Stent apparatus and treatment methods

Abstract

There is disclosed a method of treating hypoxia in tissue of a blood vessel, the method comprising placing a stent in the vessel, the stent having a centre line which curves in three dimensions to promote the supply of oxygen from the blood flowing in the lumen of the stented vessel to the vessel wall. There is disclosed a method of treating a subject with diabetic atherosclerosis, the method comprising placing a stent in a blood vessel of the subject, the stent having a centre line which curves in three dimensions to promote the supply of oxygen from the blood flowing in the lumen of the stented vessel to the vessel wall.

1 . Apparatus comprising a plurality of stents each having a centre line curving in three dimensions, the plurality of stents including at least one stent with a centre line having right-handed curvature and at least one stent with a centre line having left-handed curvature. 
     
     
         2 . Apparatus as claimed in  claim 1 , comprising a plurality of right-handed curved stents and a plurality of left-handed curved stents. 
     
     
         3 . A method of treating hypoxia in tissue of a blood vessel, the method comprising placing a stent in the vessel, the stent having a centre line which curves in three dimensions to promote the supply of oxygen from the blood flowing in the lumen of the stented vessel to the vessel wall. 
     
     
         4 . A method of treating a subject with diabetic atherosclerosis, the method comprising placing a stent in a blood vessel of the subject, the stent having a centre line which curves in three dimensions to promote the supply of oxygen from the blood flowing in the lumen of the stented vessel to the vessel wall. 
     
     
         5 . A method as claimed in  claim 3  or  4 , wherein the stent when expanded ex vivo has a helical centre line. 
     
     
         6 . A method as claimed in  claim 3 ,  4  or  5 , wherein the stent comprises a shape memory material. 
     
     
         7 . A method as claimed in  claim 3 ,  4  or  5 , wherein the stent comprises a plastically deformable material. 
     
     
         8 . A method as claimed in any of  claims 3  to  7 , wherein the stent is expanded with the aid of a balloon. 
     
     
         9 . A method of treating hypoxia in tissue of a blood vessel in which a stent is already disposed, the method comprising placing an expandable member in a collapsed condition thereof radially inwardly of the stent in the vessel, and expanding the expandable member from the collapsed condition to an expanded condition in which the expandable member has a centre line which curves in three dimensions, so as to cause the stent to adopt a shape in which it also has a centre line which curves in three dimensions. 
     
     
         10 . A method as claimed in  claim 9 , wherein the expandable member is a balloon. 
     
     
         11 . A method as claimed in  claim 9  or  10 , wherein the centre line of the expandable member when expanded ex vivo to the expanded condition is a helical centre line. 
     
     
         12 . A method as claimed in  claim 9 ,  10  or  11 , wherein the stent comprises a plastically deformable material. 
     
     
         13 . A method of treating a subject for whom blood vessel stenting is indicated, the method comprising placing a drug eluting stent in the vessel, the stent having a centre line which curves in three dimensions. 
     
     
         14 . A method as claimed in  claim 13 , wherein the vessel is a main vessel and a branch vessel extends from the main vessel, and wherein the stent is placed in the main vessel so that at least a portion of the stent extends in the main vessel upstream of the branch vessel. 
     
     
         15 . A method as claimed in  claim 14 , comprising stenting the branch vessel. 
     
     
         16 . A method of treating a subject for whom blood vessel stenting is indicated, wherein the vessel is a main vessel and a branch vessel extends from the main vessel, the method comprising placing the stent in the main vessel so that at least a portion of the stent extends in the main vessel upstream of the branch vessel, and the stent having a centre line which curves in three dimensions. 
     
     
         17 . A method of treating a blood vessel branching from another vessel having a stent therein with at least a portion of the stent being upstream of the branch vessel, the method comprising placing an expandable member in a collapsed condition thereof radially inwardly of the stent in the vessel, and expanding the expandable member from the collapsed condition to an expanded condition in which the expandable member has a centre line which curves in three dimensions, so as to cause the stent to adopt a shape in which it also has a centre line which curves in three dimensions. 
     
     
         18 . A method as claimed in  claim 17 , wherein the stent comprises a plastically deformable material. 
     
     
         19 . A drug eluting stent having a centre line which curves in three dimensions. 
     
     
         20 . A method of treating a subject for whom blood vessel stenting is indicated, comprising identifying a treatment site, determining whether natural vessel geometry at that treatment site will impart right-handed swirl flow or left-handed swirl flow to the blood flow along the vessel, and selecting for placement at the treatment site a stent having a centre line with three-dimensional curvature, the selected stent having right-handed curvature if the vessel has been determined to naturally impart right handed swirl flow and the selected stent having left-handed curvature if the vessel has been determined to naturally impart left-handed swirl flow.