ULTRASONIC MEDICAL APPARATUS

• US 20090306552A1
• Filed: 12/01/2008
• Published: 12/10/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 06/04/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: National Cerebral And Cardiovascular Center
• Original Assignee: National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (Government of Japan), Japan Health Sciences Foundation
• Inventors: YAMANE, Takashi, OKADA, Masahiro, MASUDA, Miwa, FURUZONO, Tsutomu, NITTA, Naotaka
• Granted Patent: US 8,515,524 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 601/2
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 90/40 Apparatus fixed or close to patients specially adapted for providing an aseptic surgical environment
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 7/00 Ultrasound therapy lithotripsy A61B17/22, A61B17/225; massage using supersonic vibration A61H23/00 ; using ultrasound for introducing media into the body A61M37/0092

Abstract

The present invention solves the issue of bacterial infection by medical devices such as intracorporeal indwelling catheters. The present invention relates to an ultrasonic medical apparatus including a medical device (titanium oxide coated medical device 10) covered with a titanium oxide material (titanium oxide alone or a titanium oxide composite material) and ultrasonic irradiation means 20. Ultrasonic irradiation of the titanium oxide material, which exists on a surface of the medical device, causes the surface of the medical device to exert beneficial effects such as antibiotic action, the stimulation of angiogenesis, and the degradation of a blood clot and a biofilm.

Claims

1. An ultrasonic medical apparatus comprising:

a medical device whose surface has been covered with a titanium oxide material; and

ultrasonic irradiation means for irradiating the medical device with ultrasonic waves,

the titanium oxide material being a material composed solely of titanium oxide or a titanium oxide composite material produced by covering a surface of a polymer base material with titanium oxide.

2. The ultrasonic medical apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein the ultrasonic irradiation means is means capable of radiating ultrasonic waves with an output falling within safety standards for living organisms.

3. The ultrasonic medical apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein the ultrasonic irradiation means is adjustable for output of ultrasonic waves.

4. The ultrasonic medical apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein the ultrasonic irradiation means is means capable of generating one or more types of ultrasonic waves selected from the group consisting of continuous waves, pulse waves, burst waves, and standing waves.

5. The ultrasonic medical apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein the ultrasonic irradiation means is means capable of radiating focused ultrasonic waves.

6. The ultrasonic medical apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein the ultrasonic irradiation means includes a coupler.

7. The ultrasonic medical apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein the ultrasonic irradiation means is constituted by a transducer composed of a piezoelectric substance having a coefficient of electromechanical coupling of not less than 10%.

8. The ultrasonic medical apparatus as set forth in claim 7, wherein the transducer, which constitutes the ultrasonic irradiation means, is composed of a piezoelectric substance that is a quartz crystal, a water-soluble crystal, a piezoceramic, a polymer piezoelectric material, a highly-bound piezoelectric material, a composite piezoelectric material, an electrodeposited piezoelectric material, or any combination of the materials.

9. The ultrasonic medical apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein the ultrasonic irradiation means is means capable of generating ultrasonic waves at a frequency of not less than 150 kHz.

10. The ultrasonic medical apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein the ultrasonic irradiation means is means capable of generating, in a single transmission, ultrasonic waves containing higher harmonic waves or multi-frequency waves.

11. The ultrasonic medical apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein the titanium oxide composite material is composed of (a) a polymer base material having an active group and (b) titanium oxide having a reactive functional group capable of reacting with the active group and is produced through chemical bonding between the active group and the reactive functional group.

12. The ultrasonic medical apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein the titanium oxide composite material is composed of (a) a polymer base material having an active group and (b) titanium oxide having an amino group and is produced through chemical bonding between the active group and the amino group.

13. The ultrasonic medical apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein the titanium oxide composite material is produced through chemical bonding between a hydroxyl group possessed by titanium oxide and a functional group, possessed by a polymer base material, which is capable of forming a chemical bond with the hydroxyl group.

14. The ultrasonic medical apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein the titanium oxide composite material satisfies either or both of the following conditions (i) and (ii):

(i) the titanium oxide composite material is composed of (a) a polymer base material having an active group and (b) titanium oxide having an amino group and is produced through chemical bonding between the active group and the amino group; and

(ii) the titanium oxide composite material is produced through chemical bonding between a hydroxyl group possessed by titanium oxide and a functional group, possessed by a polymer base material, which is capable of forming a chemical bond with the hydroxyl group.

15. The ultrasonic medical apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein the medical device is a medical device whose surface has been covered with the titanium oxide material by flocking.

16. The ultrasonic medical apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein the medical device is an implantable medical device, an extracorporeal-intracorporeal medical device, or a body surface contact medical device.