Medtronic Leading the Way in Stent Design
Stent technology is currently a very important area of biomedical research with many companies searching for ways to improve current stent designs. Medtronic has recently gotten FDA approval for a new stent design which utilizes continuous sinusoid technology to provide more stent flexibility while maintaining vital stent design characteristics.
Conventionally, stents have been constructed using rings of cobalt alloys to provide support to the artery. Medtronic's stent design, the Integrity Coronary Stent, discards this traditional approach and instead uses a single wire coiled into a shape similar to that of a compressed spring. The stent is made from a cobalt alloy and is laser fused in a pattern similar to the current Driver bare metal stent. This approach increases the flexibility of the stent, allowing easier delivery into the artery by surgeons. In vivo testing has shown this stent to be easily deliverable as well as being able to effectively conform to the artery's natural shape to achieve a better fit.
Other than the obvious benefits of this stent, doctors and researchers are also excited about the capabilities of continuous sinusoid technology in stent design. In the future, this technology could enable the creation of drug-filled, polymer-free stents as well as serving as a platform for numerous other stent advancements. This design will surely become the new gold standard for stent production while opening up the door for future technologies.
This article is particularly interesting to me due to the fact that as a bioengineer I am planning to specialize in biomechanics, specifically cardiovascular biomechanics. Since stent design is such a crucial area in this field, it is important for me to stay current with today's technology. Designs based around continuous sinusoid technology will likely be something I will work with in the future. Besides the educational aspects of the article, it also interests me because of the fact that my family has had a history of heart disease. Advancements like this could help alleviate the problems which many members of my family, and possibly even myself, will most likely have with Coronary Artery Disease.
Sources:
Medtronic: http://wwwp.medtronic.com/Newsroom/NewsReleaseDetails.do?itemId=1285004066362&lang=en_US
Medical News Today: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/201809.php
HealthImaging.com: http://www.healthimaging.com/index.php?option=com_articles&view=article&id=24176:fda-approves-medtronics-integrity-stent-platform
Conventionally, stents have been constructed using rings of cobalt alloys to provide support to the artery. Medtronic's stent design, the Integrity Coronary Stent, discards this traditional approach and instead uses a single wire coiled into a shape similar to that of a compressed spring. The stent is made from a cobalt alloy and is laser fused in a pattern similar to the current Driver bare metal stent. This approach increases the flexibility of the stent, allowing easier delivery into the artery by surgeons. In vivo testing has shown this stent to be easily deliverable as well as being able to effectively conform to the artery's natural shape to achieve a better fit.
Other than the obvious benefits of this stent, doctors and researchers are also excited about the capabilities of continuous sinusoid technology in stent design. In the future, this technology could enable the creation of drug-filled, polymer-free stents as well as serving as a platform for numerous other stent advancements. This design will surely become the new gold standard for stent production while opening up the door for future technologies.
This article is particularly interesting to me due to the fact that as a bioengineer I am planning to specialize in biomechanics, specifically cardiovascular biomechanics. Since stent design is such a crucial area in this field, it is important for me to stay current with today's technology. Designs based around continuous sinusoid technology will likely be something I will work with in the future. Besides the educational aspects of the article, it also interests me because of the fact that my family has had a history of heart disease. Advancements like this could help alleviate the problems which many members of my family, and possibly even myself, will most likely have with Coronary Artery Disease.
Sources:
Medtronic: http://wwwp.medtronic.com/Newsroom/NewsReleaseDetails.do?itemId=1285004066362&lang=en_US
Medical News Today: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/201809.php
HealthImaging.com: http://www.healthimaging.com/index.php?option=com_articles&view=article&id=24176:fda-approves-medtronics-integrity-stent-platform
posted by Matt Wilcox at 1:05 PM
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