Ultrasonic transducer device for treatment of living tissue and/or cells

• US 5,186,162 A
• Filed: 12/17/1990
• Issued: 02/16/1993
• Est. Priority Date: 09/14/1988
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: EBI LLC (Zimvie Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Interpore Orthopaedics Inc. (Zimmer Biomet Holdings, Inc.)
• Inventors: Talish, Roger J., Lifshey, Arthur L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Smith, Ruth S.
• Application Number:
  US07/628,403
• Time in Patent Office: 792 Days
• Field of Search: 73/644, 128/24 AA, 128/24 EL, 128/662.03, 128/660.10
• US Class Current: 601/2
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 17/58 for osteosynthesis, e.g. bone plates, screws , setting implements or the like A61B17/14, A61B17/16 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/00119 alarm; indicating an abnormal situation
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/0875 for diagnosis of bone A61B5/4504 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/4227 characterised by straps, belts, cuffs or braces
• 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 invention contemplates an improved body-applicator unit forming a component of an ultrasonic bone-therapy system exemplified by the disclosure of copending patent application Ser. No. 247,105, filed Sep. 14, 1988 now. U.S. Pat. No. 5,003,965. The improvement features transducer suspension from the rest of the applicator unit via a molded sylphon-bellows element of softly compliant elastomeric material, wherein the transducer is a flat disc, retained as the outer closure wall of the elastomeric bellows, in such manner as to be surrounded by a flexible gel-retaining circumferential lip formation of the bellows.

Claims

1. For use in the treatment of living tissue and/or cells with ultrasonic radiation, a treatment-head unit comprising a housing, an ultrasonic generator contained within said housing, an ultrasonic transducer connected to said generator and having an active body-application face exposed externally of said housing, means on said housing for removably mounting the same to a living-body member with the transducer poised for delivery of active ultrasonic energy to the living-body member, said means including a compliant flexible mount projecting externally of said housing for enabling the transducer to flexibly adapt to the local living-body surface to which it is applied, said flexible mount comprising a unitary bellows of elastomeric material, said bellows having a base end secured to said housing, and said bellows having an outwardly projecting end supporting said transducer.

2. The treatment-head unit of claim 1, wherein said bellows comprises a circumferentially continuous longitudinally undulating figure of revolution about a central axis of said bellows.

3. The treatment head of claim 2, in which said transducer is a circular disc of piezoelectric material, and in which the outwardly projecting end of said bellows has a bore configuration adapted for retaining location of said transducer.

4. The treatment-head of claim 2, in which said bellows has a circumferentially continuous sealed relation to said transducer and to said housing, whereby the included volume of said bellows is characterized by an enclosed volume of air or other gas.

5. The treatment-head of claim 2, in which said bellows has a circumferentially continuous sealed relation to said transducer and in which a ported aperture is provided in the base connection of said bellows to said housing for gas flow in and/or out of said bellows in response to transducer deflection with respect to said housing.

6. The treatment-head of claim 5, in which a source of air pressure above and/or below ambient air pressure includes selectively operable control means governing air supply to the inner volume of said bellows via said ported aperture.

7. The treatment-head of claim 2, in which said bellows has a circumferentially continuous flexible lip which projects outwardly of said transducer, for body-adapting compliant conformance with a contacted body contour, and for applied-gel retention over the active body-application face of said transducer.

8. The treatment-head of claim 7, in which said lip is of tapering section, reducing in a direction which conically flares axially and radially outward of said transducer.

9. The treatment-head of claim 7, in which said lip in contact with a living body defines with said transducer an included volume circumscribed by said lip, and in which a container of ultrasonic-transmitting gel or liquid carried by said housing has a flexible-conduit connection to the transducer-supporting outer end of said bellows and with a discharge end that communicates with the included volume within said lip, and selectively operable means for advancing a flow of said gel or liquid from said container to the point of discharge into the included volume within said lip.

10. The treatment-head of claim 1, in which said transducer includes opposed electrodes and is united to a unit-handling component having electrical terminals for lead-connection to said generator, and a tuning inductor element connected to one of said terminals and to one of the electrodes of transducer for specifically adapting said transducer to an efficiently coupled relation to said generator.

11. For use in the treatment of living tissue and/or cells with ultrasonic radiation, a compliant flexible transducer-mounting assembly comprising a unitary bellows of elastomeric material extending longitudinally between a transducer-mounting end and a base-mounting end, said base-mounting end having means adapted for attachment to a rigid body, an ultrasonic transducer mounted in sealed relation to the transducer-mounting end of said bellows and oriented for longitudinally directed ultrasonic radiation beyond said transducer-mounting end, and flexible electrical leads connected to said transducer and container within said bellows and having means for external connection at said base-mounting end.

12. The assembly of claim 11, wherein said bellows is a syphon-type bellows.

13. The assembly of claim 12, in which said base-mounting end includes an integrally formed radially inward flange, a rigid circular plate is assembled within said bellows in reinforcing abutment with said flange, and in which said means of attachment is a part of said plate.

14. The assembly of claim 12, in which said bellows has a circumferentially continuous flexible lip which extends longitudinally beyond said transducer, for body-adapting compliant conformance with a contacted body contour, and for applied-gel retention between said transducer and the contacted body contour.

15. The assembly of claim 14, in which said lip is of tapering section, reducing in a direction which conically flares axially and radially outward of said transducer.

16. The assembly of claim 14, in which said lip in contact with a living body defines with said transducer an included volume circumscribed by said lip, and in which a flexible gel-supply conduit within said bellows has a discharge end at the transducer-mounting end of said bellows, said discharge end communicating with the included volume within said lip, and said conduit having a gel-supply connection at the base-mounting end of said bellows.

17. The assembly of claim 11, in which said transducer is a circular disc of piezoelectric material, and in which the transducer-mounting end of said bellows has a bore configuration adapted for peripheral retention of said transducer.

18. For use in the treatment of living tissue and/or cells with ultrasonic radiation, a flexible transducer-mounting assembly comprising a compliant unitary bellows extending longitudinally on a central axis between a transducer-mounting end and a base-mounting end, said base-mounting end having means adapted for attachment to a rigid body, an ultrasonic transducer mounted in peripherally retained relation to the transducer-mounting end of said bellows and oriented for longitudinally directed ultrasonic radiation beyond said transducer-mounting end, flexible electrical leads connected to said transducer and contained within said bellows and having means for external connection at said base-mounting end, and a peripherally continuous flexible lip formation around said transducer and projecting axially forward of said transducer for body-contour adaptation and retention of an applied gel to acoustically couple said transducer to a body portion that is surrounded by said lip formation.

19. The assembly of claim 18, in which said lip formation in contact with a living body defines with said transducer an included volume circumscribed by said lip formation, and in which a flexible gel-supply conduit within said bellows has a discharge end at the transducer-mounting end of said bellows, said discharge end communicating with the included volume within said lip, and said conduit having a gel-supply connection at the base-mounting end of said bellows.