STENT

Abstract

The invention relates to a stent for transluminal implantation in hollow organs, in particular in blood vessels, ureters, esophagi, colons, duodena, or bile ducts, comprising a substantially tubular body, which can be transferred from a compressed state having a first cross-sectional diameter into an expanded state having an enlarged second cross-sectional diameter, wherein the stent comprises a plurality of cells, which are defined by bordering elements formed by the tubular body. The stent is distinguished in that some of the cells are extended in the longitudinal direction of the stent in comparison with the remaining cells in order to form a slanted end face of the stent.

Claims

1. A method of manufacturing a stent, in which a) the stent is cut out of a tubular material; b) the stent is widened up to its expanded state, and c) a shape of cells of the stent is changed and fixed in the expanded state.

2. The method in accordance with claim 1, wherein a core is used for the widening to which fastening means are attached to change and to fix the shape of the cells of the stent.

3. The method in accordance with claim 1, wherein the fastening means are needles or mandrels that are introduced into holes of the core.

4. The method in accordance with claim 1, further comprising the step of d) permanently fixing by means of a heating process the shape of the cells of the stent that is changed.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0047] FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of a stent in accordance with the disclosed technology in the expanded state in a side view.

[0048] FIG. 2 shows the embodiment of the stent of FIG. 1 in the expanded state in a plan view.

[0049] FIG. 3 shows the embodiment of the stent of FIG. 1 in a cut representation projected into a plane.

[0050] FIG. 4 shows a cut representation the embodiment of FIG. 3 with a representation of angles that are defined by connection sections.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0051] FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 show a stent 10. The stent 10 has a tubular design and comprises a rigid section 12, a flexible section 14 adjoining the rigid section 12, and an anchorage section 16 adjoining the flexible section 14.

[0052] The rigid section 12 is formed from diamond-shaped (closed) cells 18 that are each connected to other diamond-shaped cells 18 via three or four connection sections 20. The diamond-shaped cells 18 are defined by web-like bordering elements 22 that are shaped from a metal.

[0053] The rigid section 12 comprises a chamfered region 24 that enables the use of the stent 10 at a bifurcation (not shown) of a hollow organ.

[0054] The chamfered region 24 forms an end of the stent 10 and is produced in that some of the diamond-shaped cells 18 are formed as elongated in a longitudinal direction L. The longest diamond-shaped cells 18 are marked by reference numeral 18a in the Figures, whereas the shortest diamond-shaped cells 18 are marked by reference numeral 18b. Three of the shortest diamond-shaped cells 18b and three of the longest diamond-shaped cells 18a are respectively provided in the longitudinal direction L in the rigid section 12. The longest diamond-shaped cells 18 are in this respect disposed opposite the short diamond-shaped cells 18b with respect to a central axis of the stent 10. Three respective groups of the longest and shortest diamond-shaped cells 18a, 18b are provided next to one another (i.e. adjacent in the peripheral direction).

[0055] Open cells 26 having a serrated or tooth-like outline are arranged in the flexible section 14, with respectively fewer open serrated cells 25 being provided, viewed in the peripheral direction of the stent 10, as diamond-shaped cells 18. The flexible section is more easily deformable with respect to the longitudinal direction L due to the use of fewer open serrated cells 26 and can thus adapt easily to the extent of a blood vessel or similar.

[0056] The anchorage section 16 is formed by diamond-shaped cells 18 that provide an increased stiffness of the anchorage section 16, whereby the stent 10 reliably maintains its position in a hollow organ.

[0057] Four respective eyelet-shaped markers 28, of which a respective three are visible in FIG. 1, are provided both at the chamfered region 24 and at the end of the stent 10 formed by the anchorage section. All four markers 28 of the chamfered region 24 can be recognized in FIG. 2.

[0058] Two of the markers 28 that are attached to the points of the longest and shortest extents of the stent 10 in the chamfered region 24 are formed as symmetrical. Two further markers 28 are attached to the chamfered region 24 where the stent 10 has its average length. These two markers 28 are formed as asymmetrical marks 28a, with the area of the asymmetrical markers 28a extending toward the shortest extent of the stent.

[0059] FIG. 3 shows the rigid section 12 of the stent 10 of FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 in a so-called cut representation. FIG. 3 consequently shows a projection of cuts in a plane that are introduced into a raw material of the stent. A line thus indicates a cut. A plurality of straight cuts extending offset from one another and in parallel can be widened on the expansion of the stent 10 to form the diamond-shaped cells 18 shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2.

[0060] The material regions shown as white regions and present between the lines become connection sections 20 or bordering sections 22 after the expansion. FIG. 3 only shows the rigid section 12 of the stent 10.

[0061] It can be recognized in FIG. 3 that extended connection sections 20a are provided between the longest diamond-shaped cells 18a and produce a more uniform bending open of all the diamond-shaped cells 18 on the expansion of the stent.

[0062] FIG. 4 shows the view of FIG. 3 with entered angles that are formed by connection sections 20 having a peripheral direction. Six angles .sub.1, .sub.2, .sub.3, .sub.4, .sub.5, .sub.6 are shown that continuously increase from an angle of approximately 22 (.sub.1) over angles of approximately 40 (.sub.3), 50 (.sub.3), 62 (.sub.4), and 65 (.sub.5) up to an angle of approximately 71 (.sub.6). A straight end line 30 that is arranged at the transition from the rigid region 12 to the flexible region 14 extends in the peripheral direction through connection sections 20 and thus defines an angle of 0.

REFERENCE NUMERAL LIST

[0063] 10 stent [0064] 12 rigid section [0065] 14 flexible section [0066] 16 anchorage section [0067] 18, 18a, 18b diamond-shaped cell [0068] 20, 20a connection section [0069] 22 bordering element [0070] 24 chamfered region [0071] 26 open serrated cell [0072] 28, 28a markers [0073] 30 end line [0074] L longitudinal direction [0075] angle