Coagulation device comprising an energy control

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11207121-B2
Application number	US-201815971804-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 4, 2018
Priority date	May 24, 2013
Publication date	Dec 28, 2021
Grant date	Dec 28, 2021

Abstract

A device (10) for tissue coagulation, in particular for fusion, encompasses an electric source (18), which is connected or which can be connected to electrodes (12, 13) for influencing biological tissue (11) with current. A control unit (22) controls the source (18) during phases I and II of the tissue fusion. These phases I and II correspond to operating phases I, II and III of the device (10). During operating phase I, a monitoring unit (23) determines the energy E1, which is applied into the tissue (11). In the subsequent operating phases II and III, the control unit (22) controls the source (18) by means of the determined energy E1. Such a device turns out to be particularly reliable and to be robust in use.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A device ( 10 ) for tissue coagulation, the device comprising:
an electric source ( 18 ), configured to be connected to electrodes ( 12 , 13 ) for influencing biological tissue ( 11 ) with current,
a monitoring unit ( 23 ), which is connected to the electric source ( 18 ), configured to determine one or both of a current (I ACT ) output by the electric source ( 18 ) and a voltage (U ACT ) output by the electric source ( 18 ),
a control unit ( 22 ), which includes the monitoring unit ( 23 ) and which is connected to the electric source ( 18 ) in a controlling manner, the control unit ( 22 ) configured to:
determine an energy value (E 1 ) which corresponds to a total amount of energy the electric source ( 18 ) outputs to the electrodes ( 12 , 13 ) during a first operating phase (I), and
control the electric source ( 18 ) as a function of the energy value (E 1 ), which is determined in the first operating phase (I), in a subsequent second operating phase (II), wherein at least one of a minimum and a maximum duration of the second operating phase (II) is defined according to the energy value (E 1 ) from the first operating phase (I).

2. The device according to claim 1 , wherein the control unit ( 22 ) is interconnected with the electric source ( 18 ) in the first operating phase (I) as a current regulating circuit.

3. The device according to claim 1 wherein at an onset of the first operating phase (I), the control unit ( 22 ) is configured to define a chronologically increasing current (i 1 a ).

4. The device according to claim 1 wherein during at least a section (Ib) of the first operating phase (I), the control unit ( 22 ) is configured to define a constant current (i 1 b ).

5. The device according to claim 1 wherein the control unit ( 22 ) comprises a module ( 26 ) configured to determine a conclusion of the first operating phase (I) using at least one of:
a relationship between voltage and current at the electric source ( 18 ) increases beyond a threshold value (R Gmax ),
the relationship between voltage and current at the electric source ( 18 ) passes through a minimum (M),
an increased speed of change in the relationship between voltage and current at the electric source ( 18 ) exceeds a threshold value,
the voltage (U ACT ) at the electric source ( 18 ) exceeds a threshold value,
the current (I ACT ) falls below a threshold value.

6. The device according to claim 1 wherein at an onset of the second operating phase (II), the control unit ( 22 ) is equipped to adjust at least one variable of:
current (I ACT ) from the electric source ( 18 ),
voltage (U ACT ) at the electric source ( 18 ),
output power (P ACT ) of the electric source ( 18 ) to a same value the variable had at a conclusion of the first operating phase (I).

7. The device according to claim 1 wherein in the second operating phase (II), the control unit ( 22 ) is configured to define a course of time for changing of a relationship between the voltage (U ACT ) at the electric source ( 18 ) and the current (I ACT ) supplied by said source.

8. The device according to claim 7 , wherein the course of time encompasses a constant impedance increase (A).

9. The device according to claim 1 wherein the control unit ( 22 ) is configured to define a chronological length (t 2 ) of the second operating phase (II).

10. The device according to claim 1 wherein the control unit ( 22 ) is configured to define a chronological length (t 2 ) of the second operating phase (II) as a function of the energy value (E 1 ), which is determined in the first operating phase (I).

11. The device according to claim 1 wherein directly following the second operating phase (II), the control unit ( 22 ) is configured to merge into a third operating phase (III).

12. The device according to claim 11 , wherein in the third operating phase (III), the control unit ( 22 ) is configured to define and adjust a constant voltage (U 3 ).

13. The device according to claim 11 , wherein in the third operating phase (III), the control unit ( 22 ) is configured to define a voltage (U 3 ) of the electric source ( 18 ) to a value determined by the monitoring unit ( 23 ) at a conclusion of the second operating phase (II).

14. The device according to claim 11 , wherein the control unit ( 22 ) is configured to conclude the third operating phase (III), if:
a minimum treatment time (t min ) and a given total energy (E tot ) have been reached or
a maximum treatment time (t max ) has elapsed or
a maximum energy (E max ) has been applied.

15. The device according to claim 11 , wherein the control unit ( 22 ) is equipped to monitor a power output by the electric source ( 18 ) in the operating phase (II), so as to extend a time period (t 2 ) for the second or third operating phase (II, III), provided that the power has left a performance window, which is defined between a maximum power (P max ) and a minimum power (P min ).

Assignees

• Erbe Elektromedizin

Inventors

• Schall Heiko
• Schaeller Daniel

Classifications

• A61B2018/00702

  Power or energy · CPC title

• A61B2018/00827

  Current · CPC title

• A61B2018/00761

  Duration · CPC title

• A61B18/1206 Primary

  Generators therefor · CPC title

• A61B2018/00892

  Voltage · CPC title