An introducer sheath system includes a sheath member defining a tubular structure extending between a proximal end and a distal end of the sheath. The system includes a tip portion provided at the distal end of the sheath member. The tip portion defines a tubular structure extending between a proximal end and a distal end of the tip portion. The tip portion has a central lumen extending therethrough. The tip portion includes a camming feature formed as a protrusion from the central lumen of the tip portion. The tip portion is movable between a non-expanded configuration when the camming feature is not engaged and an expanded configuration when the camming feature is engaged. When the tip portion is in the non-expanded configuration, a diameter of the distal end of the tip portion is less than a diameter of the proximal end of the tip portion.

In some examples a catheter includes an inner liner, an outer jacket, and a structural support member positioned between at least a portion of the inner liner and at least a portion of the outer jacket. A first portion of the structural support member has a first residual stress and a second portion of the structural support member has a second residual stress, greater than the first residual stress. The second portion of the structural support member includes a percent cold work greater than about 20%.

A catheter is made by coextruding first and second molten polymers, wherein the second molten polymer forms a flexible inner core and the first molten polymer forms exactly two bands on opposite sides of the inner core. The inner core is braided, and a third molten polymer extruded onto the braid to form a flexible jacket that encloses the braid, the bands and the inner core. The bands are more rigid than the inner core, and they provide preferential in-plane bending.

A catheter having a proximal end portion having gaps between axially adjacent portions of an element wire where an inner layer is joined to an outer layer through the gaps; and a distal end portion where the axially adjacent portions of the element wire come into contact with each other, and a cavity is provided between the inner layer and a coil body. The catheter has excellent followability to a guide wire and is capable of efficiently transmitting a pushing force and/or rotational force from an operator to the distal end of the catheter.

An aspiration system for aspirating blood clots from a human body has a power source, an aspiration pump, and an electrical motor coupled to the power source and the aspiration pump, wherein the aspiration pump is pulsed at a frequency below 10 Hz.

A medical device includes a medical device body, first and second operating lines inserted in axial direction of the device body, and a bending operating part that pulls the operating lines to perform bending operation of a distal end part of the device body. The device body has the distal end part in the axial direction such that the operating lines are gradually curved and approach each other in circumferential direction of the device body toward a distal end side in the distal end part. The device body has a curved region and a parallel region such that in the curved region, the operating lines gradually curve and approach each other in the circumferential direction toward the distal end side and that in a parallel region, the operating lines extend in parallel to each other between the distal end of the curved region and distal ends of the operating lines.

Described herein are methods, devices, and support structures for assembling optical fibers in catheter tips and facilitating alignment and structural support. A method for assembling a plurality of optical fibers and lenses in a support structure for an ablation catheter includes providing a support structure with a proximal end, a body, and a distal end, the distal end including a plurality of alignment orifices or slits. A plurality of optical fibers are threaded through the alignment orifices or slits, such that each optical fiber is threaded through a corresponding alignment orifice or slit. An adhesive material is applied at each alignment orifice or slit to secure the optical fibers, and the plurality of optical fibers are then cleaved at the distal end to remove portions of the fibers extending out of the distal end. Finally, a lens is attached to each of the ends of the plurality of optical fibers.

A frame for constructing nerve tract is provided, including microcatheters, a support, and a shell. The shell is configured to contain a culture medium inside. The microcatheters are configured to culture nerve cells. The multiple microcatheters are suspended and fixed into the shell by the support, the microcatheters are arranged along a direction from one end to the other end of the shell, catheter walls of the microcatheters are provided with through holes, the nerve cells in the microcatheter cannot flow out through the through holes, and the culture medium enters the microcatheter through the through holes. A method for constructing nerve tract based on the frame described is provided, including: filling the nerve cells wrapped with a collagen hydrogel stock solution into the microcatheters, and after the collagen hydrogel stock solution is completely cross-linked, placing the frame loaded with the nerve cells in a culture device for perfusion culture.

The present invention pertains to medical devices. More specifically, the present application is related to an aspiration catheter for a medical clot removal system and to a clot removal system comprising such an aspiration catheter. An aspiration catheter for a clot removal system has a distal section and a proximal section, wherein, in the distal section, a ratio of an outer diameter (D.sub.d) and an open lumen inner diameter (ID) is in a range between 1.05 and 1.09, and wherein a volume of the aspiration catheter is in a range between 0.2 cubic inches and 0.4 cubic inches.

A steerable sheath includes an inner liner extending from a proximal end to a distal end of the steerable sheath. The inner liner includes a non-deflectable portion and a deflectable portion. The steerable sheath includes a first pull wire positioned along a first helical path around the circumference of the inner liner from a proximal end to a distal end of the non-deflectable portion of the inner liner and along a first straight path from a proximal end of the deflectable portion to a distal end of the deflectable portion. The steerable sheath includes a second pull wire positioned along a second helical path around the circumference of the inner liner from the proximal end to the distal end of the non-deflectable portion and along a second straight path from the proximal end of the deflectable portion to the distal end of the deflectable portion.