| abstract |
A clot extraction catheter comprises a tubular mesh, a tapered tip fixed to the tubular mesh distal end, a rim attached to the tubular mesh proximal end, control wires, a guidewire channel, an inner sheath, and an outer sheath advancable over the guidewire channel and inner sheath. To extract a clot, the catheter is advanced through the clot over a guidewire. The inner sheath is retracted relative to the control wires and the tubular mesh, allowing the rim and the tubular mesh to expand. The tubular mesh is retracted to capture the clot, constrained proximally by the distal portion of the inner sheath, and retracted with the inner sheath into the outer sheath. The control wires may be manipulated to control the angle of the rim relative to the longitudinal axis of the sheaths, facilitating clot capture and retraction of the tubular mesh into the sheaths thereafter. |