摘要 |
<p>An ultrasonic imaging catheter (50) comprises a catheter body (52) having a distal region (54) and proximal region (56). The distal region (54) has a reduced cross-sectional area compared to that of the proximal region (56), and the proximal region includes at least two lumens (64, 66) therethrough for accommodating a movable guidewire (68) and a rotatable working element (72), respectively. The catheter body (52) may be inserted over the movable guidewire (68), with the guidewire (68) passing through a lumen (58) in the distal region and the guidewire lumen (64) in the proximal region. After positioning the catheter body (52), the guidewire (68) can be retracted from the distal region (54) and into the proximal region (56), leaving the lumen (58) in the distal region available for the rotatable working element (72). Such a construction allows over-the-wire imaging of the catheter while minimizing the width of the catheter (50) in the distal region (54) which remains available for placement of the working element (72).</p> |