US6736845B2
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Holder for flexible heart valve
Assignee: Edwards Lifesciences Corp
•
Filing: 2001-05-03
•
Granted: 2004-05-18
•
Expires: 2021-05-03
Abstract
Abstract A holder for a highly flexible tissue-type heart valve is disclosed that maintains an implant shape to the valve. The holder may have cusp and commissure contacting supports, and may be attached at all six such supports, or only three. The holder may be flexible to permit inward flexing of the heart valve during implant for greater visibility when implanting using a running suture method. The holder may be formed of flexible wires such as Nitinol, and shaped to resist excessive axial and torsional deformation of the valve. A short handle connector suitable for manual grasping may be attached and stored with the valve, with the handle connector having a coupling for receiving a longer delivery handle. A two stage holder may be utilized to accommodate different implant methods.
Inventors
- 👤 Salvador Marquez
- 👤 Claudio Argento
- 👤 Richard S. Rhee
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-22 20:09
CPC Classifications
A; A61; A61F; A61F2/00; A61F2/02; A61F2/24; A61F2/2412; A61F2/2418; A61F2/2427; A61F2220/00; A61F2220/0025; A61F2220/005; A61F2220/0066; A61F2220/0075
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 28
Claim 1
Independent Claim
100 words
A holder for attaching to and holding a flexible heart valve, the heart valve having multiple leaflets joined together at a periphery of the valve at valve commissures that are generally axially aligned and evenly disposed about a valve axis, the valve commissures each being disposed between adjacent curvilinear valve cusps along the periphery of the valve, the holder comprising: a plurality of cusp supports arranged around an axis to contact the heart valve generally along the valve cusps; and a plurality of commissure supports connected to and intermediate each two cusp supports and arranged to abut the valve commissures.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
100 words
A holder for attaching to and holding a flexible heart valve, the heart valve having multiple leaflets joined together at a periphery of the valve at valve commissures that are generally axially aligned and evenly disposed about a valve axis, the valve commissures each being disposed between adjacent curvilinear valve cusps along the periphery of the valve, the holder comprising: a plurality of cusp supports arranged around an axis to contact the heart valve generally along the valve cusps; and a plurality of commissure supports connected to and intermediate each two cusp supports and arranged to abut the valve commissures.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
29 words
The holder of claim 1 , wherein the commissure supports are radially flexible enabling the valve commissures to be flexed inward while in contact with the holder commissure supports.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
14 words
The holder of claim 2 , wherein the commissure supports are made of Nitinol.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
29 words
The holder of claim 1 , further including at least one leg extending radially inward from a cusp support to a location surrounded by the plurality of cusp supports.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
28 words
The holder of claim 1 , further including multiple legs each extending radially inward from a cusp support and the legs being attached together at a common location.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
31 words
The holder of claim 5 , wherein the common location is centered on the axis of the holder that coincides with the valve axis when the holder and valve are attached.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
40 words
The holder of claim 6 , further including a connector extending along the holder axis to which the legs join, the connector having a coupling for receiving a handle for the holder and having a length suitable for manually grasping.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
18 words
The holder of claim 7 , wherein the connector is formed separately from the legs and joined thereto.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
19 words
The holder of claim 5 , wherein the legs are formed separately from the cusp supports and joined thereto.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
15 words
The holder of claim 1 , wherein the cusp supports are multiple pieces joined together.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
20 words
The holder of claim 10 , wherein each piece includes two halves of adjacent cusp supports and a commissure support.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
55 words
The holder of claim 11 , further including multiple legs extending radially inward from each cusp support and being attached together at a common location, each piece having two leg halves extending radially inward from each of its cusp support halves, wherein each pair of adjacent leg halves makes up one of the holder legs.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
39 words
The holder of claim 1 , further comprising: a central hub with a plurality of radially outward upper legs connected to the commissure supports, and a plurality of lower legs angled downward and outward connected to the cusp supports.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
114 words
A holder for attaching to and holding a heart valve, the heart valve having multiple leaflets joined together at a periphery of the valve at valve commissures that are generally axially aligned and evenly distributed about a valve axis at an outflow end thereof, the valve commissures each being disposed between adjacent curvilinear valve cusps evenly distributed about the periphery of the valve generally at an inflow end thereof, the holder comprising: a plurality of relatively rigid cusp supports arranged around a holder axis that coincides with the valve axis when the holder and valve are attached, the cusp supports being adapted to contact and attach to the heart valve along the valve cusps.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
114 words
A holder for attaching to and holding a heart valve, the heart valve having multiple leaflets joined together at a periphery of the valve at valve commissures that are generally axially aligned and evenly distributed about a valve axis at an outflow end thereof, the valve commissures each being disposed between adjacent curvilinear valve cusps evenly distributed about the periphery of the valve generally at an inflow end thereof, the holder comprising: a plurality of relatively rigid cusp supports arranged around a holder axis that coincides with the valve axis when the holder and valve are attached, the cusp supports being adapted to contact and attach to the heart valve along the valve cusps.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
33 words
The holder of claim 14 , further comprising a plurality of relatively rigid commissure supports connected to and intermediate each two cusp supports and arranged to contact and attach to the valve commissures.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
23 words
The holder of claim 14 , further including at least one leg extending radially inward from a cusp support toward the holder axis.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
20 words
The holder of claim 16 , wherein the cusp supports and the legs are attached together at a common location.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
16 words
The bolder of claim 17 , wherein the common location is centered on the holder axis.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
30 words
The holder of claim 18 , further comprising a central hub at the common location and from which the legs angled downward and outward and terminate in the cusp supports.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
23 words
The holder of claim 19 , wherein the central hub includes coupling structure thereon for coupling with the distal end of a handle.
Claim 23
Dependent Claim
20 words
The holder of claim 19 , wherein each cusp support has a pair of longitudinal rails on its outer side.
Claim 24
Dependent Claim
34 words
The holder of claim 21 , wherein each cusp support includes anchoring structure adjacent the longitudinal rails to which sutures used to temporarily couple the cusp support to the valve cusp can be anchored.
Claim 25
Dependent Claim
22 words
The holder of claim 14 , wherein each cusp support is curvilinear so as to mate with the correspondingly curved valve cusp.
Claim 26
Dependent Claim
24 words
The holder of claim 23 , wherein each cusp support includes a concavity for mating with a feature on the corresponding curvilinear valve cusp.
Claim 27
Dependent Claim
24 words
The holder of claim 23 , wherein each leg is flared such that the cusp support is wider than the leg at the hub.
Claim 28
Dependent Claim
28 words
The holder of claim 14 , further comprising a central hub from which a plurality of leg members angle downward and outward and terminate in the cusp supports.
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USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 2007-05-18 | 2007-11-17 | 2008-05-18 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2011-05-18 | 2011-11-17 | 2012-05-18 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2015-05-18 | 2015-11-17 | 2016-05-18 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |