Minimally Invasive

As medical extrusion diameters increase to the sizes used in natural orifice or single port procedures, it becomes increasingly difficult to maintain flexibility without buckling collapse of the lumens. One solution is to utilize a coaxial catheter shaft design with a mechanized articulation joint encapsulated in a thin walled polymer extrusion to provide a smooth external surface and to prevent tissue from being engaged in the articulation joint mechanism. Another solution is to reinforce the primary outer catheter shaft with a stainless steel coil to provide the hoop strength required to resist buckling with minimal increase in overall stiffness.

The distal end of an outer medical extrusion frequently features an atraumatic soft tip which is welded onto the main catheter shaft. This is particularly valuable if coil reinforcement has been used as the distal wire ends must be encapsulated. Medical extrusions for minimally invasive devices also frequently feature distal holes used for irrigation and aspiration. Insertion depth is monitored by pad printed features on the outer surface of the medical extrusion. Insert molded features on the proximal end of the component allow for the attachment of device handles to the medical extrusion.