Abstract: Disclosed is a system for detecting an acute myocardial infarction (i.e., a heart attack) at the earliest possible time and promptly warning the patient that he should immediately seek medical care. The present invention includes an implantable electronic system that can sense a change in the patient's electrogram that is indicative of a heart attack. If a heart attack is sensed, the device would then cause an implantable and/or externally located alarm to be actuated to warn the patient of his condition and a medical practitioner at a remote diagnostic center would receive the patient's electrogram for analysis. The patient or a caretaker would then be informed to self-inject medication through a subcutaneous, pass-through drug port that can be a separate device or integrated into the implanted device that is designed for the early detection of a heart attack.

Abstract: A stent which is adapted for placement in the vessels of a human body is provided. The stent may be in the form of a thin-walled metal cylinder having a longitudinal axis. The stent has a proximal end and a distal end and includes a number of circumferentially relatively rigid portions. The relatively rigid portions are joined to each other by one or mor longitudinals which extend in a substantially longitudinal direction. At least a portion of at least one of the longitudinals has an undulating shape where a first relatively rigid portion is located at the proximal end of the stent and a second relatively rigid portion is located at the distal end of the stent.

Abstract: Disclosed is an open cell stent that has adjacent sets of circumferential struts connected by means of highly flexible, undulating, connecting struts. To decrease outward flaring of the circumferential struts when the pre-deployed stent is advanced through highly curved vessels, each unconnected strut of the sets of circumferential struts has a decreased longitudinal length as compared to the longitudinal length of the circumferential struts that are connected by the flexible connecting struts. To decrease the propensity for outward flaring of the end set of circumferential struts, the longitudinal length of the end set of circumferential struts is shorter than the longitudinal length of the interior set of circumferential struts. Also, the attachment point of the flexible connecting struts is off the center of the curved sections of the circumferential struts, thus also decreasing the tendency for outward flaring of the end set of circumferential struts.

Abstract: An expandable stent for delivery to a coronary artery. The stent has at least two longitudinally spaced apart circumferential rings having closed ends. Each of the circumferential rings has at least two peak segments and at least two valley segments. At least one longitudinally extending connector extends between adjacent circumferential rings. The connector has a first end portion fixedly connected to a first circumferential ring and a second end portion fixedly connected to an adjacent circumferential ring. The connector has at least one circumferentially extending turn back portion between its first and second end portions that can expand or contract in length while being passed through a curved coronary artery.

Abstract: A preferred embodiment of this invention is a stent that is coated with an anti-restenosis drug that is selected from the group that includes, Alkeran, Cytoxan, Leukeran, Cis-platinum, BiCNU, Adriamycin, Doxorubicin, Cerubidine, Idamycin, Mithracin, Mutamycin, Fluorouracil, Methotrexate, Thoguanine, Toxotere, Etoposide, Vincristine, Irinotecan, Hycamptin, Matulane, Vumon, Hexalin, Hydroxyurea, Gemzar, Oncovin, Etophophos, tacrolimus (FK506), and the following analogs of sirolimus: SDZ-RAD, CCI-779, 7-epi-rapamycin, 7-thiomethyl-rapamycin, 7-epi-trimethoxyphenyl-rapamycin, 7-epi-thiomethyl-rapamycin, 7-demethoxy-rapamycin, 32-demethoxy, 2-desmethyl and proline.

Abstract: Disclosed is an open cell stent that has adjacent sets of circumferential struts connected by means of highly flexible, undulating, connecting struts. To decrease outward flaring of the circumferential struts when the pre-deployed stent is advanced through highly curved vessels, each unconnected strut of the sets of circumferential struts has a decreased longitudinal length as compared to the longitudinal length of the circumferential struts that are connected by the flexible connecting struts. To decrease the propensity for outward flaring of the end set of circumferential struts, the longitudinal length of the end set of circumferential struts is shorter than the longitudinal length of the interior set of circumferential struts. Also, the attachment point of the flexible connecting struts is off the center of the curved sections of the circumferential struts, thus also decreasing the tendency for outward flaring of the end set of circumferential struts.

Abstract: The system is used for treatment of a stenosis of a vessel of the human body as follows:

Abstract: This invention is an anti-proliferative drug placed onto or within a sterile sheet or mesh that is designed to be placed between internal body tissues to prevent the formation of post-operative adhesions, which adhesions are really scar tissue formation. This mesh or gauze onto or into which the drug is placed may be either a permanent implant or it may be biodegradable. By impregnating an existing product such as the Johnson & Johnson SURGICEL™ absorbable hemostat gauze-like sheet with an anti-proliferative drug such as Rapamycin or Taxol, the biodegradable, drug impregnated mesh would act as a barrier to cell proliferation and hence be a deterrent to the formation of adhesions. Another embodiment of this invention is an anti-proliferative drug attached to a bandage that is placed onto a cut in the skin to decrease scar tissue formation.

Abstract: The present invention uses sets of strut members where the most distal set of strut members is similar to that of most stents in that the plane of the distal set of strut members is perpendicular to the stent's longitudinal axis. The present invention has a multiplicity of circumferential sets of strut members, but only the distal set of strut members has its plane perpendicular to the stent's longitudinal axis. The more proximal sets of strut members are angulated, so that the plane of the most proximal set of strut members has a preset angle such as 30°, 45° or 60° relative to the stent's longitudinal axis. The stent could also be formed from or coated with a highly radiopaque material.

Abstract: Disclosed is a completely implantable system that can detect the occurrence of a myocardial infarction, i.e., a heart attack, and automatically inject a thrombolytic and/or anti-thrombogenic agent into the bloodstream to promptly dissolve the thrombus that caused the myocardial infarction and prevent the formation of additional thrombi. It is well known that a myocardial infarction can be detected from a patient's electrocardiogram by noting an ST segment voltage deviation. Upon detection of a myocardial infarction, an ST segment deviation electronic detection circuit within the implanted device can produce an output signal that can cause a thrombolytic and/or anti-thrombogenic agent contained within an implanted, pressurized reservoir to immediately and automatically release medications into the patient's bloodstream. A patient warning system is also provided by an audio alarm or an electrical tickle within the human body indicating that a myocardial infarction has been detected.

Abstract: The present invention is a stent delivery system that uses a short section of a guide wire that is fixedly attached to a distal section of a balloon angioplasty catheter. By not having a guide wire that slides through the balloon of the balloon angioplasty catheter, the balloon on which the stent is mounted can have a reduced diameter. Therefore, the outside diameter of the undeployed stent mounted onto that balloon is also minimized. This provides a minimum profile, i.e., a minimum outside diameter, for the stent. A minimum profile at the distal section of the stent delivery system is highly advantageous for improving the percentage of cases that can be treated by means of direct stenting; i.e., without requiring pre-dilation of a stenosis.

Abstract: This invention is an anti-proliferative drug placed onto or within a sterile sheet or mesh that is designed to be placed between internal body tissues to prevent the formation of post-operative adhesions, which adhesions are really scar tissue formation. This mesh or gauze onto or into which the drug is placed may be either a permanent implant or it may be biodegradable. By impregnating an existing product such as the Johnson & Johnson SURGICEL™ absorbable hemostat gauze-like sheet with an anti-proliferative drug such as Rapamycin or Taxol, the biodegradable, drug impregnated mesh would act as a barrier to cell proliferation and hence be a deterrent to the formation of adhesions. Another embodiment of this invention is an anti-proliferative drug attached to a bandage that is placed onto a cut in the skin to decrease scar tissue formation.

Abstract: A stent which is adapted for placement in the vessels of a human body is provided. The stent may be in the form of a thin-walled metal cylinder having a longitudinal axis. The stent has a proximal end and a distal end and includes a number of circumferentially relatively rigid portions. The relatively rigid portions are joined to each other by one or more longitudinals which extend in a substantially longitudinal direction. At least a portion of at least one of the longitudinals has an undulating shape where a first relatively rigid portion is located at the proximal end of the stent and a second relatively rigid portion is located at the distal end of the stent.

Abstract: The present invention is a stent delivery system that uses a short section of a guide wire that is fixedly attached to a distal section of a balloon angioplasty catheter. By not having a guide wire that slides through the balloon of the balloon angioplasty catheter, the balloon on which the stent is mounted can have a reduced diameter. Therefore, the outside diameter of the undeployed stent mounted onto that balloon is also minimized. This provides a minimum profile, i.e., a minimum outside diameter, for the stent. A minimum profile at the distal section of the stent delivery system is highly advantageous for improving the percentage of cases that can be treated by direct stenting; i.e., without requiring pre-dilation of a stenosis.

Abstract: The present invention is a hybrid stent that is defined as having a central section that is balloon expandable and end sections that are self-expanding. The entire stent is mounted on a balloon of a balloon angioplasty catheter. One way to retain the self-expanding portion of the stent onto a balloon onto which it has been nested is to place a cylindrical elastomer tube around each of the self-expanding end sections of the stent.

Abstract: The present invention is a hybrid stent that is defined as having a central section that is balloon expandable and end sections that are self-expanding. The entire stent is mounted on a balloon of a balloon angioplasty catheter. One way to retain the self-expanding portion of the stent onto a balloon onto which it has been nested is to place a cylindrical elastomer tube around each of the self-expanding end sections of the stent.

Abstract: Disclosed is a balloon on a distal portion of a balloon angioplasty catheter. The section of the balloon onto which a stent can be mounted has a central segment that is substantially cylindrical in shape that is centered between two segments each having the shape of a sector of a prolate spheroid. This shape for a balloon for a stent delivery catheter provides a more cylindrical shape for the stent after it is implanted in an artery that has a typical distribution of plaque in an arterial stenosis, which distribution of plaque is greatest for some limited length at a central region of the stenosis and then decreases somewhat uniformly as one approaches the edges of the stenosis. Another embodiment of the invention utilizes two segments that are frustums of a cone instead of sectors of a prolate spheroid, which conical segments surround the central cylindrical segment.

Abstract: Disclosed is a system for detecting a myocardial infarction (i.e., a heart attack) at the earliest possible time and promptly warning the patient that he should immediately seek medical care. Specifically, a first embodiment of the present invention has an implantable electronic system that can sense a change in the patient's electrogram that is indicative of a myocardial infarction. If a myocardial infarction is sensed, the device would then cause an implantable or externally located alarm means such as an audio sound to be actuated to warn the patient of his condition. The patient could then promptly seek medical care, for example, at a hospital emergency room. Having been trained to recognize such an alarm, most patient would neither fail to recognize such an indication of a myocardial infarction nor would they ignore such an alarm signal if it were to occur.

Abstract: Disclosed is a balloon on a distal portion of a balloon angioplasty catheter. The section of the balloon onto which a stent can be mounted has a central segment that is substantially cylindrical in shape that is centered between two segments each having the shape of a sector of a prolate spheroid. This shape for a balloon for a stent delivery catheter provides a more cylindrical shape for the stent after it is implanted in an artery that has a typical distribution of plaque in an arterial stenosis, which distribution of plaque is greatest for some limited length at a central region of the stenosis and then decreases somewhat uniformly as one approaches the edges of the stenosis. Another embodiment of the invention utilizes two segments that are frustums of a cone instead of sectors of a prolate spheroid, which conical segments surround the central cylindrical segment. Also disclosed is a balloon whose compliance decreases continuously as a function of the distance away from either end of the central segment.

Abstract: Disclosed is a completely implantable system that can detect the occurrence of a myocardial infarction, i.e., a heart attack, and automatically inject a thrombolytic and/or anti-thrombogenic agent into the bloodstream to promptly dissolve the thrombus that caused the myocardial infarction and prevent the formation of additional thrombi. It is well known that a myocardial infarction can be detected from a patient's electrocardiogram by noting an ST segment voltage deviation as compared to the voltage of the patient's TP or PQ segments. Upon detection of a myocardial infarction, an ST segment deviation electronic detection circuit within the implanted device can produce an output signal that can cause a thrombolytic and/or anti-thrombogenic agent contained within an implanted, pressurized reservoir to immediately and automatically release medications into the patient's bloodstream.