Granted Patent B2

US 12,558,521 · App. 17/954,889 · Granted Feb 24, 2026

Inventors: Christopher Nason Korkuch (Danvers, MA); Glen R. Fantuzzi (Danvers, MA); Alexander Ship (Danvers, MA); Robert Swierczek (Danvers, MA); Robert Fishman (Danvers, MA)

Assignee: ABIOMED, Inc.

A61M25/0662A61M25/0023A61M25/0045A61M25/005A61M25/0097A61M60/13A61M60/165A61M60/216A61M60/865A61M2025/0024A61M2025/004A61M2025/0047A61M2025/0681A61M2039/0626

Abstract

Claims (25)

1 . An introducer sheath for insertion of a medical device into a blood vessel, the introducer sheath comprising:

an expandable sheath frame having a length, a proximal end, and a distal end,

the frame comprising a plurality of strands extending longitudinally between the proximal end and the distal end, and having an exterior and an interior that form an interior lumen along the length of the frame,

the frame being configured to achieve an expanded state and a contracted state, the expanded state forming an expanded cross-section in the lumen for passing the medical device therethrough; and

a coating that forms a smooth exterior surface on the frame,

wherein the frame has protrusions extending into the lumen along the interior,

wherein the plurality of strands comprise first and second overlapping strands, wherein, at an overlap, one of the first or second overlapping strands extends radially inward from the other of the first or second overlapping strands toward the interior of the frame.

2 . The introducer sheath of claim 1 , wherein the coating is a polymer layer covering an outer circumference of the frame and forming the smooth exterior surface.

3 . The introducer sheath of claim 1 , wherein the expandable sheath frame comprises an expansion mechanism configured to allow the frame to expand and contract.

4 . The introducer sheath of claim 3 , wherein the expansion mechanism comprises the plurality of strands configured with a bias to expand or contract from a resting position.

5 . The introducer sheath of claim 4 , wherein the expansion mechanism is configured to permit the strands to slide relative to each other when the frame expands and contracts.

6 . The introducer sheath of claim 1 , wherein at an overlap, the coating covers an exterior-facing side of one of the first overlapping strand or the second overlapping strand and an interior-facing side of the other of the first overlapping strand or the second overlapping strand.

7 . The introducer sheath of claim 1 , wherein one of the first overlapping strand and the second overlapping strand overlaps with the other of the first overlapping strand or the second overlapping strand to form the protrusions that project into the lumen.

8 . The introducer sheath of claim 1 , wherein the coating extends about the interior.

9 . The introducer sheath of claim 1 , wherein the coating covers the protrusions along the interior.

10 . The introducer sheath of claim 9 , wherein, in a region that the coating covers the protrusions, the coating has a first thickness, and, in a region that the coating extends about the exterior, the coating has a second thickness.

11 . The introducer sheath of claim 10 , wherein the first thickness is less than the second thickness.

12 . The introducer sheath of claim 1 , wherein the frame comprises a braided mesh formed of the plurality of strands.

13 . The introducer sheath of claim 12 , wherein the plurality of strands comprises a first group of strands that are wrapped in a spiral direction along the length.

14 . The introducer sheath of claim 13 , wherein the plurality of strands comprises a second group of strands.

15 . The introducer sheath of claim 2 , wherein a thickness of the polymer layer is less than a thickness of the protrusions extending into the lumen along the interior.

16 . The introducer sheath of claim 15 , wherein the thickness of the protrusions is less than a thickness of a strand of the plurality of strands.

17 . The introducer sheath of claim 1 , further comprising a sheath tip at the distal end of the expandable sheath frame, the sheath tip having a thickness, wherein the sheath tip thickness is greater than a thickness of the expandable sheath frame.

18 . The introducer sheath of claim 17 , wherein the sheath tip is made of a first material and the expandable sheath is made of a second material different than the first material.

19 . The introducer sheath of claim 17 , wherein the distal tip of the sheath is stiffer than the proximal end of the sheath.

Assignments (1)

Continuity (3)

References Cited (197)