JPS6047850B2 - laser knife - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a laser knife used, for example, as a surgical scalpel.

This type of laser knife can cut without coming into direct contact with the patient's skin unlike a metal scalpel, so it has the advantage of not contaminating the affected area with bacteria, and has become extremely popular in recent years. .

By the way, the laser knives that are currently in general use include a laser knife that has a quartz knife attached to the tip of an optical fiber made of quartz, a mirror that transmits laser light through a reflecting mirror, and irradiates the affected area through a lens.
There is a lens focus type laser knife, but since the former uses quartz, the laser used is a YAG laser (
C, which has a high hemostatic effect and is limited to wavelengths of 1.06μ7Tl,
O. Laser light cannot be used. Also, the latter is CO. Although it is possible to use laser light, it uses a mirror, which has the disadvantage that the laser light transmission path is bulky and does not have the freedom of movement that optical fibers do. moreover,
In this case, since the laser beam is focused on a single point through the lens, the surgery cannot be performed in the same way as with a conventional metal scalpel, which is inconvenient in terms of use, such as poor workability. In view of this point, the present invention uses CO that has a hemostatic effect.

The object of the present invention is to provide a new and useful laser knife that can use laser light and emit the laser light in a linear manner to burn off the affected area with good workability similar to that of a metal scalpel. Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described based on the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows the overall configuration. In the figure, 1 is a case housing a laser light source that generates, for example, a C02 laser beam (wavelength 10.6 μTrL), and 2 is a connector 3 that connects the proximal end 2a to the output end 1a of the light source. As shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, a plurality of infrared optical fibers 5 are predetermined in a flexible covering material 4 made of resin, for example. They are arranged in a line (in one row in the illustrated example). A condensing lens 6 is provided on the distal end side 2b of the transmission path 2, and is held by a lens holder 7 that is fitted and fixed to the distal end of the covering material 4. The inner surface of the holder 7 is provided with a cylindrical portion 7a, into which the tip of the J infrared optical fiber 5 can be inserted to fix the position relative to the condensing lens 6. being done. The infrared optical fiber 5... is the core.
This is a well-known structure in which a cladding (outer covering) is applied around the periphery of the cladding, but in this embodiment, a crystalline material selected from among alkali halide, silver halide, and thallium halide is used as the core. On the other hand, the lens 6...
For example, one made of silver chloride (AgCl) is used. If it is made of silver chloride, it is suitable for surgical use because it does not dissolve in water, is harmless to the human body, and has almost no evaporation. Further, each lens 6 may have the same focal length, but lenses with different focal lengths may be used, for example, by arranging them in ascending order of focal length or in descending order of focal length. It is. Incidentally, it is preferable that a fixing filler 8 be filled between the optical fibers 5, particularly between the fibers 5 on the tip side 2b. In this configuration, the laser beam emitted from the light source is transmitted to the distal end side 2b through the infrared optical fibers 5, and is irradiated onto the affected area A through the condensing lenses 6.

Here, if lenses 6... having the same focal length are used, and the distance from the affected area A is made equal to the focal length of the lenses 6..., the laser beam will be directed to the affected area A in a linear manner. is irradiated. FIG. 2C shows an example of the distribution of laser light on the irradiation surface. In the figure, the black dots B... are the points where the energy density of the laser beam is highest at the focal position of each lens 6..., and the range surrounded by the broken line C is the actual lens 6...
・This is a region with low energy density that occurs because the radius of curvature differs between the center and the periphery of the lens. If the laser knife is moved while irradiating the affected area A with laser light in this state, the skin of the affected area can be burned off by the required length.

In this case, the laser knife 5 shown by arrow P in FIG.
If the needle is moved in a direction, the skin of the affected area can be burnt in a linear manner, and if it is moved in a direction perpendicular to the plane of the paper in FIG. 2A, it is possible to heat, stop bleeding, and burn over a wide range. Furthermore, when the laser knife is moved away from the affected area, the affected area is shifted from the focal point of the lenses 6 . Next, another embodiment of the present invention will be described based on FIGS. 3 to 5.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, each infrared optical fiber 5...
The tips of the condensing lenses 6 are arranged in five regular steps from the top, and have the same focal length accordingly.
・The structure is such that they are provided at different levels. With this configuration, the line 1 (
Since the line (on which the energy density of the laser beam is highest) is inclined as shown in Figure 4, cutting can be performed in the same manner as with a normal metal scalpel, resulting in good workability. In this embodiment, a guide rod 9 is connected to a line 1 connecting its tip to the focal point position.
It is fixed to the lower part of the tip of the dressing material 4 in a state where it is aligned with the position of the patient, thereby making it possible to easily and reliably focus on the affected area, thereby improving ease of use. . Note that direct contact of this guide rod 9 with the skin may cause the affected area to become contaminated with bacteria, but the position where the guide rod 9 passes is irradiated with laser light immediately after that and is sterilized. You can use it with confidence without worrying about contamination.
The embodiment shown in FIGS. 4A and 4B uses a single condensing lens 10 having a characteristic shape in place of the condensing lens shown in the embodiments of FIGS. 2 and 3. configuration, and the lens 10
has a shape as shown in FIG. 4B.

In this configuration, the focal position of the lens 10 is an inclined line as shown by 1 in the figure. Therefore, like the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, this embodiment has the advantage of good workability. Figure 5A
, B, and C have a configuration using a single condensing lens, similar to the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, but the lens 11 is
The shape is as shown in FIG. 5B, and the curvature is the upper end 11a.
It becomes larger toward the side and becomes smaller toward the lower end 11b.

With a lens of this shape, the focal position is in the opposite direction of inclination from that of the embodiment 1, as shown by 1'' in Figure A.
As a result, the laser knife with this configuration has the following advantages. That is, as shown in FIG. 5C, the lens 11 is made approximately parallel to the affected area A, and the distance between the affected area A and the lens 11 is made equal to the focal length of the lower end portion 11b of the lens, and the lens 11 is moved in the direction shown by the arrow P. do. Then, the skin of the affected area A is first burned out by the focused high-energy-density laser light irradiated from the lower end 11b of the lens, and then by the low-energy-density laser light irradiated from the upper end 11a of the lens. Warming is applied to stop the bleeding. In other words, with this configuration, all you have to do is move the laser knife along the affected area.
Burning and hemostasis are effectively performed. Each of the embodiments described above is one embodiment of the present invention, and the components of each embodiment can be appropriately combined to implement the invention in a manner different from the embodiments described above.

For example, the guide rod 9 shown in the embodiment of FIG. 3 may be applied to other embodiments. In addition, in the embodiments shown in Figs. 2 and 3, the lenses 6 are arranged in a curved shape such as an arc shape or a dogleg shape when viewed from the front by bending the tip of the covering material 4, and the lenses 6 are arranged in a curved shape such as an arc shape or a dogleg shape when viewed from the front. It is also possible to emit laser light in an arbitrary curved shape corresponding to the curved line in which the lenses are arranged. Further, the laser knife shown in the above embodiments can be used not only for medical purposes but also for other purposes such as cutting and processing metals. As described above, the laser knife according to the present invention has a plurality of infrared optical fibers arranged in a predetermined line, the proximal end of which is connected to the output end of a laser light source, and a condensing lens provided on the distal end. Provided,
Since the laser beam transmitted through each of the fibers is configured to be emitted linearly, the following effects can be achieved.

That is, first, the laser beam is emitted linearly through a condensing lens, so when used as a surgical scalpel, for example,
Unlike conventional laser knives, which emit a laser beam to a single point, surgical operations can be performed with the same sense of operation as a metal scalpel, and by moving laterally, it is possible to burn out a wide range of affected areas at once. can. Therefore, surgery can be performed with good workability. In addition, since an optical fiber is used as the transmission path for the laser beam, it can be moved easily and freely in any direction.In addition, since an infrared optical fiber is used, CO2, which has a high hemostasis effect, can be used.
2 laser beams can be used.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall schematic perspective view showing one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG.
Figure A is a detailed side sectional view of the main part, Figure B is a detailed front view of the main part, Figure C is a diagram showing the laser beam irradiation state, and Figure 3 is a side sectional view showing another embodiment of the present invention. , FIG. 4A is a side sectional view showing still another embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 4B is a perspective view showing the main part of FIG. A side sectional view showing an example, the same figure B is a perspective view showing the main parts in detail,
Figure C is a diagram showing the state in which the laser knife of Figure A is used. 5... Infrared optical fiber, 6, 10, 11.
・・・・・・Lens for condensing light.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1 Arrange multiple infrared optical fibers in a predetermined line,
The proximal end of the fiber is connected to the output end of the laser light source, while a condensing lens is provided on the distal end of the fiber, so that the laser light transmitted through each of the fibers is emitted linearly. Features a laser knife.