Skin incision instrument and method for incising skin with the same

• US 7,833,173 B2
• Filed: 02/03/2010
• Issued: 11/16/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 05/13/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Oki, Akio, Oka, Hiroaki
• Primary Examiner(s): Hindenburg; Max
• Assistant Examiner(s): Stout; Michael C
• Application Number:
  US12/699,538
• Publication Number:
  US 20100137742A1
• Time in Patent Office: 286 Days
• Field of Search: 600/573, 600/583, 600/578, 600/579, 600/584, 606181-183
• US Class Current: 600/583
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/150022 for capillary blood or interstitial fluid
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/150068 by tissue compression, e.g. with specially designed surface of device contacting the skin area to be pierced
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/150335 by radiation
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/150389 Hollow piercing elements, e.g. canulas, needles, for piercing the skin
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/150427 Specific tip design, e.g. for improved penetration characteristics
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/150442 Blade-like piercing elements, e.g. blades, cutters, knives, for cutting the skin
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/150503 Single-ended needles hollow piercing element tip design A61B5/150396, needle sets for catheters A61M25/06, needles for bringing media into the body A61M5/32
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/150541 Breakable protectors, e.g. caps, shields or sleeves, i.e. protectors separated destructively, e.g. by breaking a connecting area
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/150618 Integrally moulded protectors, e.g. protectors simultaneously moulded together with a further component, e.g. a hub, of the piercing element
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/150717 manually removed
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/15113 Manually triggered, i.e. the triggering requires a deliberate action by the user such as pressing a drive button
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/15117 comprising biased elements, resilient elements or a spring, e.g. a helical spring, leaf spring, or elastic strap
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/15186 Devices loaded with a single lancet, i.e. a single lancet with or without a casing is loaded into a reusable drive device and then discarded after use; drive devices reloadable for multiple use
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1519 comprising driving means, e.g. a spring, for propelling the piercing unit
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/157 Devices characterised by integrated means for measuring characteristics of blood
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/411 Detecting or monitoring allergy or intolerance reactions to an allergenic agent or substance

Abstract

Provided are skin incision instrument to efficiently incise minimal portions and a method for incising skin with the skin incision instrument. The skin incision instrument according to the present invention comprises a holder, a needle, a needle drive unit, two or more skin expander sets, and a reader, wherein the skin expander sets comprise a first skin expander and a second skin expander; the first skin expander and the second skin expander are capable of expanding skin at both sides of the linear incision portion away from the linear incision portion and expanding the linear incision portion in a direction to expand the linear incision portion; and, minimal portions are efficiently incised by selecting a single skin expander set from two or more of the skin expander set based on the direction of the linear incision portion, such that an angle is adjusted to 45 degrees or more and 90 degrees or less wherein the angle is formed by the direction of the linear incision portion read by the reader and the direction to expand the skin by the single skin expander set.

Claims

1. A skin incision instrument comprising:

a holder;

a needle;

a needle drive unit;

n skin expander sets, wherein n is a natural number of two or more; and

a reader;

wherein;

the needle and the skin expander are mounted at an end of the holder, the needle drive unit is mounted in the holder,

the needle drive unit is configured to form a linear incision portion in skin that is in contact with an end of the holder by moving the needle into contact with the skin,

each of the skin expander sets comprises a first skin expander and a second skin expander,

the first skin expander and the second skin expander are positioned symmetrically around an axis defined by the needle,

the first skin expander and the second skin expander are capable of expanding skin at both sides of the linear incision portion away from the linear incision portion and expanding the linear incision portion in a direction to expand the linear incision portion,

the reader reads a direction of the linear incision portion, and m skin expander set(s), wherein m is a natural number of one or more, and n is greater than m, is/are selected by the instrument from n skin expander sets based on the direction of the linear incision portion read by the reader, such that an angle is adjusted between 45 degrees and 90 degrees wherein the angle is formed by the direction of the linear incision portion read by the reader and the direction to expand the skin by the m skin expander set(s).

2. The instrument according to claim 1, wherein said skin expander sets operate in association with said reader.

3. The instrument according to claim 1, wherein said reader comprises an imaging unit, a light source, and a calculating unit.

4. The instrument according to claim 1, wherein said reader comprises a mechanism which operates in association with said skin expander sets to read the direction of the linear incision portion.

5. The instrument according to claim 1, wherein said holder comprises a mark indicating a direction of said blade surface.

6. A blood test kit comprising the instrument according to claim 1.