An instrument advancement device may include an instrument and an advancement feature configured to advance the instrument distally through the catheter assembly. The instrument advancement device may include a first indicator marking, a second indicator marking, and a third indicator marking. In response to aligning the advancement feature with the first indicator marking, a distal tip of the instrument may be configured to align with a distal tip of a catheter assembly. In response to aligning the advancement feature with the second indicator marking, the distal tip of the instrument may be advanced a distance distal to the distal tip of the catheter assembly. In response to aligning the advancement feature with the third indicator marking, the distal tip of the instrument may be advanced another distance distal to the distal tip of the catheter assembly.

This assembly for tracheal instillation of fluid medicaments, particularly in preterm infants supported by non-invasive ventilation, comprises a microcatheter, a guidewire and a gripper. The microcatheter consists of a very small gauge soft composite tube with a proximal connector and a distal rounded tip. Three circumferential color-coded bands near the rounded tip and a scale in one-centimeter increments on the soft composite tube guide the insertion depth positioning of the rounded tip under direct laryngoscopy. The slidably receptive guidewire within the central lumen of the microcatheter stiffens the soft composite tube for introduction and restores softness thereto after removal. Additionally, the guidewire is locked to the microcatheter during the introduction into the trachea to avoid injury. A gripper attached to the soft composite tube improves manipulation as well as estimated insertion depth control. Once the guidewire is removed, the fluid agent (e.g. surfactant) is slowly instilled into the neonatal trachea.

A torque device for gripping and manipulating a guidewire for advancing the guidewire into a patient's vascular system. The torque device is configured for single-handed use and can be opened for repositioning the torque device relative to the guidewire and closed for gripping the guidewire to prevent axial and rotational movement relative to the guidewire. The torque device grips the guidewire at multiple spaced apart locations on the guidewire.

The present invention provides a guidewire adjuster and a delivery-system control handle provided with the guidewire adjuster. The guidewire adjuster includes a support mechanism which has a lumen for a guidewire to extend therethrough; and a driving mechanism for driving the guidewire to move back and forth in the lumen. The guidewire adjuster is able to drive the guidewire to move with respect to a sheath of the delivery system. The support mechanism is connected to the control handle of the delivery system and forms a lumen for accommodating the guidewire. A proximal end of the sheath together with the stent can be driven to move upwardly, due to the relative movement between the guidewire and the sheath of the delivery system. Therefore, the position of the stent can be adjusted by advancing the guidewire forward when the stent has been deployed at a lower position than expected.

A guidewire manipulation device includes a housing configured to be supported by the hand of a user, the housing having a distal end and a proximal end, the housing configured to allow a guidewire to be placed therethrough and extend between the distal end and proximal end, a drive system carried by the housing and configured to drive rotation of the guidewire, and a manual input module carried by the housing, the manual input module configured to allow one or more fingers of the hand of the user to manually stop or slow the rotation of the guidewire while the housing is supported by the hand of the user.

An apparatus and method of manufacture includes a helical wire coil and a core wire. The core wire has a first wire portion and a second wire portion. The first wire portion of the core wire extends through the helical wire coil. The second wire portion of the core wire is intertwined with the first helical wire coil to fixedly secure the core wire relative to the first helical wire coil. The core wire is formed from a first material that is non-extensible. The core wire is fixedly secured relative to a distal portion of the helical wire coil such that the core wire inhibits longitudinal elongation of the helical wire coil along a longitudinal coil axis.

The disclosure provides a medical guidewire. The medical guidewire includes an equal-diameter fiber and a variable-diameter sleeve surrounding the equal-diameter fiber. The variable-diameter sleeve includes a shaping section, a supporting section, and a pushing section that are connected in sequence. The shaping section, the supporting section and the pushing section have outer diameters increased sequentially. An asymmetric structure is provided on the variable-diameter sleeve itself or the surround of the variable-diameter sleeve along the equal-diameter fiber. The medical guidewire provided by the disclosure has improved bending performance and operability, so that it is easy to manipulate the medical guidewire to enter blood vessels with a large opening angle. thereby improving the effect of minimally invasive interventional treatment.

Medical devices and systems for treating a stricture along the biliary and/or pancreatic tract are disclosed. An example medical device may include a guidewire for use along the biliary and/or pancreatic tract. The guidewire may include an elongate core member having a proximal end region and a distal end region. A coil member may be disposed along the distal end region. An actuation member may be coupled to the coil member. The actuation member may be configured to shift the coil member between a first configuration and a compressed configuration. The coil member may be configured to be advanced across a biliary and/or pancreatic stricture when in the compressed configuration. A sleeve may be disposed over the coil member.

Rapidly insertable central catheters (“RICCs”) including catheter assemblies and methods thereof are disclosed. A RICC assembly can include a RICC, an introducer, and a coupling system configured to couple the RICC and the introducer together. A catheter tube of the RICC can include a side aperture in a distal-end portion of the catheter tube, which opens into an introducing lumen extending from the side aperture to a distal end of the RICC. The introducer can include an introducer needle having a cannula. The coupling system can include a distal coupler slidably attached to the catheter tube proximal of the side aperture. The cannula extends through a longitudinal through hole of the distal coupler, through the side aperture of the catheter tube, along the introducing lumen of the catheter tube, and through the distal end of the RICC when the RICC assembly is in a ready-to-deploy state thereof

A handle shaft is disposed at a proximal end of a catheter. A wire extends from a distal part of the catheter, proximally through the catheter to the handle shaft. A knob is disposed outside of the handle shaft. A threaded mechanism provides operative coupling between the knob and the handle shaft such that (i) rotation of the knob with respect to the handle shaft alters tension in the wire via the threaded mechanism functioning as a linear actuator; and (ii) non-rotational axial movement of the knob with respect to the handle shaft alters tension in the wire without the threaded mechanism functioning as a linear actuator. Other embodiments are also described.