Pain-alleviating tissue treatment assembly

• US 4,646,735 A
• Filed: 10/04/1985
• Issued: 03/03/1987
• Est. Priority Date: 10/04/1985
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: John S. Seney
• Original Assignee: John S. Seney
• Inventors: Seney, John S.
• Primary Examiner(s): Coven, Edward M.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Hindenburg, Max F.
• Application Number:
  US06/784,135
• Time in Patent Office: 515 Days
• Field of Search: 128/303.1, 128/399-402, 128/DIG. 27, 62/93, 62/172, 62/259.3, 62/293, 62/514 R
• US Class Current: 606/22
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/3211 Surgical scalpels, knives; Accessories therefor
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 18/0218 with open-end cryogenic probe, e.g. for spraying fluid directly on tissue or via a tissue-contacting porous tip
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/150129 by cooling
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 19/00 Local anaesthesia syringes therefor A61M5/00; Hypothermia A61M5/42 takes precedence; cooling blood in a bypass of the arterial system A61M1/36
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 128/27 Cryogenic

Abstract

An assembly which incorporates a hand-held instrument or device collectively structured to alleviate pain during minor surgical application wherein the operating instrument and/or the surgical site are concurrently cooled to a substantially reduced temperature. The surgical site is gently blanketed with cold, dry sterilized air, gases or other atomized treatment fluid serving to effectively reduce the temperature of the tissue at the surgical site while at the same time preventing possible room air-borne contamination entering the treatment site based on the air or gas blanketing the treatment site being sterilized or otherwise medicinally treated.

Claims

1. A tissue treatment assembly of the type primarily designed to blanket a treatment site and adjacent tissue with a continuation flow of reduced temperature air or atomized treatment fluid, said assembly comprising:

(a) a fluid control assembly including a housing connected to and located remotely from a hand assembly, said hand assembly including a hand piece structured for support by a hand of the user and manipulation thereby relative to the treatment site,

(b) conduit means having an elongated configuration andd attached substantially at opposite ends thereof to said hand piece and said fluid control assembly for establishing fluid flow therebetween,

(c) a refrigerator assembly including an evaporator of sufficient dimension to be mounted in said hand piece in heat transferring relation to a flow of air issuing from said hand piece onto the treatment site;

said refrigerator assembly further including a refrigerant compressor and condensor dimensioned to define micro-refrigerant components of said refrigerator assembly and being mounted in said fluid control assembly and connected in substantially closed fluid communication with said evaporator via said conduit means,

(d) said refrigerator assembly comprising a liquid refrigerant conduit mounted to extend along the length of said conduit means and including one end disposed in fluid receiving relation to said valve means and an opposite end disposed in fluid delivering relation to said evaporator,

(e) a return conduit mounted within said conduit means and extending along the length thereof, said return conduit having one end disposed in fluid receiving communication with said evaporator chamber and an opposite end connected to said fluid control assembly in fluid delivering communication with said refrigerator compressor,

(f) an air supply assembly mounted in said control assembly and including an air inlet from a conventional source and an air compressor means connected to said air inlet for compressing received air and directing air flow via said conduit means to said hand piece,

(g) a sterilizer assembly mounted in said fluid control assembly and connected in fluid receiving relation to said air compressor, sterilizedd air directed therefrom to a remainder of said fluid control assembly and to said evaporator via said conduit means,

(h) a valve means for regulating fluid flow of liquid refrigerant from said fluid control assembly to said evaporator via said conduit means, and

(i) a temperature control assembly operatively interconnected to said valve means for activation thereof and including a sensor assembly disposed to sense temperature of said evaporator, said valve means actuated to establish liquid refrigerant flow to said evaporator upon the sensing of a predetermined temperature of said evaporator.

2. An assembly as in claim 1 wherein said hand piece comprises a substantially elongated configuration and a cover portion extending along a length of said hand piece in substantially surrounding relation to said evaporator;

a cooling chamber disposed between said evaporator and said cover and further disposed in air receiving communication with said fluid control assembly via said conduit means, said cooling chamber interconnected in fluid communication with the exterior of said hand piece at a free end thereof.

3. An assembly as in claim 2 wherein said hand piece further comprises channel means formed in said free end thereof for directing air collected and cooled in said cooling chamber outwardly therefrom into blanketing relation to the treatment site.

4. An assembly as in claim 3 further comprising a cap structure secured to said free end and structured to at least partially define said channel means, said cap structure removably secured to said free end of said hand piece.

5. An assembly as in claim 4 wherein said cap structure is constructed to allow passage therefrom of a surgical instrument, said channel means substantially surrounding said instrument whereby said instrument is cooled by direct contact with said evaporator.

6. An assembly as in claim 4 wherein said cap structure comprises an air directing means secured thereto and projecting outwardly therefrom and structured for confining the treatment site and applying a positive pressure zone of temperature controlled sterile fluid over the treatment site.

7. An assembly as in claim 1 wherein said evaporator comprises a distal end disposed adjacent a free end of said hand piece and structured to removably engage a surgical instrument thereon, said distal end disposed and structured to project the surgical instrument outwardly from said free end of said hand piece for engagement with the treatment site.

8. An assembly as in claim 1 wherein said fluid control means further comprises a supply of treated fluid commonly interconnected in fluid communication to said hand piece with an air supply from said air compressor via said conduit means.

9. An assembly as in claim 8 wherein said treated fluid comprises medicated fluid in atomized form.

10. An assembly as in claim 1 wherein said fluid control means further comprises dehumidifier means disposed in air receiving relation to said sterilizer assembly and disposed and structured to direct dehydrated air therefrom to said hand piece via said conduit means.

11. An assembly as in claim 1 wherein said sterilizer assembly comprises a heater structure disposed in heat transferring relation to air passing through said sterilizer assembly, said heater structure constructed and activated to heat the flow of air received from said air compressor to a sufficiently high temperature to sterilize the air.

16. An assembly as in claim 1 wherein said evaporator comprises an evaporator chamber formed on the interior thereof and extending along a major length thereof, said liquid refrigerant conduit disposed and structured to empty liquid refrigerant into said evaporator chamber for evaporation thereof, whereby said evaporator is cooled, said valve atuation means positionable into an open position for delivery of liquid refrigerant to said evaporator.

12. A tissue treatment assembly of the type primarily designed to blanket a treatment site and adjacent tissue with a continuous flow of reduced temperature air or atomized treatment fluid, said assembly comprising:

(a) a fluid control assembly including a housing connected to and located remotely from a hand assembly, said hand assembly including a hand piece structured for support by a hand of the user and manipulation thereby relative to the treatment site,

(b) conduit means having an elongated configuration and attached substantially at opposite ends thereof to said hand piece and said fluid control assembly for establishing fluid flow therebetween,

(c) a refrigerator assembly including an evaporator of sufficient dimension to be mounted in said hand piece in heat transferring relation to a flow of air issuing from said hand piece onto the treatment site;

said refrigerator assembly further including a refrigerant compressor and condensor dimensioned to define micro-refrigerant components of said refrigerator assembly and being mounted in said fluid control assembly and connected in substantially closed fluid communication with said evaporator via said conduit means,

(d) an air supply assembly mounted in said control assembly and including an air inlet from a conventional source and an air compressor means connected to said air inlet for compressing received air and directing air flow via said conduit means to said hand piece,

(e) a sterilizer assembly mounted in said fluid control assembly and connected in fluid receiving relation to said air compressor, sterilized air directed therefrom to a remainder of said fluid control assembly and to said evaporator via said conduit means,

(f) an air delivery conduit mounted to extend along the length of aid conduit means and connected at one end to a cooling chamber within said hand piece and an opposite end of said delivery conduit connected to said fluid control assembly in fluid receiving relation to said air compressor and said sterilizer assembly downstream thereof,

(g) a valve means for regulating fluid flow of liquid refrigerant from said fluid control assembly to said evaporator via said conduit means, and

(h) a temperature control assembly operatively interconnected to said valve means for activation thereof and including a sensor assembly disposed to sense temperature of said evaporator, said valve means actuated to establish liquid refrigerant flow to said evaporator upon the sensing of a predetermined temperature of said evaporator.

13. An assembly as in claim 12 wherein said cooling chamber is mounted within said hand piece and extends along the length of said evaporator exteriorly thereof, said cooling chamber disposed to cool fluid therein by heat exchange with said evaporator.

14. An assembly as in claim 13 further comprising delivery channel means formed in a free end of said hand piece in fluid directing relation between said cooling chamber and the exterior of said hand piece.

15. An assembly as in claim 14 wherein said channel means comprises a plurality of channels collectively disposed and dimensioned to direct a flow of air from said cooling chamber onto the treatment site.