A catheter has excellent torque transmissivity and excellent flexibility, thus enabling easy insertion of the catheter into a blocked portion of a blood vessel. Additionally, the catheter easily restores to its original form even when the catheter is curved and deformed a large amount. Thus, a break at a border area between a catheter main body part and a distal end tip is prevented when the catheter is bent and deformed. This improves the operability of the catheter with a combination device such as a guide wire. The catheter includes a hollow coil body formed of at least one helically wound stranded wire. The at least stranded wire includes a plurality of wires wound into a helical structure.

A guide wire includes a core shaft and a coil body covering an outer surface of a distal portion of the core shaft. The coil body includes a straight section that extends in a straight state from a proximal end of the coil body toward a distal end of the coil body, and a bent section arranged at a distal end of the straight section. The coil body may be formed by winding at least one element wire into a helical coil structure, or by winding a plurality of stranded wires (obtained by stranding a plurality of element wires) into a helical coil structure. The element wires and/or the stranded wires of the coiled body are in contact with each other on a side of the bent section opposite to a side toward which the bent section is bent relative to an axial direction of the straight section.

The disclosure provides a system and method for a programmable medical wire that can be preprogrammed, and controlled and reshaped upon command. The system can include a power supply, a controller, and a multilayered wire assembly. The wire assembly includes a core conductor, actuator conductors coupled to the core conductor, selective conductors formed adjacent the core conductor and the actuator conductors, and a protective biocompatible shield around the layers. The selective conductors can be energized to activate the actuator conductors and cause the actuator conductors to bend or twist in a preprogrammed manner. By selectively controlling the direction of movement of the actuator conductors, the wire assembly can be remotely guided through body passageways to the target. Auxiliary equipment such as sensors, micro cameras, detectors, cutters, and other equipment can also be coupled to the wire assembly, and controlled and communicated with through one or more of the selective conductors.

[Object] A hollow stranded wire line, for manipulation, having an excellent torque transmittability is provided. [Solution] A hollow stranded wire line 2 for manipulation is a hollow stranded wire line 2 that is advantageously used as a stranded wire line for manipulation in a medical instrument, and a side wire 4 or a side strand which is an outermost layer has a forming rate that is greater than 100% and not greater than 110%. The side wire 4 or the side strand having been formed has a spiral shape in which a flatness that is an aspect ratio obtained by a major axis being divided by a minor axis is preferably not less than 1.01 and preferably not greater than 1.10.

A guidewire that is specifically designed for performing an intracardiac transseptal puncture procedure is described. A piercing head for the guidewire has a conically-shaped section that tapers to a cutting section comprised of three tapered facets extending to a pointed tip. The three facets form three cutting edges that each provide for smooth cutting of body tissue, for example, cutting of the septum wall. The cut tissue does not tend to close or relax as readily as if the tissue had been punctured with a conically-shaped piercing tip, for example, one that has a structure similar to a pencil tip, This helps with subsequently moving a catheter and similar medical device through the pierced body tissue. Consequently, the faceted piercing head leaves an opening having a diameter that is substantially similar to the maximum outer diameter of piercing head.

A needle-injection catheter includes a catheter body having a distal end, a proximal end, a stiff proximal portion, a flexible distal portion, and a delivery lumen extending therethrough. In a first embodiment, a straight injection needle extends coaxially from a distal tip of the flexible portion of the catheter body, and a plurality of penetration limiting elements positioned circumferentially about a base of the straight injection needle and configured to fold radially inwardly against a shaft of the needle when constrained in a tubular lumen and to extend radially outwardly when unconstrained. In a second embodiment, a helical needle extends from the distal tip of the flexible portion of the catheter body. The helical needle has at least one helical delivery lumen connected to receive an injectable substance from the delivery lumen of the catheter body.

A guidewire for use in intravascular procedures has a solder or weld joint at a distal end thereof. A plurality of dimples are formed on the solder/weld joint to increase the engagement and penetration of fibrous material including chronic total occlusions (CTO).

Devices and methods for the treatment of chronic total occlusions are provided. One disclosed embodiment comprises a method of facilitating treatment via a vascular wall defining a vascular lumen containing an occlusion therein. The method includes providing an intravascular device having a distal portion with a lumen extending therein; inserting the device into the vascular lumen; positioning the distal portion in the vascular wall; and directing the distal portion within the vascular wall.

The disclosure provides a system and method for a programmable medical wire that can be preprogrammed, and controlled and reshaped upon command. The system can include a power supply, a controller, and a multilayered wire assembly. The wire assembly includes a core conductor, actuator conductors coupled to the core conductor, selective conductors formed adjacent the core conductor and the actuator conductors, and a protective biocompatible shield around the layers. The selective conductors can be energized to activate the actuator conductors and cause the actuator conductors to bend or twist in a preprogrammed manner. By selectively controlling the direction of movement of the actuator conductors, the wire assembly can be remotely guided through body passageways to the target. Auxiliary equipment such as sensors, micro cameras, detectors, cutters, and other equipment can also be coupled to the wire assembly, and controlled and communicated with through one or more of the selective conductors.

Devices and methods for the treatment of chronic total occlusions are provided. One disclosed embodiment comprises a method of facilitating treatment via a vascular wall defining a vascular lumen containing an occlusion therein. The method includes providing an intravascular device having a distal portion with a lumen extending therein; inserting the device into the vascular lumen; positioning the distal portion in the vascular wall; and directing the distal portion within the vascular wall.