CAROTID WALLSTENT

It is a self-expanding stent composed of biomedical DFT (Draw Filed Tubing) alloy monofilament wires, braided in a tubular mesh configuration.
The stent presents a close cell design that makes it fit for unstable plaque morphology but having little flexibility it is to choose in case of straight vessels.
The exclusive HALO technology provides a high radiopacity.
The principal characteristic of the Wallstent is that, once partially deployed (50%), it can be recaptured and repositioned.
The monorail delivery system, 0.014" compatible, consists of two coaxially arranged shafts:

- an inner shaft with a proximal stainless steel portion and a distal thermoplast portion
- thermoplast outer sheath

The proximal portion of the stent is firmly held on the inner shaft with a special mechanism which enables to reconstrain and reposition the Wallstent.
However it is advisable never to advance a partially deployed Wallstent.
The stent is deployed with a standard "pin & pull" system and to facilitate a correct deployment two radiopaque markers are placed on the inner shaft and another marker on the retractable outer sheath.
While the Wallstent is being deployed, it shortens from both ends toward the middle.
Therefore the proximal and distal markers of the inner shaft must overlap both sides of the stenotic tract.
A 6 Fr. introducer sheath or a 7 Fr guiding catheter (minimum inner lumen of 0.073 in. / 1.85 mm) is required for the 7mm Carotid Wallstent, while a minimum 7 Fr introducer sheath or a 8 Fr guiding catheter (minimum inner lumen of 0.086" in. / 2.18 mm) is needed for the 9 mm stent.
The stent diameter should be selected on the basis of the largest vessel, namely the CCA and adapts itself to tapered carotid anatomy At the end of the procedure post-dilation is strictly recommended to attain the Wallstent diameter as close as possible to the reference vessel diameter.
No structural modification has been reported in the area of maximum spatial gradient (450 gauss centimeter) of a 1.5 Tesla MRI system under a condition that produced a Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) of 1.3 W/kg.
However imaging artefacts can be detected just where the stent has been positioned.