Two valve caval stent for functional replacement of incompetent tricuspid valve

摘要

A two valve caval stent for functional replacement of an incompetent tricuspid valve. The device is designed for minimally invasive percutaneous transcatheter placement and includes two stents connected by a bridge sized to span the right atrium, and two valves anchored by the stents in the superior and inferior vena cavas. Each of the valves optionally has a conical shape divided by supporting struts into three cusps that simulate the action of a native tricuspid valve.

主权项

1. A two valve caval stent for functional replacement of an incompetent tricuspid valve, comprising:
caval valves including a superior vena cava valve and inferior vena cava valve, each of said caval valves including a flexible valve membrane having at least three cusps and a plurality of cone support struts supporting each of said cusps at angularly spaced apart locations, each of said flexible valve membranes having a generally conical shape allowing said cusps to flex inwardly and segment the blood flow through said valves; a first stent adapted to anchor said superior vena cava valve within the superior vena cava of a vertebrate body; a second stent adapted to anchor said inferior vena cava valve within the inferior vena cava of said body; a bridge, sized to span the right atrium, connecting said first and second vascular stents and said caval valves; and wherein the ends of said cone support struts opposite the apex of said conically shaped caval valves are non-cantilevered and are movably mounted to said bridge to adjust the distance between said caval valves prior to fixation inside the body.