Apparatus for ultrasonic therapeutic treatment

• US 6,565,520 B1
• Filed: 02/23/1999
• Issued: 05/20/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 08/23/1996
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Orthosonics Ltd (Orthofix Medical Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Orthosonics Ltd (Orthofix Medical Inc.)
• Inventors: Young, Michael John Radley
• Primary Examiner(s): Lateef, Marvin M.
• Assistant Examiner(s): MANTIS MERCADER, ELENI M
• Application Number:
  US09/255,664
• Time in Patent Office: 1,547 Days
• Field of Search: 601/1-4, 601/46, 601/80, 601/81, 600/439, 604/22
• US Class Current: 601/2
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2017/0015 applied simultaneously
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/0875 for diagnosis of bone A61B5/4504 takes precedence
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 7/02 Localised ultrasound hyperthermia hyperthermia in general A61F7/00
• CPC Class Codes: B06B 1/0276 with simultaneous generation, e.g. with modulation, harmonics
• CPC Class Codes: B06B 2201/76 Medical, dental

Abstract

The method and apparatus of the invention are directed to surgically non-invasively treating skeleto/muscular injuries or of diagnosing bone fractures, involving application of two components of ultrasonic energy, to an external surface of living tissue, wherein the two components are of different frequencies in the range between 10 kHz and 4 MHz, and wherein separate transducers, each uniquely supplied with an excitation signal at a different one of the same two frequencies, are directionally disposed for acoustic propagation on the same directional axis.

Claims

1. A non-invasive dual-frequency body-applicator therapeutic device, comprising first and second ultrasonic piezoelectric transducers on a single axis of longitudinal acoustic propagation, the first transducer including at one longitudinal end a generally cylindrically annular body-application head having a cylindrical bore on said axis, said first transducer having means for independent connection to a first source of ultrasonic acoustic-signal excitation at a first frequency within the range 10 kHz and 4 MHz;

said second transducer having means for independent connection to a second source of ultrasonic acoustic-signal excitation at a second frequency within said range and being mounted in said bore with at least some acoustic isolation from said first transducer, and having at said longitudinal end a body-application head;

said first frequency being lower than said second frequency, and said annular body-application head having a body surface-active engagement face of a material having impedance-matching properties with respect to engaged regions of a body-tissue area contacted by the impedance-matching active-engagement face of said annular body-application head.

2. The device of claim 1, in which the body-application longitudinal ends of said heads are concentrically adjacent in substantially the same geometric radial plane about said axis.

3. The device of claim 1, in which the body-application end of said annular head is convexly contoured as a surface of revolution about said axis.

4. The device of claim 3, in which the convex contour of said annular head is generally spherical.

5. The device of claim 4, in which the body-application end of said second-transducer head is generally spherical and is centered on said axis.

6. The device of claim 5, in which the body-application end of said second-transducer head is generally spherical but of spherical radius less than that of said annular head.

7. The device of claim 4, in which the body-application end of said second-transducer head comprises a central convex generally spherical portion centered on said axis and an annular concave surface of revolution contiguous to said central convex generally spherical portion.

8. The device of claim 7, in which said annular concave surface of revolution is based on a section profile wherein the convex-surface portion is based on a first substantially circular arc centered on said single axis, and in which the annular concave-surface portion is based on a substantially circular second arc of shorter radius than said first arc and centered at radial offset from said single axis.

9. The device of claim 8, in which the body-application end of said second-transducer head is characterized by a circumferentially continuous and smoothly faired transitional connecting region of inflexion between said convex and concave surface portions.

10. The device of claim 1, in which the body-application head for said second transducer is generally cup-shaped, with a cylindrically annular skirt portion having an open tail end and integrally formed with a closed head-end portion, the cylindrical bore of said annular body-application head having a radially inward shoulder for axially positional referencing of the open end of said skirt portion, said head-end portion having a convex body-application outer surface and a flat inner surface, said second transducer having a flat radiating face in adhesively bonded relation to the flat inner surface of said closed head-end portion.

11. The device of claim 10, in which an elastomeric O-ring is axially-interposed between coacting axially spaced confronting formations of said annular body-application head and of the body-application head for said second transducer, whereby said O-ring can provide at least some acoustic isolation of said head ends with respect to each other.

12. The device of claim 10, in which a circumferentially continuous annular frustoconical portion of the body-application head for said second transducer head integrally and axially compliantly connects said skirt portion to said closed head-end portion, whereby said frustoconical portion can provide at least some acoustic isolation of said head ends with respect to each other.

13. The device of claim 10, in which an annular member of elastomeric material is axially interposed between said shoulder and the open end of said skirt portion, whereby said annular member of elastomeric material can provide at least some acoustic isolation of said head ends with respect to each other.

14. The device of claim 10, in which said skirt portion has running clearance with the bore of said generally cylindrically annular body member, and means including an elastomeric O-ring interposed between said bore and said skirt portion for radially stabilized positioning of said skirt portion with respect to said bore.

15. The device of claim 5, (a) in which said annular body-application head includes a circumferentially continuous radially inwardly extending lip formation at said one longitudinal end of said bore, (b) in which said bore is internally threaded near the other longitudinal end thereof, (c) in which circumferentially continuous externally threaded means engaged to the bore threads defines a radially inward shoulder formation at axial offset from said lip formation, (d) in which the body-application head of said second transducer includes a cylindrically annular portion having running fit in said bore-between said lip and shoulder formations, (e) a first annular elastomeric ring retained between said lip formation and the cylindrically annular portion of the second-transducer head, and (f) a second annular elastomeric ring retained between said shoulder formation and the cylindrically annular portion of the second-transducer head.

16. The device of claim 15, in which each of said elastomeric rings is an O-ring.

17. The device of claim 1, in which the body-application head of said second transducer includes a patient-application member of acoustic-grade aluminum.

18. The device of claim 17, in which said patient-application member of said second transducer has an outer body-contact face in substantial longitudinal register with the front-end profile of said body-application head.

19. Apparatus for non-invasive ultrasonic therapeutic treatment via a surface portion of a living body, wherein the apparatus comprises piezoelectric means to generate ultrasonic energy, said piezoelectric means comprising a first generator means and a second generator means, said first generator means for delivery of energy at a first frequency within the range 10 kHz and 4 MHz and generally along a longitudinal axis, second generator means for delivery of energy at a second frequency within said range and generally along said longitudinal axis, said first frequency being lower than said second frequency;

a first body-application head associated with said first generator means for first-frequency ultrasonic action on a first region of said surface portion, and a second body-application head carried by said first body-application head and associated with said second generator means for second-frequency ultrasonic action on a second region of said surface portion.

20. An apparatus as claimed in claim 19, wherein said first generator means generates energy at a frequency in the range between 10 and 110 kHz, advantageously 20 to 100 kHz, and optionally in the region of 45 kHz.

21. An apparatus as claimed in claim 20, wherein said second generator means generates energy at a frequency in the range between 0.5 and 4 MHz, advantageously 0.5 to 3 MHz, and optionally in the region of 1 MHz.

22. The apparatus of claim 19, in which said first body-application head is of a dense-polymer material selected from the group consisting of acetyl, polypropylene and polycarbonate.

23. The apparatus of claim 19, in which said first body-application head is of a plastics material having a specific impedance (W) in closely matching relation to that of human soft tissue.

24. A non-invasive dual-frequency body-applicator therapeutic device, comprising first and second ultrasonic piezoelectric transducers on a single axis of longitudinal acoustic propagation, the first transducer including at one longitudinal end a generally cylindrically annular body-application head having a cylindrical bore on said axis, said first transducer having means for independent connection to a first source of ultrasonic acoustic-signal excitation within the range 10 kHz and 4 MHz;

said second transducer having means for independent connection to a second source of ultrasonic acoustic-signal excitation at a second frequency within said range and including at said one longitudinal end a body-application head carried within said bore, and said first source of acoustic-signal excitation being at a lower frequency than that of said second source.