Claims
- 1. An expandable, biodegradable stent for use within a body lumen comprising a hollow tube coated with a radiation-absorbing coating that, in unexpanded form, is of a first diameter sufficient to be retained upon a balloon catheter for placement within the body lumen, that is not plastically expandable at normal body temperatures, and that is expandable using thermo-mechanical means at a temperature between about 38° to 60° C. when the balloon catheter is inflated to a second diameter sufficient to be retained within the body lumen.
- 2. The stent of claim 1, wherein the hollow tube comprises a polymer, copolymer, or polymer blend containing one or more compounds selected from the group consisting of poly(D,L-lactide), poly(glycolide), poly(L-lactide), poly(ε-caprolactone), and poly(ethylene glycol).
- 3. The stent of claim 1, wherein the radiation-absorbing coating comprises a chromophore selected from the group consisting of indocyanine green, vital blue, carbon black and methylene blue.
- 4. The stent of claim 3, wherein the radiation-absorbing coating further comprises a biodegradable coating material.
- 5. The stent of claim 4, wherein the biodegradable coating material comprises a polymer, copolymer, or polymer blend containing one or more compounds selected from the group consisting of poly(D,L-lactide), poly(glycolide), poly(L-lactide), poly(ε-caprolactone), and poly(ethylene glycol).
- 6. The stent of claim 4, wherein the biodegradable coating material further comprises a drug.
- 7. The stent of claim 6, wherein the drug is selected from the group consisting of antithrombotics, anticoagulants, antimitogens, antimitotoxins, antisense oligonucleotides, gene therapy vehicles, nitric oxide, photo-activated agents, growth factors and inhibitors, hirudin, hirugen, HIRULOG, PPACK, D-FPRCH2CL, peptide-based inhibitors, heparin and warfarin.
- 8. The stent of claim 1, wherein the tube is imperforate.
- 9. The stent of claim 1, wherein the tube is perforated.
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
The present application is a divisional application of U.S. application Ser. No. 09/715,215, filed Nov. 17, 2000, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,607,553.
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