The stent has an expansive force 0.05 N/mm or less per unit length when it has a diameter equal to the lower limit diameter of the target blood vessel and is measured under the following conditions. A radial force testing system manufactured by Blockwise Engineering LLC is used as a tester. The test conditions include a temperature of 37° C.±2° C. in the chamber of the tester; a stent diameter of 0.5 mm for start of test, and a rate of increase of diameter of 0.5 mm/s in the tester. The test method includes radially compressing the stent disposed in the chamber; recording an expansive force while gradually increasing the diameter of the chamber at the rate of increase of diameter; and dividing the expansive force by the effective length of the stent to calculate an expansive force per unit length.

A method of braiding a stent includes braiding a number of elongate filaments around a mandrel using tensioned braiding carriers without spooling the filaments to the tensioned braiding carriers to form a braided stent having atraumatic ends.

A stent for use in hollow tubular organs, comprising a continuous tubular or cylindrical inner cavity which is delimited by a wall. The wall is formed in a tubular or cylindrical manner about an axis which runs in a longitudinal direction and has a structure which surrounds the wall. The structure is made of elements, and the elements are made of loops which are arranged about the longitudinal axis in the radial direction. The elements are rigidly connected via connection points such that a tubular or cylindrical single-piece wall structure is produced, and the stent has acute angles in the region of the connection points.

Apparatus and methods are described including implanting an aortic pressure-loss-reduction device (20) in a subject's ascending aorta. While the device is inside a catheter (42), a distal end of the catheter is placed within the ascending aorta. A proximal covering sheath (44) of the catheter is retracted such as to uncover at least a portion of a downstream anchor (31), such that the uncovered portion of the downstream anchor includes a portion of the frame that does not have material coupled thereto. Subsequently, a distal covering sheath (45) of the catheter is advanced, such as to cause an upstream anchor (33) to anchor an upstream end device (20) to the subject's ascending aorta, by the upstream anchor radially expending against an inner wall of the ascending aorta. Other applications are also described.

A system for treating a bifurcation includes first and second delivery catheters. The first catheter has a first shaft, a first expandable member adjacent the distal end of the first shaft, an auxiliary expandable member disposed under the first expandable member, and a first radially expandable stent disposed over both the first expandable member and the auxiliary expandable member. The second delivery catheter has a second shaft, and a second expandable member adjacent the distal end of the second shaft. A portion of the second catheter is disposed under a portion of the first stent, and a portion of the second delivery catheter passes through a side hole in the first stent. The first stent is crimped over the first and second catheters such that the first stent remains attached to the first and the second catheters during advancement of the catheters through a blood vessel.

A venous anchor device operably coupled by graft material to form an anastomotic connector is provided. The venous anchor device includes a tubular main body having a metal frame structure and including a distal end and a proximal end, the distal end including a plurality of barbs thereon wherein said distal end has an outer diameter greater than the proximal end. The venous anchor device is fluidly connected by a graft to form an anastomotic connector.

A system for treating a bifurcation includes first and second delivery catheters. The first catheter has a first shaft, a first expandable member adjacent the distal end of the first shaft, an auxiliary expandable member disposed under the first expandable member, and a first radially expandable stent disposed over both the first expandable member and the auxiliary expandable member. The second delivery catheter has a second shaft, and a second expandable member adjacent the distal end of the second shaft. A portion of the second catheter is disposed under a portion of the first stent, and a portion of the second delivery catheter passes through a side hole in the first stent. The first stent is crimped over the first and second catheters such that the first stent remains attached to the first and the second catheters during advancement of the catheters through a blood vessel.

Flared stents are disclosed, and apparatus and methods for delivering such stents into a bifurcation between a main vessel and a branch vessel. The stent includes a first tubular portion a second flaring portion that may be flared radially outwardly to contact the ostium. The stent may include variable mechanical properties along its length. The stent may be delivered using a catheter including proximal and distal ends, the stent overlying first and second balloons on the distal end. During use, the catheter is advanced through an ostium into the branch to place the stent within the branch. The first balloon is expanded to flare the stent to contact a wall of the ostium, thereby causing the stent to migrate partially into the ostium. The second balloon is expanded to fully expand the stent within the ostium and branch.

A stent graft, including multiple wavy rings. The stent graft includes, in a circumferential direction, a region A and a region B connected to the region A. Each wavy ring includes a first wavy section located in the region A, and a second wavy section located in the region B. The wave included angle of the first wavy section is about 70°-120°; the ratio of the wave height of the first wavy section to the spacing between adjacent first wavy sections is 1/4-3; the wave included angle of the second wavy section is 30°-60°, the ratio of the wave height of the second wavy section to the spacing between adjacent second wavy sections is 1/4-3/2, and the ratio of the wave height of the first wavy section to the wave height of the second wavy section is greater than or equal to 1/3 and less than 1.

A method of braiding a stent includes braiding a number of elongate filaments around a mandrel using tensioned braiding carriers without spooling the filaments to the tensioned braiding carriers to form a braided stent having atraumatic ends.