodegradable polymeric outer coating on the outer surface of the member; wherein, the polymeric coating has sufficient mechanical integrity to effectively maintain the flexible member in a helical configuration, until the coating has sufficiently been degraded or absorbed in vivo to effectively convert the helical structure back into a soft, elongated member, wherein the coating comprises a polymer selected from the group consisting of polyacrylamides, polyethylene glycols, polyethylene oxide, vinyl alcohols, poly(N-vinyl pyrrolidone)s and polymers made from monomers selected from the group consisting of lactide, glycolide, para-dioxanone, caprolactone, and trimethylene carbonate, caprolactone, blends thereof and copolymers thereof.