STENT

摘要

Provided are stents having a following configuration and improved durability under bending loads and flexibility. The stent comprises a tubular body comprising a plurality of ring units being arranged in the axis direction and bridged by a connecting element and is expandable in the radius direction from its inside. Each of the ring units comprises a plurality of cells connected with each other, each of the cells having a substantially U-shaped form comprising two substantially linear parts and a substantially circular arc part therebetween, and opening toward one end along the axis direction. The ring units comprise first and second ring units alternatively arranged and the oppositely disposed cells of the adjoining first and second ring units are only partly bridged by the connecting elements creating connection between the arc parts of the oppositely disposed cells. The shapes of the cells of the first and second ring units are axisymmetrical of the stent about the connecting element. The curvature radius of the top of the arc constituting the arc part is 1.1 and 1.5 times larger than that of each of the tangent circles formed at the edges of two substantially linear parts of the cell on the circular arc part side.