Ultrasonic wound treatment apparatus and associated method

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10675052-B2
Application number	US-201815873607-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 17, 2018
Priority date	Jul 13, 2015
Publication date	Jun 9, 2020
Grant date	Jun 9, 2020

Abstract

An ultrasonic medical treatment probe has a head with a distal-most circular rim extending along an endless uninterrupted perimeter around a broad recess and formed with a series of serrations or teeth. The rim is thin in comparison to the width of the recess. The serrations or teeth preferably extend continuously along an entire circumference or length of the rim. The probe head is provided along the rim with a plurality of notches or openings communicating with the recess.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An ultrasonic medical treatment probe comprising:
a shaft or shank;
a source of ultrasonic vibratory energy;
a connector at one end of said shaft or shaft operatively coupling said shaft or shank to said source of ultrasonic vibratory energy; and
a probe head at an end of said shaft or shank opposite said connector, said probe head including a recess opening onto a distal end plane, said probe head having a circular distal-most rim or edge extending around said recess, said distal-most rim or edge being formed with a series of serrations or teeth, said distal-most rim or edge being further formed with a plurality of notches or openings communicating with said recess, said notches or openings being substantially larger than said serrations or teeth, said serrations or teeth extending continuously along said distal-most rim or edge between said notches or openings, said serrations or teeth being spaced from one another by gaps substantially smaller than said notches or openings.

2. The probe defined in claim 1 wherein said distal-most rim or edge is disposed in a plane.

3. The probe defined in claim 1 wherein said plane is oriented perpendicularly to an axis of said shaft or shank.

4. The probe defined in claim 1 wherein said probe head has a cup-shaped configuration.

5. The probe defined in claim 1 wherein said probe head is provided along said distal-most rim or edge with exactly four said notches or openings communicating with said recess.

6. The probe defined in claim 1 wherein said serrations or teeth project in a distal direction from said distal-most rim or edge and are disposed only on a side of said distal-most rim or edge facing in said distal direction.

7. The probe defined in claim 1 wherein said notches or openings extend a first distance along said distal-most rim or edge, said serrations or teeth each extending a second distance along said distal-most rim or edge, said first distance being more than two times said second distance.

8. The probe defined in claim 1 wherein a multiplicity of said serrations or teeth are disposed between consecutive or successive ones of said notches or openings along said distal-most rim or edge.

9. A wound debridement method comprising:
providing an ultrasonic probe having a shaft or shank, a connector at one end of said shaft or shank configured for coupling to a source of ultrasonic vibratory energy, and a probe head at an end of said shaft or shank opposite said connector, said probe head including a recess opening onto a distal end plane, said probe head having a distal-most rim or edge extending around said recess, said distal-most rim or edge being formed with a series of serrations or teeth, said distal-most rim or edge being further formed with a plurality of notches or openings communicating with said recess, said notches or openings being substantially larger than said serrations or teeth, said serrations or teeth extending continuously along said distal-most rim or edge between said notches or openings, said serrations or teeth being spaced from one another by gaps substantially smaller than said notches or openings;
coupling said connector to a source of ultrasonic vibratory energy;
placing said distal-most rim or edge including said serrations or teeth in contact with a target surface of a patient;
moving said probe so that said distal-most rim or edge moves in a predetermined pattern parallel to and along said target surface while said distal-most rim or edge including said serrations or teeth is in contact with said target surface; and
during the moving of said probe, generating an ultrasonic standing wave in said probe to vibrate said distal-most rim or edge and thereby debride said target surface.

10. The method defined in claim 9 wherein during the moving of said probe, said distal-most rim or edge is moved laterally within a plane constituting at least a portion of said target surface.

11. The method defined in claim 9 wherein said plane is oriented perpendicularly to an axis of said shaft or shank.

12. The method defined in claim 9 wherein said distal-most rim or edge is vibrated at velocities of 10 to 18 m/s RMS.

13. An ultrasonic medical treatment probe comprising:
a shaft or shank having a longitudinal axis;
a connector at one end of said shaft or shank configured for coupling to a source of ultrasonic vibratory energy; and
a probe head at an end of said shaft or shank opposite said connector, said probe head including a recess opening onto a distal end plane oriented perpendicularly to said longitudinal axis, said probe head having a distal-most rim or edge extending around said recess and in said distal end plane, said distal-most rim or edge being formed with a series of serrations or teeth that point or taper in a distal direction from said distal end plane.

14. The probe defined in claim 13 wherein said distal-most rim or edge is further formed with a plurality of notches or openings communicating with said recess, said notches or openings being substantially larger than said serrations or teeth, a plurality of said serrations or teeth extending along said distal-most rim or edge between consecutive or successive ones of said notches or openings.

15. The probe defined in claim 14 wherein said distal-most rim or edge is circular.

Assignees

• Misonix Inc

Inventors

• Voic Dan

Classifications

• A61B17/320068 Primary

  using mechanical vibrations, e.g. ultrasonic (A61B17/22012 takes precedence; dental tooth drilling devices operated by vibration A61C3/03; removing intra-ocular material using mechanical vibrations A61F9/00745) · CPC title

• A61N2007/0034

  Skin treatment · CPC title

• A61B2017/320072

  Working tips with special features, e.g. extending parts · CPC title

• A61B2217/007

  with irrigation system · CPC title

• A61N7/00

  Ultrasound therapy (lithotripsy A61B17/22, A61B17/225; massage using supersonic vibration A61H23/00 {; using ultrasound for introducing media into the body A61M37/0092}) · CPC title