Abstract: The techniques of this disclosure generally relate to a valve prosthesis having a stent structure having an inflow portion. The inflow portion includes crowns and rows of nodes where the crowns connect, the rows of nodes including a first row, the first row being the most proximal of the rows. The valve prosthesis further includes alignment markers at each node of the first row. The alignment markers form a ring of distinct marker points around the circumference of the stent structure, wherein each distinct marker point is an equal distance from the inflow end. The alignment markers allow for accurate depth positioning of the valve prosthesis, in a crimped or compressed state, such that the valve prosthesis can be accurately deployed.

Abstract: The techniques of this disclosure generally relate to a valve prosthesis having a stent structure and a prosthetic valve coupled to the stent structure. The stent structure includes an inflow portion having an outflow crown ring and an outflow portion comprising an outflow portion crown ring. The outflow crown ring includes outflow struts and outflow crowns coupled to the outflow struts. The outflow portion crown ring includes outflow portion struts and superior crowns coupled to the outflow portion struts. The valve prosthesis further comprises an inferior tissue bumper covering the outflow crowns and a superior tissue bumper covering the superior crowns. The tissue bumpers provide a buffer, sometimes called a padding or cushion, between the prosthetic valve and outflow crowns and superior crowns. In this manner, the tissue bumpers protect the prosthetic valve from being damaged by the outflow crowns and the superior crowns.

Abstract: An in-situ fenestration device. The device includes a sheath, a sonic catheter extending with the sheath and having a cutting tool at a distal section thereof, and a balloon catheter extending within the sonic catheter. The cutting tool of the sonic catheter is configured to cut a fenestration in a graft material at a fenestration site of a stent graft upon being energized with ultrasonic energy at a cutting frequency.