Importance

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Abstract

A balloon catheter that includes an elongated cylindrical body having a distal end and a proximal end, a first reduced diameter section and a second further reduced diameter section which, in the preferred embodiment of the invention, forms a tip at the distal end of the catheter. The balloon is bonded to the distal end of the catheter so as to enclose the reduced diameter sections. The balloon is made from a tube of thermosetting polyurethane and includes a pair of end cuffs and an inflatable bag centrally located between the cuffs. One cuff is bonded to the tip of the catheter with the end face of the cuff facing a shoulder formed between the tip and the adjacent first reduced diameter section. The balloon is everted over the bonded cuff and the opposing cuff is bonded to the first reduced diameter section so that its end face faces a shoulder formed between the first reduced diameter section and the body of the catheter. An air lumen communicates with the bag via a port formed in the wall of the first reduced section. When deflated, the balloon is completely retracted below the outside surface of the catheter body. The cuffs of the balloon are bonded to the catheter using both an adhesive bond and a thermal bond.

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First Claim