Flexible helical stent having different helical regions

摘要

The present invention relates to tubular stents that are implanted within a body lumen. The stent (1500) has a cylindrical shape defining a longitudinal axis and includes a proximal helical section (1506), a distal helical section (1507) and an intermediate ring section (1520) there between. Each of the proximal and distal helical sections has of a plurality of longitudinally oriented strut members (1513) and a plurality of circumferentially oriented hinge members (1154) connecting circumferentially adjacent strut members to form a band, the band being wrapped about the longitudinal axis in a substantially helical manner to form a plurality of helical windings, wherein the distal helical section is wound about the longitudinal axis in the opposite direction from the proximal helical section. The intermediate ring section includes a plurality of longitudinally oriented strut members and a plurality of circumferentially oriented hinge members connecting circumferentially adjacent strut members to form an endless ring.