A catheter for recanalizing a blood vessel having an occlusion therein via a subintimal pathway. The catheter includes a catheter shaft having an inflatable balloon mounted to the distal end portion of the catheter shaft. A flexible tubular member extends from the catheter shaft and along an exterior of the inflatable balloon. Inflation of the inflatable balloon deflects the flexible tubular member into a deflected configuration away from a longitudinal axis of the catheter shaft to effect re-entry into the true lumen distal of the occlusion.

The invention relates to a medical device for treating a vein, including component parts thereof, wherein said device comprises a vein stretching member; a vein stretching member for use with said device; a kit of parts comprising said device and one or more vein stretching member and a method for treating a vein comprising use of said device.

A tissue-removing catheter for removing tissue in a body lumen includes a tube extending axially along the catheter. A junction box housing is located at a distal end of the tube. An elongate body extends distally from the junction box housing. The elongate body is sized and shaped to be received in the body lumen. A gear assembly is disposed in the junction box housing. The gear assembly engages the elongate body for rotating the elongate body. A tissue-removing element is mounted on a distal end portion of the elongate body. The tissue-removing element is configured to remove the tissue as the tissue-removing element is rotated by the elongate body within the body lumen.

A guide sheath device with an integrated stabilization wire is provided. The guide sheath device includes an elongate member having a proximal and distal end and a lumen there between and a stabilization wire integrated to the elongate member.

A catheter for dilating and/or destroying a stenosis in a vessel of a patient includes a catheter shaft having a cavity, at least one first active element within the cavity fixedly connected to a wall delimiting the cavity, and at least one radially protruding scoring element arranged on the outside of the catheter shaft at the cavity for exerting a pressure force on a stenosis in a vessel. The at least one first active element is configured to react to an axially movable element by radially expanding the catheter shaft and thereby radially expanding the at least one radially protruding scoring element.

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, wherein the distal end includes 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.

Steering engagement catheter devices, systems, and methods of using the same for accessing a tissue, including internal and external tissues of a heart, are disclosed. In at least one embodiment, a steering engagement catheter is provided, comprising an elongated tube having a proximal end, a distal end, and a first wall positioned circumferentially along a length of the elongated tube, the elongated tube configured such that a delivery catheter is capable of at least partial insertion into the elongated tube, at least one steering wire having a proximal end and a distal end, the distal end of the at least one steering wire coupled to the first wall of the elongated tube at or near the distal end of the elongated tube, and a controller operably coupled to the at least one steering wire at or near the proximal end of the at least one steering wire.

Methods and systems for retrieving temporary Inferior Vena Cava (IVC) filters, other medical implants, or foreign bodies are described. These methods may employ a locking sheath or a proximal-aperture capture feature for IVC filter (or other device) retrieval. One of the methods includes: passing an elongate member having a braided funnel-shaped distal extension through a sheath, where the braided funnel-shaped distal extension includes a distal bend to form a distal aperture and a flap that defines a proximal aperture; passing an end of the medical device through the distal aperture and then through the proximal aperture to capture the medical device; and covering the medical device with the sheath.

A catheter includes a first hollow shaft, a tubular mesh member, a distal end tip, a first core wire, and a second core wire. The first core wire extends inside the mesh member and the first hollow shaft. The second hollow shaft slides along an axial direction of the first hollow shaft and is movable between a first position at which the second hollow shaft surrounds an outer periphery of the first hollow shaft with a distal end of the second hollow shaft positioned further on the proximal side than the distal end of the first hollow shaft and a second position at which the second hollow shaft surrounds an outer periphery of the mesh member with the distal end of the second hollow shaft positioned further on a distal side than the distal end of the first hollow shaft.

The application relates to vascular catheters, in particular to vascular catheter systems (100) which are configured to mix blood. Aspects relate to a mixer sheath (110) for a vascular catheter, a method of manufacturing a mixer sheath, a catheter sheath, a catheter, a method of deploying a vascular catheter, a method of removing a vascular catheter, a method of deploying one or more blood mixing elements, a method of using a catheter system and a method of reversing the deployment of a blood mixing element. The mixer sheath comprises a tube having a wall patterned with a line of weakness (212) which is configured to cause buckling of a portion of the tube wall when a longitudinal compression force is applied to the tube to form a blood mixing element (111) which extends radially outwards with respect to a location of the portion of the tube wall prior to buckling.