Commissure Attachment Features for Improved Delivery Flexibility and Tracking

Abstract

A prosthetic heart valve includes a collapsible and expandable stent having a proximal end and a distal end. A plurality of commissure attachment features (“CAFs”) is disposed on the stent, with each CAF including a body and a plurality of eyelets. The eyelets may be arranged in a single column or in a plurality of rows and columns. The prosthetic heart valve also includes a collapsible and expandable valve assembly including a plurality of leaflets connected to the plurality of commissure attachment features. The bodies of the CAFs may include a number of other features including, for example, a slot extending between columns of eyelets.

1 . A prosthetic heart valve, comprising:
 a collapsible and expandable stent having an inflow end and an outflow end, the stent including a plurality of struts defining a plurality of open cells, and a plurality of commissure attachment features; and   a collapsible and expandable valve assembly including a plurality of leaflets connected to the plurality of commissure attachment features, the valve assembly adapted to allow blood to flow from the inflow end to the outflow end, and to substantially block blood from flowing from the outflow end to the inflow end,   wherein each commissure attachment feature includes a body having three elongated eyelets arranged in a single column, each eyelet being shaped as a rectangle.   
     
     
         2 . The prosthetic heart valve of  claim 1 , wherein the body of each commissure attachment feature has exactly three elongated eyelets and is devoid of other eyelets. 
     
     
         3 . The prosthetic heart valve of  claim 1 , wherein the three elongated eyelets include a first proximalmost eyelet, a second middle eyelet, and a third distalmost eyelet, the second eyelet being positioned between the first eyelet and the third eyelet, the first eyelet being positioned nearer the inflow end than are the second and third eyelets, the first eyelet having a width that is smaller than a width of the second eyelet and is smaller than a width of the third eyelet. 
     
     
         4 . The prosthetic heart valve of  claim 3 , wherein the width of the second eyelet and the width of the third eyelet are substantially identical. 
     
     
         5 . The prosthetic heart valve of  claim 1 , wherein the three elongated eyelets are all centered along a central longitudinal axis of the body. 
     
     
         6 . The prosthetic heart valve of  claim 1 , further comprising a first protrusion at a proximal edge of the body, the first protrusion extending laterally from a first side edge of the body in a first direction, and a second protrusion at the proximal edge of the body, the second protrusion extending laterally from a second side edge of the body in a second direction opposite the first direction. 
     
     
         7 . A prosthetic heart valve, comprising:
 a collapsible and expandable stent having an inflow end and an outflow end, the stent including a plurality of struts defining a plurality of open cells;   a plurality of commissure attachment features disposed on the stent, each commissure attachment feature including a body having a plurality of eyelets arranged in at least two columns, the body having a proximal edge, a distal edge, first and second outer edges connecting the proximal and distal edges, the proximal edge being positioned nearer than inflow end than is the distal edge, the body including a slot extending between the at least two columns of eyelets from an open distal end to a closed proximal end spaced apart from the proximal edge of the body, the slot dividing the body into a first portion and a second portion; and   a collapsible and expandable valve assembly including a plurality of leaflets connected to the plurality of commissure attachment features, the valve assembly being oriented to allow flow of blood within the stent toward the outflow end of the stent and to substantially block the flow of blood within the stent toward the inflow end of the stent,   wherein the first outer edge includes a first semi-circular suture-receiving recess, and the second outer edge includes a second semi-circular suture-receiving recess, the first and second semi-circular suture-receiving recesses each extending inwardly toward the slot.   
     
     
         8 . The prosthetic heart valve of  claim 7 , wherein the body includes an elongated eyelet positioned closer to the inflow end than are the plurality of eyelets. 
     
     
         9 . The prosthetic heart valve of  claim 8 , wherein the closed proximal end of the slot is positioned nearer the outflow end than is the elongated eyelet. 
     
     
         10 . The prosthetic heart valve of  claim 9 , wherein the closed proximal end of the slot is positioned closer to the inflow end than are the plurality of eyelets. 
     
     
         11 . The prosthetic heart valve of  claim 7 , wherein the slot extends parallel to a longitudinal axis of the body. 
     
     
         12 . The prosthetic heart valve of  claim 11 , wherein the plurality of eyelets in each of the at least two columns are arranged along an axis parallel to the longitudinal axis of the body in an expanded condition of the stent. 
     
     
         13 . The prosthetic heart valve of  claim 7 , further comprising a first slot recess positioned in the slot, the first slot recess being generally semi-circular and formed in the first portion of the body so that the first slot recess extends toward the first outer edge of the body. 
     
     
         14 . The prosthetic heart valve of  claim 13 , further comprising a second slot recess positioned in the slot, the second slot recess being generally semi-circular and formed in the second portion of the body so that the second slot recess extends toward the second outer edge of the body. 
     
     
         15 . The prosthetic heart valve of  claim 14 , wherein the first and second slot recesses are aligned with each other in a circumferential direction of the stent. 
     
     
         16 . The prosthetic heart valve of  claim 15 , wherein the plurality of eyelets are arranged in two rows, the first and second slot recesses being positioned between the two rows of eyelets. 
     
     
         17 . The prosthetic heart valve of  claim 7 , further comprising a first protrusion at the proximal edge of the body, the first protrusion extending laterally from the first outer edge of the body in a first direction, and a second protrusion at the proximal edge of the body, the second protrusion extending laterally from the second outer edge of the body in a second direction opposite the first direction. 
     
     
         18 . The prosthetic heart valve of  claim 7 , wherein the first and second semi-circular suture-receiving recesses are aligned with each other in a circumferential direction of the stent. 
     
     
         19 . The prosthetic heart valve of  claim 18 , wherein the plurality of eyelets are arranged in two rows, the first and second semi-circular suture-receiving recesses being positioned between the two rows of eyelets. 
     
     
         20 . The prosthetic heart valve of  claim 7 , wherein two adjacent leaflets of the plurality of leaflets are sutured to a corresponding one of the commissure attachment features so that at least one suture passes through the plurality of eyelets and wraps around the first and second suture-receiving recesses.