Transesophageal ultrasound probe with an adaptive bending section
First Claim
1. A probe, comprising:
- a shaft having a distal end;
a distal section having a proximal end and a transducer;
a bending section with a flexible proximal portion engaging the shaft distal end and a flexible distal portion engaging the distal section proximal end, the bending section having a plurality of vertebrae disposed end to end along a longitudinal axis of the bending section, each vertebra having a proximal face and a distal face and an internal surface defining a vertebra internal passage extending through each vertebra, the vertebra internal passages of the plurality of vertebrae aligned to define a bending section passage extending through the bending section;
a sheath surrounding the bending section; and
at least one stiffening member having a proximal section and a distal section extending through at least a portion of the bending section passage, the at least one stiffening member having a stiffness at the proximal section that is less stiff than a stiffness at the distal section.
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Accused Products
Abstract
When transesophageal echocardiography is used to obtain a transgastric short axis view of the left ventricle of the heart, the best place to position the transducer is in the fundus of the stomach, aimed up through the left ventricle. The probes disclosed herein facilitate placement of the transducer in the optimum position within the fundus, despite wide variations in the distance between the lower esophageal sphincter and the fundus among different subjects. In one preferred embodiment, the ultrasound probe uses a bending section with a series of vertebrae and stiffening that is more flexible proximally and less flexible distally, which causes the probe to bend relatively sharply at the point where the probe exits the lower esophageal sphincter.
17 Citations
21 Claims
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1. A probe, comprising:
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a shaft having a distal end; a distal section having a proximal end and a transducer; a bending section with a flexible proximal portion engaging the shaft distal end and a flexible distal portion engaging the distal section proximal end, the bending section having a plurality of vertebrae disposed end to end along a longitudinal axis of the bending section, each vertebra having a proximal face and a distal face and an internal surface defining a vertebra internal passage extending through each vertebra, the vertebra internal passages of the plurality of vertebrae aligned to define a bending section passage extending through the bending section; a sheath surrounding the bending section; and at least one stiffening member having a proximal section and a distal section extending through at least a portion of the bending section passage, the at least one stiffening member having a stiffness at the proximal section that is less stiff than a stiffness at the distal section. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21)
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Specification