Tissue discrimination and applications in medical procedures
First Claim
1. A method of determining whether a conductive element of a probe is located adjacent to a characterized body tissue comprising the steps of:
- a) applying an electrical signal to the conductive element;
b) determining characteristics of the applied signal, including a phase angle; and
c) determining whether the conductive element of a probe is located adjacent to a characterized body tissue based on the phase angle of the applied signal, wherein said characterized body tissue comprises one of nerve tissue, prostate gland tissue, and annulus tissue.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A method and system for discriminating tissue types, controlling the level of therapy to tissue, and determining the health of a known tissue by measuring the characteristics an electrical signal applied to conductive element located within or by the tissue. Additionally, the method and system may be used for determining whether the conductive tip of a pedicle probe or pedicle screw is located in one of cortical bone, cancellous bone, and cortical bone near a boundary with soft tissue, whether the conductive tip of a cannula is located adjacent to one of nerve tissue and annulus tissue, and whether the conductive tip of a cathode is located adjacent to one of nerve tissue and prostate gland tissue.
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Citations
24 Claims
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1. A method of determining whether a conductive element of a probe is located adjacent to a characterized body tissue comprising the steps of:
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a) applying an electrical signal to the conductive element;
b) determining characteristics of the applied signal, including a phase angle; and
c) determining whether the conductive element of a probe is located adjacent to a characterized body tissue based on the phase angle of the applied signal, wherein said characterized body tissue comprises one of nerve tissue, prostate gland tissue, and annulus tissue. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8)
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9. An article of manufacture for use in determining whether a conductive element of a probe is located adjacent to a characterized body tissue, the article of manufacture comprising computer readable storage media including program logic embedded therein that causes control circuitry to perform the steps:
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a) applying a signal to the conductive element;
b) determining characteristics of the applied signal, including a phase angle; and
c) determining whether the conductive element of a probe is located adjacent to a characterized tissue based on the phase angle of the applied signal, wherein said characterized body tissue comprises one of nerve tissue, prostate gland tissue, and annulus tissue. - View Dependent Claims (10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. An apparatus for use in determining whether a conductive element of a probe is located adjacent to a characterized body tissue, the apparatus including:
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a) means for applying a signal to the conductive element;
b) means for determining characteristics of the applied signal, including a phase angle of the applied signal; and
c) means for determining whether the conductive element of a probe is located adjacent to a characterized body tissue based on the phase angle of the applied signal, wherein said characterized body tissue comprises one of nerve tissue, prostate gland tissue, and annulus tissue. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24)
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Specification