Importance

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Abstract

A medical retrieval device 10 is disclosed comprising an elongated cylindrical member 11 that includes a continuum of a material 40, preferably a metal such as stainless steel or nitinol, that forms both the resilient grasping members 13 of retrieval basket 54, snare 26, or grasper forceps 23, and the proximal portion 21 or shaft of the device. The elongated cylindrical member can include a metal cannula 60 or solid rod 62 into which a series of laterally adjacent longitudinal slots 15 are cut or formed in the distal portion 37 of the elongated cylindrical member to form a plurality of resilient grasping members. These slots may be cut in a spiral configuration to produce a helical basket 69. The resilient grasping members in the original compact shape 17 are formed into an enlarged shape 18 to create a workspace volume 28 for the capture, manipulation and/or retrieval of an object within a patient. An external constraining device 14, such as an outer sheath, is used for introducing of the device and to compress the resilient grasping members over a calculus 24 or other object into a substantially closed position 30. An internal actuating member 29 within the passage 12 of the elongated cylindrical member can provide an alternative method of opening and closing the retrieval device. Using a small thin-walled cannula, retrieval devices of the present invention can fit through the accessory channel 46 of a small endoscope, such as an ureteroscope 44 while still having a sufficient lumen size to accommodate an ancillary treatment device 25 such as a standard 200 micron laser fiber or lithotripsy wire. The present invention also includes a retrieval device made from a plastic tube 32 having encased reinforcement wires 31. By removing all material 66 except the reinforcement wires from the distal portion of the elongated cylindrical member, the exposed wires can become the resilient grasping members of a basket or forceps.

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First Claim