Inflatable sheath for introducing intravascular delivery device into body

Aspects of the expandable sheath may be used in conjunction with a catheter assembly to introduce a prosthetic device, such as a heart valve, into a patient. These aspects may minimize damage to the vessel by allowing a portion of the introducer sheath to temporarily expand to receive the delivery device and then return to the initial diameter upon passage of the prosthetic device. Some aspects may include various configurations of sheaths including an elongated tube having the disclosed composition, which may form an outer jacket or strain relief jacket, or may be used as an outer layer of a sheath. Aspects of the expandable sheath of the present invention can avoid the need for multiple inserts to dilate the vessel and reduce the thrust required for medical devices to pass through, thereby providing advantages over prior art introducer sheaths. 可膨胀鞘套的各方面可与导管组件结合使用，以将诸如心脏瓣膜的假体装置引入患者体内。这些方面可以通过允许导引器鞘套的一部分暂时膨胀以容纳递送设备，随后一旦假体装置穿过就恢复到初始直径，来最小化对脉管的损伤。一些方面可以包括各种构型的鞘套，所述鞘套包括具有所公开的组成的细长管，所述细长管可以形成外夹套或应变消除夹套，或者可以用作鞘套的