HIGHLY FLEXIBLE STENT AND METHOD OF MANUFACTURE

摘要

Preferred embodiments of a stent with a high degree of flexibility are shown and described. The stent can include a continuous helical winding and at least one bridge. The continuous helical winding has a plurality of circumferential sections that circumscribe a longitudinal axis from a first end to a second end to define a tube. The circumferential sections are spaced apart along the axis. The at least one bridge is configured to connect one circumferential section to an axially-spaced adjacent circumferential section. The at least one bridge extends on a plane generally orthogonal with respect to the axis.