Patent Application
20070118212
The invention relates to intravascular implants. In particular, the present invention relates to stent devices having a regioselective coating. The regioselective coating may contain a therapeutic agent or a radio-opaque material.
Characterized by a hardening of the cardiovascular arteries, arteriosclerosis is a medical condition that affects many patients. Fortunately, using medical procedures such as Percutaneous Transluminal Angioplasty (PTA), a sufficient flow of blood can be restored by implanting a tiny mesh tubular structure called a stent inside the affected lumen. In a typical PTA procedure, a stent is crimped about an inflatable balloon attached to the distal end of a catheter, and the catheter is introduced into a patient's vasculature. The catheter's distal end is maneuvered to a site of stenosis, where the balloon is inflated to expand the stent, compress the stenosis, and widen the lumen. The catheter is withdrawn after deflating the balloon. Normally, the procedure restores a sufficient blood flow, but over time, the flow of blood may again be restricted by vascular problems, such as restenosis, which occur at or near the treatment site.
Restenosis is the renarrowing of a lumen following treatment. A common type of restenosis, known as the “candy wrapper effect”, takes its name from stenotic overgrowths appearing at the ends of implanted radioactive stents that remind viewers of a candy wrapper twist-tied about a piece of candy. Typically, the stenotic overgrowths occur within about 2.0 mm of the stent ends. It is believed that the candy wrapper effect is caused in part by balloon expansion, which may injure the lumen, and by a rapid decline in therapeutic radiation levels at the stent ends to a level that no longer prevents or inhibits restenosis. The minimal radiation level proven to prevent or inhibit restenosis is called the threshold level—a radiation dosage below this level being referred to as sub-threshold or sub-therapeutic. The threshold level is estimated to be in the range of approximately 0.5 microcuries and approximately 4.0 microcuries.
Stents may be of various types. Those that are crimped about a balloon and expanded by inflating the balloon are called balloon-expandable stents. Those that are crimped about a balloon and expanded by inflating the balloon with a warm or hot liquid are called thermal self-expanding stents. And, those that are compressed within a tubular sleeve and expanded by withdrawing the tubular sleeve are called self-expanding stents.
Regardless of how deployed, stents may be made of metals, metal alloys, polymers, biodegradable materials, and/or composites thereof. Manufacturing processes such as plasma ion deposition and plasma ion implantation may be used to make stents radioactive and/or radio-opaque. Additionally, stents may be made drug-eluting by forming pores in the material(s) comprising the stent and filling the pores with a drug that performs anti-proliferative, anti-platelet, or anti-clotting functions. For some applications, bioactive materials such as fibronectin, laminin, elastin, collagen, and integregrin may be incorporated into stents. In one process, applying radiation or drugs to stents involves preparing a solution containing the desired therapeutic substance and spraying the solution onto a horizontally positioned, rotating stent via an airbrush that moves laterally back and forth along the length of the rotating stent. In another process, radioactive or drug-eluting stents may be manufactured by affixing hollow or solid biodegradable fibers made of, filled with, or coated with therapeutic agents to the main body of the stent using heat pressing, extrusion molding, solvent heating, and similar attachment methods.
Two problems unsolved by prior approaches to stent design are a drastic tapering of radiation and drug dosage levels at stent ends and difficulty forming elastomeric bands or strips containing desired therapeutic agents in situ about the main body of a stent. Thus, a need exists for a composite stent providing a mechanism for increasing the dosages of drugs and radiation at the stent ends, and for a method providing a procedure for forming elastomeric bands or strips containing desired therapeutic agents in situ about the main body of a stent.
A composite stent and methods for making the same are provided. In one embodiment a regioselective band is formed in situ on the stent. In one embodiment, the band is made of a regioselective material having a high creep compliance and having a second modulus of elasticity lower than that of a structural material comprising the stent. In one embodiment, the regioselective material is drip-coated or dip-coated on the stent near the ends. In one embodiment, the regioselective material includes a therapeutic agent, which may be a radioactive emitter, an anti-platelet drug, or an anti-proliferative drug.
As shown in
In one embodiment, the regioselective material forming bands 209 is applied to the stent 200 while the stent 200 is a compressed position. Because the stent 200 may later be expanded at a treatment site, it is important to choose a regioselective material that will expand as stent 200 expands without tearing and without exerting a harmful compressive restoring force. One way of ensuring proper stent expansion is to use a regioselective material having a high creep compliance and a modulus of elasticity lower than that of the structural material forming the main body of stent 200.
Related quantative measurements of a material's reaction to stress and strain, creep compliance and modulus of elasticity vary for each particular type of material. For example, creep compliance is the ratio of strain to the applied stress, while the modulus of elasticity is the ratio of the applied stress to strain. Most materials used in the manufacture of stents are viscoelastic materials, which are materials formed of a combination of viscous and elastic components. Materials having a low creep compliance, such as purely elastic materials, tend to exert an immediate and strong restoring force when stretched or compressed. On the other hand, materials having a high creep compliance, such as purely viscous materials, tend to exert a gradual and weak restoring force when compressed or stretched.
In one embodiment, the material or materials used to form regioselective bands 209 or strips (not shown) are viscoelastic materials having a high creep compliance because such materials are easily expandable and typically exert a gradual and weak restoring force that avoids collapsing or substantially deforming an expanded stent over time. In one embodiment, the creep compliance may be approximately 0.3846 Giga-Pascals (GPa)−1, and may range from approximately 0.5 GPa−1 to approximately 10.0 GPa−1. In another embodiment, elastic materials may be used provided care is taken to ensure that the stent in its expanded state is capable of sustaining the elastic material's immediate and strong restoring force without collapsing or substantially deforming the expanded stent over time.
Anti-proliferative drugs, anti-platelet drugs, TB3A inhibitors, and nictric oxide donors, bioactive drugs, blood compatible matrices, and radioactive emitters may be incorporated in the structural and/or regioselective materials forming stent 200. In one embodiment, the blood compatible matrices and bioactive drugs may be bio-absorbable. Substances that may be incorporated in a stent or its components to make the stent visible under a fluoroscope include heavy rare earth metals such as gold, micronized tantalum, platinum-iridium, and similar materials. Examples of blood compatible matrices and bioactive drugs that may be used to form a regioselective band 209 or a regioselective strip illustratively include:
It is noted that the above list is not exhaustive, and that additional materials well known to persons skilled in the art may be used. Materials a, b, n, o, p, q above are examples of polymer materials that may be used to form polymeric bands. Materials n-r above are examples of bio-absorbable matrices. In one embodiment, in situ tissue components may be used to facilitate better tissue compatibility. In some cases, use of such tissue components may promote possible secondary endothelialization (EC) in growth into the stent. In one embodiment, the entire length of the stent may be created with the EC-conductive materials, and the stent ends may be further coated with radioactivity. In another embodiment, non-coagulant, co-components like DURAFLO ®, or low molecular weight heparin (LMWH), may be used to prevent any acute thrombogenic episodes, and to address the three issues commonly associated with radioactive struts; namely, late healing, candy wrapper effect, and late thrombosis.
In one embodiment, regioselective bands 209 or regioselective strips 302 may be preformed and then affixed to a stent using a biocompatible medical adhesive. Fibrin glue, cyanoacrylate, FocalSeal®, carboxymethyl cellulose, gelatin-resorcin-formaldehyde glue (GRF), silk elastin, tropoelastin added with an in situ cross-linker such as lysine peroxidase and similar materials, water soluble chondroitin sulfate, are examples of biocompatible adhesives that may be used.
At Block 403, the solution is dripped onto the rotating stent such that a semi-solid or solid conformal band results after one or more complete revolutions of the stent. In one embodiment, the viscosity of the solution is such that the solution streams from the drip nozzle like a liquid fiber and loops about the stent to form a concentric annular band having a substantially tubular diameter of approximately 0.5 to approximately 5.0 microns. In another embodiment, the viscosity of the solution is such that the solution streams from the drip nozzle like a liquid fiber and spreads somewhat laterally across a discrete portion of the stent to form a conformal band of substantially uniform width of approximately 0.5 mm to about 3.0 mm, and a variable elastic or semi-elastic thickness of approximately 1.0 to approximately 5.0 microns when cured. At Block 404, the flow of viscous solution is stopped, and the band is cured by either washing away the solvent, or by air-drying the band. At block 405, the process may be repeated at the same or another discrete area of the stent until a desired dosimetry profile and/or regioselective thickness is achieved. At Block 406, the stent may be sterilized with radiation; heat, or chemicals. Because individual therapeutic agents degrade at different temperatures and react differently when brought into contact with radiation or chemicals, care should be taken to ensure that the sterilization method used does not adversely affect the therapeutic agent incorporated in the regioselective material. In one embodiment, an electron beam sterilization method is used in which the stent is subjected to 3.5 Mrad. At Block 407, the stent may be packaged in a sterile container for delivery to a user.
In
At Block 503, the solution may be dripped onto the sliding stent such that a semi-solid or solid conformal strip results after one or more complete passes of the stent. In one embodiment, the viscosity of the solution is such that the solution streams from the drip nozzle like a liquid fiber and lays along the stent to form a longitudinal strip having a substantially tubular diameter of approximately 0.5 to approximately 5.0 microns. In another embodiment, the viscosity of the solution is such that the solution streams from the drip nozzle like a liquid fiber and spreads somewhat laterally across a discrete portion of the stent to form a conformal strip having a substantially uniform width of approximately 0.5 mm to about 3.0 mm, and a variable elastic or semi-elastic thickness of approximately 1.0 to approximately 5.0 microns when cured. At Block 504, the flow of viscous solution is stopped, and the strip is cured by either washing away the solvent, or by air-drying the strip. At block 505, the process may be repeated at the same or another discrete area of the stent until a desired dosimetry profile and/or regioselective thickness is achieved. At Block 506, the stent may be sterilized with radiation, heat, or chemicals. Because individual therapeutic agents degrade at different temperatures and react differently when brought into contact with radiation or chemicals, care should be taken to ensure that the sterilization method used does not adversely affect the therapeutic agent incorporated in the regioselective material. In one embodiment, an electron beam sterilization method is used in which the stent is subjected to approximately 3.5 MRad. At Block 507, the stent may be packaged in a sterile container for delivery to a user.
With reference to the methods described above, the distance separating the outer surface of the stent from the tip of the drip nozzle may vary depending on the viscosity of the solution, the air temperature, and the air humidity. For example, very dry hot air may necessitate placing the stent close to the drip nozzle to prevent the viscous solution from drying too quickly. Alternatively, if the air is cool and humid, the stent may be placed further away from the drip nozzle. Similarly, using a very viscous solution may necessitate placing the stent close to the drip nozzle to avoid unnecessarily stretching the solution via free fall. Alternatively, using a less viscous solution may allow the stent to be placed further away from the drip nozzle. In one embodiment, a viscosity of approximately 100 centipoises (cP) at room temperature is used with a distance of approximately 5.0 cm separating the stent from the drip nozzle. Illustratively, the viscosity may range from approximately 5.0 cP to 1,000 cP at room temperature, and the distance may range from approximately 1.0 cm to approximately 15.0 cm. In another embodiment, a viscosity of approximately 50.0 cP to approximately 500 cP at room temperature is used, with a distance of approximately 3.0 cm to approximately 8.0 cm separating the stent from the drip nozzle.
In one embodiment, air-drying the band or strip involves rotating the stent in a stream of air, which temperature is in the range of approximately room temperature to approximately 70° C., for approximately 5.0 seconds to approximately 1.50 minutes. Because different drugs degrade at different temperatures, it should be noted that the temperature involved in the curing process may vary depending on the type of drug used. Accordingly, the air temperature should be monitored to ensure that it remains within acceptable limits. Similarly, the length of time required to cure the band varies depending on the viscosity of the material(s) comprising the band. For example, the more viscous a material, the longer the time needed to cure it thoroughly.
The rotation speed of the motor, the viscosity of the composition, and the flow rate of the drip nozzle may be adjusted as desired to modify the band or strip layers. Generally, with the above mixes, the best results for bands are obtained using rotational speeds in the range of approximately 1.0 rpm to approximately 60.0 rpm, with a drip nozzle flow rate appropriately adjusted to yield a smooth, conformal coating. The flow rate may be varied depending on the speed at which the stent is rotated. For example, a slow rotation may necessitate a slow drip nozzle flow rate, and vice versa. In one embodiment, a flow rate of approximately 0.1 ml/min is used, with the flow rate variable in the range of approximately 0.01 ml/min to approximately 2.0 ml/min. While the above methods were illustratively described with reference to a single stent, it should be noted that the methods may be used to process multiple stents simultaneously. For example, two or more stents may be coupled to a frame, positioned near a corresponding number of drip nozzles, and then rotated or slided, cured, and sterilized.
With reference to the centrifugation method described above, a viscosity of approximately 100 cP at room temperature is used, with a rotational speed of approximately 7,000 rev/min for approximately 1.0 min. Illustratively, the viscosity may range from approximately 100 cP to approximately 1,000 cP at room temperature with rotational speeds in the range of approximately 2,000 rev/min to approximately 10,000 rev/min and times of approximately 20.0 seconds to approximately 2.0 min. The rotational speed of the centrifuge, the viscosity of the composition, the air temperature and humidity inside the centrifuge, and time of rotation may be adjusted as desired to modify the band layers. For example, a very viscous material may require higher rotational speeds and longer drying times than a low viscous material.
An advantage provided by the centrifugation process over the prior art is that the process produces a thin conformal coating relatively free from defects such as blobs, rips, and tears.
Although the invention has been described with reference to preferred embodiments, persons skilled in the art will recognize that changes may be made in form and in detail without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.
This is a divisional application of U.S. Ser. No. 10/668,781, which was filed on Sep. 22, 2003, which is a divisional of U.S. Pat. No. 6,656,216, issued on Dec. 2, 2003, which are all incorporated by reference herein.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | 10668781 | Sep 2003 | US |
| Child | 11641381 | Dec 2006 | US |
| Parent | 09895753 | Jun 2001 | US |
| Child | 10668781 | Sep 2003 | US |
