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.

Guide wire with conductive element is described herein where the guide wire generally includes a guide wire core, a first insulating layer provided on a surface of the guide wire core, and plural conductive traces provided spaced from each other in a lateral direction of the guide wire core on a surface of the first insulating layer. At least one of the plural conductive traces has a sectional area different from those of the other conductive traces in a transverse-sectional view of the guide wire core.

A guide wire includes a core shaft having a first expanded diameter portion which increases in diameter toward the proximal end side and a first extended portion, a first coil body wound so as to cover at least a portion of the core shaft, a distal end fixing portion at which the distal end of the core shaft and the distal end of the first coil body are fixed to each other and a proximal end of the first coil body is not fixed to the first expanded diameter portion, but is fixed to the first extended portion.

A low or non-torqueable stylet may have: a core wire including: a first pre-formed bend of a first angle of about 15-90°; a second pre-formed bend of a second angle of about 8-15°, the second pre-formed bend being distal of the first pre-formed bend, and the first pre-formed bend being longer than the second pre-formed bend; an intermediate portion of about 1-3 inches extending between the first pre-formed bend and the second pre-formed bend; and a distal portion of about 1-2 inches between the second pre-formed bend and a distal tip, the distal portion having a segment with a reduced width or diameter that increases deflection of the distal tip; a tubular body disposed around the core wire; and a navigation device disposed around the core wire and within the tubular body.

A mold is used to form a solder joint to join the distal end of the guidewire to a wire coil. The mold has a cavity that can have different configurations so that the solder joint can be any of bullet shaped, micro-J shaped, cone shaped, truncated cone shaped, or have a textured surface.

A guide wire, a medical device, and a medical method are able to achieve satisfactory workability and while ensuring safety by preventing a puncture needle portion from performing erroneous puncture. A guide wire for guiding a dilator to be inserted into a living body includes a shaft portion, a puncture portion fixed to a distal portion of the shaft portion, and whose distal side includes a needle portion for forming a hole in a biological tissue, and a deformable deformation portion fixed to the shaft portion or the puncture portion. The deformation portion located inside the dilator restricts deflection of the distal portion of the shaft portion.

An insertion tool for inserting a catheter into a patient's body includes a housing in which at least a portion of the catheter is initially disposed, a hollow needle distally extending from the housing with the catheter pre-disposed over the needle, and a guidewire pre-disposed in the needle. The insertion tool can include a guidewire advancement assembly that can include a first finger pad for selectively advancing the guidewire distally past a distal end of the needle in preparation for distal advancement of the catheter. The insertion tool can further include a catheter advancement assembly that can include a second finger pad for selectively advancing the catheter into the patient. The first and second finger pads can be positioned such that a user can begin to advance the second finger pad after advancing the first finger pad without substantially re-positioning the thumb or finger of the user.

Guidewires having conductive elements are described where in one variation, the guidewire may be formed by disposing an insulative layer upon a surface of the guidewire core, and printing one or more conductive traces directly upon a surface of the insulative layer.

Medical devices and systems for treating a stricture, for example along the biliary and/or pancreatic tract, are disclosed. An example system may include a guidewire having a distal end and defining a lumen. A stiffening rod may be slidably disposed within the lumen. The stiffening rod may have a distal end and a distal end region disposed adjacent to the distal end. The stiffening rod may be configured to shift between a first position where the distal end of the stiffening rod is disposed proximally of the distal end of the guidewire and a second position where the distal end of the stiffening rod is disposed distally of the distal end of the guidewire.

One aspect of a catheter system includes a reference portion and a moving portion. The moving portion is movable along the reference portion in a longitudinal direction of the reference portion. The moving portion includes a wave transceiver unit that transmits/receives one or more types of waves. The wave transceiver unit transmits a first type of waves among the one or more types of waves in a direction intersecting with the longitudinal direction in a space inside a target object and receives the first type of waves reflected from the target object. The reference portion includes a reference region. In the reference region, one or more types of elements are located in the longitudinal direction based on a predetermined rule so that the state of reflection of a second type of waves included in the one or more types of waves varies in the longitudinal direction.