| 摘要 |
<p>A stent crimping tool (22) for firmly and uniformly crimping a stent (10) onto a balloon catheter is constructed from a housing containing a silicone tube (28) wherein the silicone tube is compressed by a thumb screw (24) that is threaded into one end of the housing (26). The silicone tube (28) has a passage containing a premounted uncrimped stent. The balloon catheter is inserted through the thumb screw (24) and aligned with the stent inside the tube (28). Both ends of the silicone tubing are tapered and engage a tapered internal end inside the housing (26) and a tapered recess inside the thumb screw (24). Advancing the thumb screw (24) decreases the length of the silicone tubing (28) and reshapes it so that the inside diameter of the passage decreases thereby crimping the stent onto the balloon. In an alternative embodiment, the opposite end of the housing is fitted with a second thumb screw. Further, the silicone tubing can be separated into two discrete segments by an annular washer located at a mid-point along the length of the silicone tube.</p> |
