【発明の詳細な説明】〔発明の目的〕（産業上の利用分野）この発明は、超音波エネルギーを用いて、結石を破砕す
る超音波結石破砕装置に関する。DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Object of the Invention] (Industrial Field of Application) The present invention relates to an ultrasonic stone crushing device that crushes stones using ultrasonic energy.
（従来の技術）最近、集束超音波エネルギーを用いて、体内の結石を破
砕する試みがなされている。この最近実用化されている
衝撃波エネルギーを利用した結石破砕装置に代れるもの
で装置の小型１ヒ、低価格化さらに結石の確認の容易さ
などの理由によっている。(Prior Art) Recently, attempts have been made to fragment stones within the body using focused ultrasound energy. This device is an alternative to the stone crushing device that uses shock wave energy, which has been put into practical use recently, and is used because of its small size, low cost, and ease of identifying stones.
通常超音波結石破砕装置は、凹面形状を有し、その幾可
学的中心点の集束点を形成する破砕用のトランスジュー
サとこの破砕用のトランスジューサと所定の位置１８係
をもりて配置された生ｆ＄（被検体）の断層像データを
得る画１架用トランスジューサとから成シ、断１像内の
結石と破砕用トランスジューサの集束点とを一致させ、
破砕用トランスジューサから強力な超音波エネルギーを
発生させ結石を破砕するものである。Usually, an ultrasonic lithotripter has a concave shape, and includes a crushing transducer that forms a convergence point at its geometric center, and a stone crushing transducer that is arranged at a predetermined distance from the crushing transducer. Consisting of a transducer for image 1 to obtain tomographic image data of f$ (subject), and a convergence point of the crushing transducer to match the stone in the image 1,
A crushing transducer generates powerful ultrasonic energy to crush stones.
しかしながら、破砕用トランスジューサから発射された
超音波の集束点位置と断層像内の結石位置とが誤差なく
完全に対称するとは限らず、このため強力超音波が種石
部以外に発射されてしまうという問題がちり、安全性の
面で改善が望まれていた。さらに、破砕操作は一回の超
音波エネルギーの発射でよい嚇合は少なく、通常は繰り
返し発射が行なわれる。この場合この繰り返し期間中に
、生体がＩ々の理由により動き超音波の集束点と結石の
位置ずれが起こり、強力超音波が結石以外の生体に悪影
ｆをおよぼすという問題があった。However, the focal point position of the ultrasonic waves emitted from the crushing transducer and the calculus position in the tomographic image are not always completely symmetrical without error, and this causes the problem that powerful ultrasonic waves are emitted to areas other than the seed stone area. Improvements were desired in terms of dust and safety. Furthermore, in the crushing operation, there are few cases where it is sufficient to emit ultrasonic energy once, and usually repeated ejections are performed. In this case, during this repeating period, the living body moves for various reasons, causing a positional shift between the focal point of the ultrasound and the stone, resulting in the problem that the powerful ultrasonic waves have an adverse effect on the living body other than the stone.
（発明が解決しようとする問題点）このように従来の超音波結石破砕装置では超音波の集束
点位置と浩石位鷹との位置合わせを必ずしも正確に行な
うことができない、また項音αの繰り返し発射期間中に
生体の移動により位置ずれが生じるという理由から１眉
音波が結石以外の生体に照射され悪影響を与ぼすという
問題があった。(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) As described above, in the conventional ultrasonic stone crushing device, it is not always possible to accurately align the focal point position of the ultrasonic waves with the Koishi position. There has been a problem in that the single eyebrow sound wave is irradiated onto living organisms other than the stone and has an adverse effect because positional deviation occurs due to the movement of the living body during the repeated firing period.
この発明の目的は結石位置と超音波集束位置とを９度よ
く位ｌ遣合わせでき、もって結石以外の生体に悪形＃を
与ぼすことのない安全な超音波結石破砕装置を提供する
ことにある。The purpose of this invention is to provide a safe ultrasonic stone crushing device that can align the stone position and the ultrasonic focus position by 9 degrees, thereby causing no harm to living organisms other than the stone. It is in.
（問題点を解決するための手段）この発明は、被検体中の結石の位置を検出する手段と、
この検出された結石に向けて微弱な超音波パルスを送信
し、かつそのエコー信号を受信し前記被検体内の結石の
位置を確認する手段と、この確認された結石の位置に超
音波の集束点が形成されるよう位置制却される超音波ト
ランスジューサと、この超音波トランスジューサから前
記被検体内の結石を破砕すべく強力な超音波が発射され
るよう該超音波トランスジューサを駆動する手段とを具
濃し、前記結石破砕用の強力な超音波が発射される毎又
は所定回数の発射毎、その直前に前記微弱超音波パルス
を送信し、被検体内の結石の位置を確認することを特徴
とするものである。(Means for Solving the Problems) The present invention provides means for detecting the position of a stone in a subject;
A means for transmitting a weak ultrasound pulse toward the detected stone and receiving the echo signal to confirm the location of the stone within the subject, and focusing the ultrasound on the location of the confirmed stone. an ultrasonic transducer whose position is controlled so as to form a dot; and means for driving the ultrasonic transducer so that powerful ultrasonic waves are emitted from the ultrasonic transducer to fracture a stone within the subject. Specifically, each time the powerful ultrasonic wave for stone fragmentation is emitted or every predetermined number of times the strong ultrasonic wave is emitted, the weak ultrasonic pulse is transmitted immediately before that, and the position of the stone within the subject is confirmed. That is.
（作用）本発明によると、強力超音波を発射する毎又は所定回数
の発射毎にその直前に微弱超音波が発射され、結石の有
無が確認される。そして結石があることを確認してから
強力超音波を発射しているため、結石以外の生体組織を
きずつける事なく安全な結石破砕が可能である。(Function) According to the present invention, weak ultrasonic waves are emitted immediately before every emitting of powerful ultrasonic waves or every predetermined number of times of emitting strong ultrasonic waves, and the presence or absence of stones is confirmed. Since powerful ultrasonic waves are emitted after confirming that a stone is present, it is possible to safely crush the stone without damaging any living tissue other than the stone.
（実施例）この発明の一実施例に係る、超音波結石破砕装置の構成
例を図示し、生体内の腎ｗ４１内の腎結石２を破砕する
場合ｔ−例にとって説明する。(Example) A configuration example of an ultrasonic stone crushing device according to an example of the present invention will be illustrated, and a case of crushing a kidney stone 2 in a kidney w41 in a living body will be explained using an example t.
まず、アプリケータ固定装置３によってアプリケータ４
は制卸され腎結石２と凹面振動子５の幾可学的集束点と
が一致するよう体表６（たとえば背中）に固定されてい
る。First, the applicator 4 is fixed by the applicator fixing device 3.
is restrained and fixed to the body surface 6 (for example, the back) so that the kidney stone 2 and the geometric focal point of the concave vibrator 5 coincide.
アプリケータ固定装置３はアプリケータ４と何らかの相
対位置をもって取付けられた図示しない超音波トランス
ジューサを駆動して生体の断層像を得るととも【て、得
られた断層像内の腎結石３Ｉ＃！と集束点とを合わせる
ようにアプリケータ４を固定するものである。The applicator fixing device 3 drives an ultrasonic transducer (not shown) attached at a certain relative position to the applicator 4 to obtain a tomographic image of the living body, and the kidney stone 3I# in the obtained tomographic image! The applicator 4 is fixed so that the and the focal point are aligned.
アプリケータ４はたとえば共振周波数Ｉ Ｍ Ｈｚでで
直径１０ｃｍの曲率を有する凹面振動子５とこの凹面振
動子５の背面に一様に接着したバッキング材７とからな
り、凹面振動子５の図示していない電極にケーブル８を
接続し、音響カプラ９により生体の体表６に対し音響的
に結合される。この音響カプラ９は水とほぼ等しい音響
インピーダンスを育する薄い膜で形成された袋１０とこ
の袋１０内にみたされだ水１１とから構成され、凹面振
動子５と生体との間の超音波の送受波を効率よく行なう
ようになっている。The applicator 4 is composed of a concave vibrator 5 having a curvature of 10 cm in diameter at a resonance frequency of I MHz, for example, and a backing material 7 uniformly adhered to the back surface of the concave vibrator 5. A cable 8 is connected to the electrodes that are not connected to each other, and acoustically coupled to the body surface 6 of the living body by an acoustic coupler 9. This acoustic coupler 9 is composed of a bag 10 formed of a thin film that develops an acoustic impedance almost equal to that of water, and dripping water 11 filled in this bag 10. It is designed to transmit and receive waves efficiently.
次にオペレータはパルス発生スイッチ１２を押しＯＲ回
路１３を介してパルサＡ１４に制御盲号を送る。これに
よシパルサＡ１４から凹面振動子５に対しケーブル８を
介して小振幅のパルス信号が送られ、凹面振動子５から
生体に向けてごく弱い超音波パルスが送波される。Next, the operator presses the pulse generation switch 12 to send a control signal to the pulser A 14 via the OR circuit 13. As a result, a small-amplitude pulse signal is sent from the sipulser A14 to the concave transducer 5 via the cable 8, and a very weak ultrasonic pulse is transmitted from the concave transducer 5 toward the living body.
この弱い超音波パルスは生体の各種組織に当って反射し
超音波エコーとなって凹面振動子５により受波されエコ
ー信号に交換される。受信回路１５はこのエコー信号を
ケーブル８を介して受信し、処理回路１６に送る。処理
回路１６は入力したエコー信号から集束へ近傍からのエ
コー信号のみを検出し、結石確認回路１７に送る。結石
確認回路ｌ７は集束点近傍のエコー信号から腎結石の有
無を判定する。腎結石の音響インピーダンスは他の組織
に比べて大きいため、腎結石がある場合大きなエコー信
号が得られ、超音波パルスの集束位置に腎結石２が確実
にある事が判定される。This weak ultrasonic pulse hits various tissues of the living body and is reflected, becoming an ultrasonic echo, which is received by the concave transducer 5 and exchanged into an echo signal. The receiving circuit 15 receives this echo signal via the cable 8 and sends it to the processing circuit 16. From the input echo signals, the processing circuit 16 detects only the echo signals from the vicinity and sends them to the calculus confirmation circuit 17 . A stone confirmation circuit 17 determines the presence or absence of a kidney stone from the echo signal near the focal point. Since the acoustic impedance of a kidney stone is larger than that of other tissues, a large echo signal is obtained when a kidney stone is present, and it is determined that the kidney stone 2 is definitely located at the focal point of the ultrasound pulse.
このような微弱なパルスの送波による結石の位置の確認
は、強力超音波を発射する毎又は、数回発射する毎に行
われる。これは、腎結石２の位置と、超音波パルスの集
束位置とを一旦合わせたとしても、生体が呼吸とか、ま
た他の種々の連山により動くことによシ、位置ずれが生
じるためである。Confirmation of the location of the stone by transmitting such weak pulses is performed every time a powerful ultrasonic wave is emitted or every several times. This is because even if the position of the kidney stone 2 and the focused position of the ultrasonic pulse are once aligned, the positions will shift due to movement of the living body due to breathing or other various movements.
結石確認回路１７において結石があると判定した場合に
のみパルサー８１８に制御信号を送る。A control signal is sent to the pulser 818 only when the stone confirmation circuit 17 determines that there is a stone.
これによシパルサＢ１８から凹面振動子５に対しケーブ
ル８を介して大撮幅のパルス信号が送られ、凹面振動子
５から生体に向けて破砕用の強力超音波が発射され、集
束点に位置する腎結石２を破砕する。As a result, a pulse signal with a wide field of view is sent from the scipulser B18 to the concave transducer 5 via the cable 8, and powerful ultrasonic waves for fragmentation are emitted from the concave transducer 5 toward the living body, and the concave transducer 5 is positioned at the focal point. Crush the kidney stone 2.
一方結石確認回路１７において結石がないと判定された
場合破砕用の側力＠音波が結石以外の、組織に当たるこ
とを意味し安全上好ましくないため強力超音波の発射を
行なわず、たとえば−ＮＪ定ミスを防止するため、再度
、確認パルス発生回路１９゜ＯＲ回路１３ｔ−介して前
述した動作をくり返すとともに位置ずれ表示装置２０に
制（至）パルスを送る。On the other hand, if the calculus confirmation circuit 17 determines that there is no calculus, the lateral force for crushing @sonic waves will hit tissues other than the calculus, which is not desirable from a safety standpoint, so strong ultrasonic waves are not emitted. In order to prevent mistakes, the above-described operation is repeated again via the confirmation pulse generation circuit 19 DEG OR circuit 13t, and a control pulse is sent to the positional deviation display device 20.
位置ずれ表示Ｗ ｉｔ ２０はたとえば３回連祝して結
石がないと判定された場合、そのままでは復帰しないよ
うな位置ずれの発生の可能性がある事をオペレータに知
らせるものであり、オペレータは再度位置を合わせる操
作をすることになる。The positional deviation display W it 20 informs the operator that, for example, if it is determined that there is no stone three times in a row, there is a possibility that a positional deviation that will not recover will occur, and the operator should try again. You will need to adjust the position.
以上の動作により生体内の腎１１内の腎４拮石２を安全
にかつ確実に破砕することができる。By the above-described operation, the kidney 4 antagonist stone 2 in the kidney 11 in the living body can be safely and reliably crushed.
本実施例においては、腎結石を破砕する場合について説
明したが、これに限らず胆石破砕等にも適用できる。In this embodiment, a case has been described in which a kidney stone is crushed, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the present invention can also be applied to crushing a gallstone or the like.
また、強・弱の超音波パルサーを別々にして説明したが
、変調を利用した駆動回路を用いて一つにする事も可能
であり、本実施例では位置ずれを表示するのみにとどま
っているがアプリケータ固定回路へのフィードバックも
考えられる。Furthermore, although the strong and weak ultrasonic pulsers have been explained separately, it is also possible to combine them into one using a drive circuit that utilizes modulation, and in this example, only the positional deviation is displayed. However, feedback to the applicator fixed circuit can also be considered.
さらにまた、実施例では結石位置の大概な検出に超音波
断層はを得ることによシ行りたが、Ｘ線透視法等により
行うこともできる。Furthermore, in the embodiment, the location of the stone was roughly detected by obtaining ultrasonic tomography, but it may also be carried out by X-ray fluoroscopy or the like.
以上のように、本発明によると、結石の有無を確認しな
がら強力超音波を発射しているため、結石以外の組織を
きずつけることなく安全な結石破砕が可能である。！た
結石と集束点の位置ずれが自動的に判断できるため連続
的な破砕操作が確実かつ安全に行われる。As described above, according to the present invention, since powerful ultrasonic waves are emitted while confirming the presence or absence of a calculus, it is possible to safely crush a calculus without damaging tissues other than the calculus. ! Since the positional deviation between the stone and the focal point can be automatically determined, continuous crushing operations can be performed reliably and safely.
図面は本発明の一実施例を示す構成図である。１・・・腎臓、２・・・腎結石、３・・・アプリケータ
固定装置、４・・・アプリケータ、５・・・凹面Ｓ動子
、６・・・体表、７・・・バッキング材、８・・・ケー
ブル、９申音響カプラ、ｌＯ・・・袋、１１・・・水、
１２・・・パルス発生スイッチ、１３・・・ＯＲ，回路
、１４・・・パルサＡ１１５・・・受信回路、１６・・
・処理回路、１７・・・結石確認回路、１８・・・パル
サＢ１１９・・・確認パルス発生回路、２０・・・位置
ずれ表示装置。代理人 弁理士 則 近 憲 右同 竹 花 喜久男The drawing is a configuration diagram showing an embodiment of the present invention. DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1...Kidney, 2...Kidney stone, 3...Applicator fixing device, 4...Applicator, 5...Concave S mover, 6...Body surface, 7...Backing material, 8... cable, 9 acoustic coupler, lO... bag, 11... water,
12...Pulse generation switch, 13...OR, circuit, 14...Pulser A115...Receiving circuit, 16...
- Processing circuit, 17... Stone confirmation circuit, 18... Pulsar B119... Confirmation pulse generation circuit, 20... Position shift display device. Agent Patent Attorney Ken Nori Chika Udo Kikuo Takehana
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| JP61149562AJP2644217B2 (en) | 1986-06-27 | 1986-06-27 | Ultrasonic calculus crusher |
| US07/063,910US4803995A (en) | 1986-06-27 | 1987-06-19 | Ultrasonic lithotrity apparatus |
| FR8709085AFR2600521B1 (en) | 1986-06-27 | 1987-06-26 | ULTRASONIC LITHOTRITIS APPARATUS. |
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| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
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| JP61149562AJP2644217B2 (en) | 1986-06-27 | 1986-06-27 | Ultrasonic calculus crusher |
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