Staged-deployment stent graft assembly having a sacrifical port

Abstract

A staged-deployment stent graft assembly. A main stent graft has a sacrificial port extending therefrom. The stent graft has a compressed state and an expanded state. The staged-deployment stent graft assembly also includes an internal stent cuff located within the stent graft. The internal stent cuff has a constricted state and a non-constricted state. The internal stent cuff may be biased to expand from the constricted state to the non-constricted state to close the sacrificial port when the main stent graft is in the expanded state. The assembly also includes a filament structure maintaining the internal stent cuff in the constricted state. The assembly further includes a release configured to manipulate the filament structure to transition the internal stent cuff from the constricted state to the non-constricted state to close the sacrificial port when the main stent graft is in the expanded state.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A staged-deployment stent graft assembly comprising:
 a main stent graft having a sacrificial port extending therefrom, the main stent graft having a compressed state and an expanded state; and   an internal stent cuff located within the stent graft, the internal stent cuff having a constricted state and a non-constricted state,   the internal stent cuff biased to expand from the constricted state to the non-constricted state to close the sacrificial port when the main stent graft is in the expanded state.   
     
     
         2 . The staged-deployment stent graft assembly of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 a filament structure maintaining the internal stent cuff in the constricted state; and   a release configured to manipulate the filament structure to transition the internal stent cuff from the constricted state to the non-constricted state to close the sacrificial port when the main stent graft is in the expanded state.   
     
     
         3 . The staged-deployment stent graft assembly of  claim 2 , wherein the filament structure is formed from wires or threads. 
     
     
         4 . The staged-deployment stent graft assembly of  claim 2 , wherein the release is a wire release. 
     
     
         5 . The staged-deployment stent graft assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the main stent graft has a main body and first and second legs extending from the main body. 
     
     
         6 . A staged-deployment stent graft assembly comprising:
 a main stent graft having a sacrificial port extending therefrom, the main stent graft having a compressed state and an expanded state;   an internal stent cuff located within the stent graft, the internal stent cuff having a constricted state and a non-constricted state;   filament loops maintaining the internal stent cuff in the constricted state; and   a release configured to manipulate the filament loops to transition the internal stent cuff from the constricted state to the non-constricted state to close the sacrificial port when the main stent graft is in the expanded state.   
     
     
         7 . The staged-deployment stent graft assembly of  claim 6 , wherein the internal stent cuff includes a graft material and stents, and the filament loops are attached to the graft material to constrain the stents to maintain the internal stent cuff in the constricted state. 
     
     
         8 . The staged-deployment stent graft assembly of  claim 7 , wherein the filament loops are axially aligned with the stents of the internal stent cuff 
     
     
         9 . The staged-deployment stent graft assembly of  claim 6 , wherein the filament loops are looped about themselves such that first and second looped ends of each filament loop extend through each other. 
     
     
         10 . The staged-deployment stent graft assembly of  claim 9 , wherein the release is a release wire extending through the first and second looped ends of each filament loop to maintain the filament loops in a closed position. 
     
     
         11 . The staged-deployment stent graft assembly of  claim 10 , wherein the filament loops are configured to separate when the release wire is released from the filament loops, thereby allowing the internal stent cuff to transition from the constricted state to the non-constricted state. 
     
     
         12 . The staged-deployment stent graft assembly of  claim 6 , wherein the filament loops are formed from sutures. 
     
     
         13 . The staged-deployment stent graft assembly of  claim 6 , wherein the filament loops are formed from wires or threads. 
     
     
         14 . A staged-deployment stent graft assembly comprising:
 a main stent graft having a sacrificial port extending therefrom, the main stent graft having a compressed state and an expanded state;   an internal stent cuff located within the stent graft, the internal stent cuff having a constricted state and a non-constricted state;   a sheath maintaining the internal stent cuff in the constricted state and having first and second ends; and   a removable tie configured to tie the first and second ends of the sheath,   when the removable tie is removed, the internal stent cuff transitions from the constricted state to the non-constricted state to close the sacrificial port when the main stent graft is in the expanded state.   
     
     
         15 . The staged-deployment stent graft assembly of  claim 14 , wherein the first and second ends form a gap therebetween. 
     
     
         16 . The staged-deployment stent graft assembly of  claim 14 , wherein the removable tie is a removable suture. 
     
     
         17 . The staged-deployment stent graft assembly of  claim 16 , wherein the removable suture alternates stitches between the first and second ends of the sheath. 
     
     
         18 . The staged-deployment stent graft assembly of  claim 14 , further comprising a tether configured to remove the sheath after the internal stent cuff transitions into the non-constricted state. 
     
     
         19 . The staged-deployment stent graft assembly of  claim 14 , wherein the sheath is pinned to the main stent graft by the internal stent cuff when the main stent graft is in the expanded state and the internal stent cuff is in the non-constricted state. 
     
     
         20 . The staged-deployment stent graft assembly of  claim 14 , wherein the removable tie is formed from wires or threads.