Angioplasty catheter

Claim 3

The apparatus of claim 1, wherein that the centering and closure means comprise a plurality of flexible vanes which are configured and adapted to open in umbrella fashion and which in the open condition substantially seal the vessel as a non-return valve in dependence on the pressure conditions within the blood vessel.

Claim 4

The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the shaft is a spiral member disposed inside the catheter.

Claim 5

The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the drive means and suction means comprise a pneumatic turbine which produces a negative pressure by which the deposit is extracted by suction.

Claim 6

The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the drilling tool means is a drilling crown.

Claim 7

The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the drilling tool means is a brush.

Claim 8

The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the drilling tool means is a sponge.

Claim 9

The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the drilling tool means is a grinding head.

Claim 10

The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the drilling tool means is a knife.

Claim 11

The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the drilling tool means is umbrella-shaped with a tip pointing away from the catheter for operation in directions toward and away from the catheter.

Claim 12

The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a balloon catheter having a flexible tube fluidically attached to an expandable and contractable balloon membrane, said balloon catheter being configured and dimension to fit within the angioplasty catheter and advance through the drilling head so as to expand and substantially seal the blood vessel from blood flow.

Claim 13

An angioplasty catheter for removing inclusions from blood vessels comprising: (a) an elongated, tubular flexible catheter having a proximal end and a distal end; (b) a drilling head slidably disposed within the distal end of the catheter and having: (i) a rotatable drilling tool means slidably disposed within the distal end of the catheter for rotating and advancing into the inclusion and removing the material of the inclusion from the blood vessel; (c) centering and closure means having a proximal side and a distal side and having a plurality of flexible vanes flexibly positioned with its proximal side secured to the distal end of the catheter for (i) advancing radially outwardly, contacting the blood vessel and centering the drilling head in the middle of the blood vessel as the drilling head is slidably advanced from the catheter and (ii) substantially creating a temporary seal between the vanes and the blood vessel yet allowing unidirectional blood flow in the direction from the proximal side toward the distal side of the centering and closure means when the pressure on the distal side is less than on the proximal side by a predetermined amount thereby when sealed temporarily precluding material from the inclusion from escaping into the blood system around the catheter; (d) an elongated spiral shaft having a distal end and a proximal end slidably disposed within the catheter, the distal end being fixedly attached to the drilling tool means so as to permit rotation and advancement of same through the blood vessel and drilling of material; and (e) pneumatic turbine means secured to the distal end of the catheter and attached to the proximal end of the shaft for rotating and slidably advancing the shaft and drilling head through the catheter and into the inclusion so as to drill the inclusion, said pneumatic turbine means communicating with the interior of the catheter for suctioning and extracting material being drilled by the drill head.

Claim 14

An angioplasty catheter for removing inclusions from blood vessels comprising: (a) an elongated, tubular flexible catheter having a proximal end and a distal end; (b) a drilling head slidably disposed within the distal end of the catheter and having: (i) a rotatable drilling tool means slidably disposed within the distal end of the catheter for rotating and advancing into the inclusion and removing the material of the inclusion from the blood vessel; (c) centering and closure means having a proximal side and a distal side and having a plurality of flexible vanes flexibly positioned with its proximal side secured to the distal end of the catheter for (i) advancing radially outwardly, contacting the blood vessel and centering the drilling head in the middle of the blood vessel as the drilling head is slidably advanced from the catheter and (ii) substantially creating a temporary seal between the vanes and the blood vessel yet allowing unidirectional blood flow in the direction from the proximal side toward the distal side of the centering and closure means when the pressure on the distal side is less than on the proximal side by a predetermined amount thereby when sealed temporarily precluding material from the inclusion from escaping into the blood system around the catheter; (d) an elongated spiral shaft having a distal end and a proximal end slidably disposed within the catheter, the distal end being fixedly attached to the drilling tool means so as to permit rotation and advancement of same through the blood vessel and drilling of material; and (e) pneumatic turbine means secured to the distal end of the catheter and attached to the proximal end of the shaft for rotating and slidably advancing the shaft and drilling head through the catheter and into the inclusion so as to drill the inclusion, said pneumatic turbine means communicating with the interior of the catheter for suctioning and extracting material being drilled by the drill head.

Claim 15

The apparatus of claim 12, further comprising a balloon catheter having a flexible tube fluidically attached to an expandable and contractable balloon membrane, said balloon catheter being configured and dimension to fit within the angioplasty catheter and advance through the drilling head so as to expand and substantially seal the blood vessel from blood flow.