| abstract |
A method is described for endovascularly replacing a heart valve of a patient including the steps of delivering a valve (20) and an expandable anchor (30) to a deployed configuration in which the anchor (30) contacts tissue at an anchor site; optionally repositioning the anchor (30) in the anchor site; and deploying the anchor (30). Some embodiments include the steps of foreshortening the anchor (30) via an actuation delivered by a deployment tool and thereafter releasing the anchor from the deployment tool. The delivering step may include the step of delivering the replacement heart valve coupled to, or separate from, the anchor (30), in which case the method further includes the step of attaching the valve (20) to the anchor (30). The anchor may be made from an expandable braid. In some embodiments, the apparatus further includes one or more locks configured to maintain expansion of the braid. |