Balloon catheters

Claim 2

A dilatation catheter for relieving an obstructed artery while maintaining a steady flow of blood past the obstruction, comprising: an elongate tubular body; a dilatation balloon, secured to said tubular body, said balloon having an upstream end and a downstream end; a first conduit extending axially through at least a portion of said elongate tubular body for receiving a guide wire; a second conduit concentrically surrounding the first conduit and extending axially through the tubular body for allowing blood flow to bypass the dilatation balloon so that the exterior surface of the wall of said first conduit is radially inwardly spaced apart from the radially inwardly facing surface of the wall of said second conduit; a plurality of influent perfusion ports disposed about the periphery of and in fluid communication with said second conduit, said influent perfusion ports disposed upstream from the upstream end of said dilatation balloon so as to enable blood from said artery to enter said second conduit; and at least one effluent perfusion port distributed about the periphery of and in fluid communication with said second conduit, said at least one effluent perfusion port disposed downstream from the downstream end of said dilatation balloon so as to conduct blood from said second conduit back into said artery and maintain a steady flow of blood past said dilatation balloon during the dilatation process.

Claim 3

A catheter for dilatation of an obstructed artery while maintaining a steady flow of blood past the obstruction, comprising: an axially elongate catheter shaft, constructed and arranged for insertion into a body lumen, said catheter shaft having a perfusion conduit and a separate guide wire conduit, wherein the guide wire conduit extends concentrically within the lumen of said perfusion conduit; a dilatation balloon, secured to said catheter shaft, said dilatation balloon having a proximal end and a distal end; an inflation lumen adjacent at least one of said guide wire conduit and said perfusion conduit, said inflation lumen in fluid communication with said dilatation balloon for selective inflation and deflation of said dilatation balloon; a plurality of influent perfusion ports, distributed about the periphery of the perfusion conduit and upstream of the proximal end of said dilatation balloon, said influent perfusion ports opening into said perfusion conduit to enable blood from said artery to enter said perfusion conduit; and a plurality of effluent perfusion ports, distributed about the periphery of the perfusion conduit and downstream of the distal end of said dilatation balloon, said effluent perfusion ports opening into said perfusion conduit so as to conduct blood from said perfusion conduit back into said artery and maintain a steady flow of blood past said dilatation balloon during the dilatation process.

Claim 4

A catheter for dilatation of an obstructed artery while maintaining a steady flow of blood past the obstruction, comprising: an axially elongate catheter shaft, constructed and arranged for insertion into a body lumen, said catheter shaft having a perfusion conduit and a separate guide wire conduit, wherein the guide wire conduit extends concentrically within the lumen of said perfusion conduit; a dilatation balloon, secured to said catheter shaft, said dilatation balloon having a proximal end and a distal end; an inflation lumen adjacent at least one of said guide wire conduit and said perfusion conduit, said inflation lumen in fluid communication with said dilatation balloon for selective inflation and deflation of said dilatation balloon; a plurality of influent perfusion ports, distributed about the periphery of the perfusion conduit and upstream of the proximal end of said dilatation balloon, said influent perfusion ports opening into said perfusion conduit to enable blood from said artery to enter said perfusion conduit; and a plurality of effluent perfusion ports, distributed about the periphery of the perfusion conduit and downstream of the distal end of said dilatation balloon, said effluent perfusion ports opening into said perfusion conduit so as to conduct blood from said perfusion conduit back into said artery and maintain a steady flow of blood past said dilatation balloon during the dilatation process.

Claim 5

A dilatation catheter for relieving an obstructed coronary artery while maintaining a steady flow of blood past the obstruction, comprising: an axially elongate catheter shaft; a guide wire conduit in said catheter shaft adapted to receive a guide wire; a dilatation balloon, secured to said catheter shaft, said dilatation balloon having a proximal end and a distal end; an inflation lumen in said catheter shaft for transmitting pressurized fluid into and out of said dilatation balloon, for selective inflation and deflation thereof; a perfusion conduit in said catheter shaft for providing a path through which blood may bypass said dilatation balloon when said balloon is in an inflated state and occluding said artery, said perfusion conduit separate from said guide wire conduit and surrounding the guide wire conduit, so that the exterior surface of the wall of said guide wire conduit is radially inwardly spaced apart from the radially inwardly facing surface of the wall of the perfusion conduit, obviating the need to withdraw said guide wire to allow blood to bypass said dilatation balloon; a plurality of influent perfusion ports, distributed about the periphery of the perfusion conduit and proximate to the proximal end of said dilatation balloon, said influent ports opening into said perfusion conduit so as to enable blood to enter said perfusion conduit; and a plurality of effluent perfusion ports, distributed about the periphery of the perfusion conduit and proximate said distal end of said dilatation balloon, said effluent ports opening into said perfusion conduit so as to conduct blood from said perfusion conduit back into said artery and maintain a steady flow of blood past said dilatation balloon during the dilatation process.

Claim 6

A dilatation catheter for relieving an obstructed coronary artery while maintaining a steady flow of blood past the obstruction, comprising: an axially elongate catheter shaft; a guide wire conduit in said catheter shaft adapted to receive a guide wire; a dilatation balloon, secured to said catheter shaft, said dilatation balloon having a proximal end and a distal end; an inflation lumen in said catheter shaft for transmitting pressurized fluid into and out of said dilatation balloon, for selective inflation and deflation thereof; a perfusion conduit in said catheter shaft for providing a path through which blood may bypass said dilatation balloon when said balloon is in an inflated state and occluding said artery, said perfusion conduit separate from said guide wire conduit and surrounding the guide wire conduit, so that the exterior surface of the wall of said guide wire conduit is radially inwardly spaced apart from the radially inwardly facing surface of the wall of the perfusion conduit, obviating the need to withdraw said guide wire to allow blood to bypass said dilatation balloon; a plurality of influent perfusion ports, distributed about the periphery of the perfusion conduit and proximate to the proximal end of said dilatation balloon, said influent ports opening into said perfusion conduit so as to enable blood to enter said perfusion conduit; and a plurality of effluent perfusion ports, distributed about the periphery of the perfusion conduit and proximate said distal end of said dilatation balloon, said effluent ports opening into said perfusion conduit so as to conduct blood from said perfusion conduit back into said artery and maintain a steady flow of blood past said dilatation balloon during the dilatation process.

Claim 9

The method of claim 4, further comprising the step of leaving the catheter in the body lumen with said dilatation balloon adjacent the stenosis, such that blood will perfuse through the perfusion conduit and bypass the stenotic region to maintain a steady flow of blood through said stenotic region.