Classifications

• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
  • A61B—DIAGNOSIS; SURGERY; IDENTIFICATION
  • A61B1/00—Instruments for performing medical examinations of the interior of cavities or tubes of the body by visual or photographical inspection, e.g. endoscopes; Illuminating arrangements therefor
  • A61B1/00064—Constructional details of the endoscope body
  • A61B1/00071—Insertion part of the endoscope body
  • A61B1/00073—Insertion part of the endoscope body with externally grooved shaft
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
  • A61B—DIAGNOSIS; SURGERY; IDENTIFICATION
  • A61B1/00—Instruments for performing medical examinations of the interior of cavities or tubes of the body by visual or photographical inspection, e.g. endoscopes; Illuminating arrangements therefor
  • A61B1/012—Instruments for performing medical examinations of the interior of cavities or tubes of the body by visual or photographical inspection, e.g. endoscopes; Illuminating arrangements therefor characterised by internal passages or accessories therefor
  • A61B1/018—Instruments for performing medical examinations of the interior of cavities or tubes of the body by visual or photographical inspection, e.g. endoscopes; Illuminating arrangements therefor characterised by internal passages or accessories therefor for receiving instruments
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
  • A61B—DIAGNOSIS; SURGERY; IDENTIFICATION
  • A61B1/00—Instruments for performing medical examinations of the interior of cavities or tubes of the body by visual or photographical inspection, e.g. endoscopes; Illuminating arrangements therefor
  • A61B1/00131—Accessories for endoscopes
  • A61B1/00135—Oversleeves mounted on the endoscope prior to insertion
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
  • A61B—DIAGNOSIS; SURGERY; IDENTIFICATION
  • A61B1/00—Instruments for performing medical examinations of the interior of cavities or tubes of the body by visual or photographical inspection, e.g. endoscopes; Illuminating arrangements therefor
  • A61B1/005—Flexible endoscopes
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
  • A61B—DIAGNOSIS; SURGERY; IDENTIFICATION
  • A61B1/00—Instruments for performing medical examinations of the interior of cavities or tubes of the body by visual or photographical inspection, e.g. endoscopes; Illuminating arrangements therefor
  • A61B1/04—Instruments for performing medical examinations of the interior of cavities or tubes of the body by visual or photographical inspection, e.g. endoscopes; Illuminating arrangements therefor combined with photographic or television appliances
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
  • A61B—DIAGNOSIS; SURGERY; IDENTIFICATION
  • A61B1/00—Instruments for performing medical examinations of the interior of cavities or tubes of the body by visual or photographical inspection, e.g. endoscopes; Illuminating arrangements therefor
  • A61B1/00142—Instruments for performing medical examinations of the interior of cavities or tubes of the body by visual or photographical inspection, e.g. endoscopes; Illuminating arrangements therefor with means for preventing contamination, e.g. by using a sanitary sheath
• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
  • A61B—DIAGNOSIS; SURGERY; IDENTIFICATION
  • A61B17/00—Surgical instruments, devices or methods, e.g. tourniquets
  • A61B17/34—Trocars; Puncturing needles
  • A61B17/3417—Details of tips or shafts, e.g. grooves, expandable, bendable; Multiple coaxial sliding cannulas, e.g. for dilating
  • A61B17/3421—Cannulas
  • A61B17/3439—Cannulas with means for changing the inner diameter of the cannula, e.g. expandable

Definitions

• the present disclosure relates to an endoscope with an, in particular flexible, tubular or tubular endoscope body, a working channel running in the longitudinal direction of the endoscope body for guiding medical devices
• End portion of the endoscope body forms a working channel output, and an endoscope head arranged in a distal end region of the endoscope body and having at least one optical system for imaging / imaging device.
• Endoscope body has a proximal shaft, an actively curvable section adjoining the shaft distally in the axial direction, and the endoscope head adjoining the distal section of the actively curvable section.
• Instruments such as endoscopes, catheters, and the like, for screening, diagnosis, and therapy are rapidly increasing. To improve suitability for specific applications, these devices have been optimized to best serve their purpose. For example, there are optimized endoscopes / gastroscopes for the examination of the esophagus, stomach and duodenum, colonoscopes for the intestinal examination, angioscopes for the blood vessel examination, bronchoscopes for the bronchial examination, laparoscopes for the examination of the abdominal cavity, arthroscopes for the examination of joints, and nasopharyngoscope for the examination of joints and joints to investigate the
• Nasal passage and pharynx, toroscopes for examining the thorax and intubation scopes for examining a person's airways In medical applications, conventional endoscopes have a tubular or tubular endoscope body which is connected to a handle or control element at its proximal end. The endoscope body is adapted to be inserted into a patient's body cavity to perform a selected therapeutic or diagnostic procedure. The endoscope body also has an imaging device (e.g., with optical fibers that extend the length of the endoscope body, or a CCD / CMOS system) and can provide access for irrigation, suction, tissue gripping, or other functions.
• an imaging device e.g., with optical fibers that extend the length of the endoscope body, or a CCD / CMOS system
• the endoscope body is usually dimensioned such that it receives or forms one or more internal working channels that extend along the endoscope body.
• the working channels are adapted to accommodate conventional endoscopic accessories, such as minimally invasive instruments for performing surgical procedures. Since the
• Working channel is located within the endoscope body or endoscope shaft, the maximum working channel size is by the diameter of the endoscope body or the endoscope shaft and the space required by the other through the
• Endoscope body / endoscope shaft extending endoscopy elements limited.
• Endoscopes with a flexible shaft often have an actively curved or
• Endoscopes with angled tip usually consist of articulated ring elements that form the support structure of the shaft and are operated and tilted against each other via Bowden cables, often called bending control cables.
• the ring elements are made of a flexible sheath
• the minimally invasive instruments used with such actively curved endoscopes are usually designed in such a way that they are just compatible with the common working channel diameters.
• the problem arises in particular in the case of narrow radii of curvature that the work channels, which are in any case scarce, no longer provide sufficient swivel space for a minimally invasive instrument.
• smaller, more compact, minimally invasive instruments are generally desirable, this is often either not technically feasible in practice or the use of smaller devices is ruled out by the type of therapeutic treatment (e.g. the size of a sample to be taken). Often, even larger ones would be
• Minimally invasive surgical instruments are beneficial for treatment, but cannot be transported to the treatment site due to the design limitations of the existing endoscopes.
• An endoscope according to the invention has at least one tubular or tubular endoscope body and one along the longitudinal direction of the
• Endoscope body on or in this working channel for guiding medical tools and / or for flowing media, which forms a working channel exit in a distal end section of the endoscope body.
• the endoscope body has a proximal shaft, one distal to the axially Shaft adjacent actively curvable section and an endoscope head adjacent distally to the actively curvable section.
• the endoscope head (or an end cap) is accordingly in a distal end region of the endoscope body.
• the working channel is at least partially circumferential from one in
• the predetermined circumferential section is preferably one third to two thirds and more preferably more than half of the total circumference of the working channel.
• the working channel is preferably at least partially,
• the working channel is not formed by a working channel attached externally / externally to the endoscope body.
• the working channel is
• the tubular working channel of an endoscope is constructed in such a way that at least its inner cross-section (its inner diameter) is kept passively or actively expandable, at least temporarily to allow space for the pushing through of a minimally invasive one
• the working channel can either be in its (unexpanded) basic state.
• the working channel can either be in its (unexpanded) basic state.
• the endoscope body is also structurally adapted to widen with the working channel or to create space for widening the working channel.
• the arrangement according to the invention has the advantage that instruments which, in whole or in sections, have a diameter which exceeds the inner diameter of the working channel in its basic state, at least temporarily Expansion of the working channel through this can be guided to their destination.
• instruments that are designed for the inside diameter of the working channel in its basic state can be better guided around tight radii of curvature. For example, in actively curvable endoscopes that are used for
• a temporarily expandable working channel can be integrated without increasing the overall diameter of the endoscope. Since the working channel is inserted the first time
• the overall diameter of the endoscope according to the invention can be designed like a comparable conventional endoscope.
• reaching around the part of the endoscope body which is rigid in the radial direction around the predetermined circumferential section of the working channel has the advantage that it cannot expand radially over the entire circumference of the working channel. This reduces the risk that the cross section of the working channel
• the working channel for example narrowed by the curvature or even the working channel can be pinched off, since the working channel is supported over the predetermined circumferential section.
• the working channel can be arranged to run along an outer surface of the endoscope body.
• a longitudinal guide groove can be provided in a lateral surface of the endoscope body, which supports the working channel radially on the inside and holds or guides positively in the circumferential direction of the endoscope.
• the working channel can be designed as a tube which is separate from the endoscope body and which extends along the outside along the latter. Due to the arrangement on the outside, an expandability can be provided with comparatively little effort, since no major adjustments to the
• Endoscope bodies are necessary per se.
• the endoscope body can have at least two segments which extend in its longitudinal direction and can be moved relative to one another in the radial and / or circumferential direction.
• One of these segments can preferably be a basic segment, various inside of which
• the parting plane / interface between the two segments runs such that they can be moved relatively from a first state with a smaller cross-sectional area of the endoscope body to a second state with an enlarged cross-sectional area of the endoscope body.
• the two segments form one between them in the longitudinal direction of the
• Endoscope body extending channel which can either form the expandable working channel per se or in which a tubular working channel can be arranged.
• the working channel can be arranged between the two relatively movable segments.
• the relatively movable segments can also move towards one another, for example by concentrically rotating in the axial direction of the endoscope, in such a way that the cross-sectional area of the endoscope body does not increase but the endoscope body opens to one side, so that the working channel moves through said opening can expand outside.
• one of the relatively movable segments can be moved in the manner of a sliding door into a position overlapped with the at least one other segment, as a result of which a window or a cutout is created in the side wall of the endoscope body through which the working channel can expand (protrude) .
• the endoscope body can have a first base segment and a second pivot segment pivotably articulated parallel to the longitudinal axis of the base segment, which in a first position together with the base segment essentially has a
• tubular or tubular endoscope body can have, at least in sections, a spring-elastic outer wall slotted in its longitudinal direction or rolled in its cross section.
• the endoscope body or the working channel can be a helically or spirally wound, spring-elastic
• Section can be made relatively rotatable, so that a widening of the spiral can be activated by a relative rotation against the winding direction.
• the outer wall can be coated / encased on the inside and / or outside with a plastic in order to provide a smooth, fluid-tight outer wall.
• the working channel can be tubular and extensible in order to allow an expansion in its longitudinal and in its transverse direction.
• the stretchability can preferably be of an elastic nature, so that the working channel returns to its basic state after passing through a minimally invasive instrument of larger diameter.
• the working channel can have at least one wall layer which is designed as a textile tube and thus has a structural expandability (by relative movement of individual fibers or
• the textile tube can preferably be designed in the form of a woven fabric, knitted fabric, knitted fabric, braid or network.
• the textile hose can contain portions of elastic fibers such as, for example, elastane, which have surface-elastic properties of the textile. More preferably, tensile / rigid fibers (for example aramid fibers) can be incorporated into the textile with a certain amount of play, which form an automatic, structural stretch limitation at a predetermined stretching.
• the textile tube (inside and / or outside) can preferably be coated or encased with a plastic, in particular an elastomer, in order to provide a smooth surface and optionally fluid tightness.
• the working channel can be a
• Such a stent-like working channel can preferably be covered with a smooth, closed envelope or covered with a film.
• Endoscope body in particular a distal section of the endoscope body have an expandable outer wall structure in the manner of a stent.
• the endoscope head can be designed to be plastically expandable in the manner of a stent in order to provide increased freedom of movement at a treatment site.
• the working channel can be made in the form of a tube from a vial-elastic (solid) material.
• Elastomeric materials in particular silicone and polyurethane, are preferred.
• the endoscope body and — if external — the working channel can be encased in a protective cover that can be stretched over a wide area.
• the protective cover can preferably be formed from a textile tube or an elastomeric material according to one of the aforementioned aspects.
• the protective cover serves in particular to create a common, smooth surface of the endoscope body (the segments of the endoscope body) and the working channel, which improves the insertability of the endoscope.
• the protective cover prevents body fluid from entering the endoscope.
• Figure 1 is a perspective view of an endoscope according to a first embodiment of the invention.
• Fig. 2 is a sectional view through the endoscope according to the first
• Fig. 3 is a sectional view through the endoscope according to the first
• FIG. 4 shows a perspective illustration of an endoscope according to a second embodiment of the invention
• Fig. 5 is a sectional view through the endoscope according to the second
• Fig. 6 is a sectional view through the endoscope according to the second
• Fig. 7 is a sectional view through an endoscope according to a third
• Fig. 8 is a sectional view through the endoscope according to the third
• FIG. 9 is a front view of a locking mechanism for the endoscope according to the third embodiment.
• 10 shows a perspective illustration of an endoscope according to a fourth embodiment of the invention
• 11 is a perspective view of an endoscope according to a fifth embodiment of the invention
• Fig. 13 is a sectional view through the endoscope according to the sixth
• FIG. 14 shows an exemplary embodiment for an expandable working channel with a textile layer
• 16 is a second exemplary embodiment of an expandable working channel with spiral spring reinforcement.
• the endoscope 1 shown has a tubular, shear-resistant, flexible endoscope body 2, with which it can be inserted into a body cavity.
• the endoscope body 2 is provided with a grip part or control element (not shown).
• the handle part is equipped with a number of controls, for example with
• Endoscope 1 which extends from the handle part in the longitudinal direction of the endoscope body 2 to its distal end, in order to form a working channel exit 6 there, to transport rinsing liquid to a treatment site within the body or to suction off liquids.
• Working channel 4 also enables minimally invasive to place surgical instruments or tools (W in FIG. 3) in a targeted manner at the treatment site.
• the endoscope 1 shown in FIG. 1 has at its distal end section (facing away from the user) an endoscope head 8, on or in which an imaging device 10 including objective 11 and illuminants 12 (here LEDs) is arranged.
• the lens 11 projects an image onto a CCD / CMOS system (not shown) arranged inside the head.
• a plurality of lines (not shown further) run inside the endoscope body, which, among other things, transmit the recordings captured by the imaging device 10 proximally to a base station (not shown) or the like.
• the endoscope body 2 thus has, as is customary and also in the exemplary embodiments described below, at least one proximal (passive) flexible shaft 7, an actively curvable section 3 adjoining it axially distally and a distal section on or to the actively curvable section 3
• the working channel 4 runs in or along the endoscope body 2 and usually opens with its working channel outlet 6 at the level of the endoscope head 8.
• the illustrated endoscope 1 according to the first exemplary embodiment has the already mentioned proximally adjacent to the endoscope head 8
• curvable section 3 In the exemplary embodiment shown, this is formed from a plurality of annular or vortex-like segments which are sequential in the longitudinal direction of the endoscope body and are successively tiltable and which can be tilted against one another and which can be actuated (pivoted against one another) from the handle part by means of a Bowden cable mechanism.
• the bend achieved by said actively curvable section 3 can cause minimally invasive problems when pushing through in the endoscopes known in the prior art
• the minimally invasive surgical instruments W are designed in such a way that they can just be guided through the common working channel diameters.
• the minimally invasive surgical instruments W are at their distal end Often longer rigid devices, such as clamps or scissor mechanisms, it is geometrically impossible from a certain curvature
• the invention remedies this problem in that the working channel 4 is designed as a tube made of a surface-expandable, here surface-elastic, material, which will be explained in more detail later.
• a surface-expandable, here surface-elastic, material which will be explained in more detail later.
• the endoscope is usually the working channel as a rigid channel within the
• Endoscope body 2 (within the flexible shaft 7, the actively curved
• Section 3 and the endoscope head 8 In order to be able to use the extensibility of the expandable working channel 4 according to the invention, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 1 it is arranged outside / outside of the endoscope body 2 running along its longitudinal direction and is supported on the latter
• the endoscope body 2 of the endoscope 1 has a guide groove 14 which extends through the lateral surface in its longitudinal direction.
• the working channel 4 is guided or fixed in the circumferential direction on the endoscope body 2.
• a flexible, surface-elastic sheath 5 encases the endoscope body 2 together with the working channel 4 and thus ensures on the one hand that the two components have a common, smooth outer contour, which facilitates the insertion of the endoscope 1.
• the cover 5 den
• Fig. 2 shows a cross section through the endoscope 1 according to the first
• the endoscope 1 in its basic state, has an essentially circular outer cross section enclosed by the sheath 5 with the
• Diameter D The flexible shaft 3 per se (and also the actively curved one
• Section 3 and the endoscope head 8 has a crescent-like cross section due to the guide groove 14 which is designed here with a U-shaped cross section.
• the flexible shaft 7 has a layer-like structure. This is because endoscope shafts have a variety of technical features
• the shaft 7 has a first shear-resistant, flexurally flexible layer 16, for example made of hooked metal or plastic profiles, and a second, the first layer comprising layer 18 for providing the necessary tightness and pressure resistance, for example a wire or fiber reinforced plastic layer.
• the working channel 4 is secured in the guide groove 14 by the sheath 5.
• the sheath 5 it is also possible to omit the separate tubular working channel 4, so that the working channel 4 passes through the Space between
• FIG. 3 shows the same arrangement as FIG. 2 with the difference that a tool W is pushed through the working channel 4, the diameter of which exceeds the diameter of the working channel 4 basic state. Due to the arrangement described above, the surface-elastic working channel 4 is supported radially on the outside only by the surface-elastic sheath 5, so that these two components 4, 5 can expand radially outwards to make room for the tool W. Towards the central axis of the endoscope 1, the working channel 4 nestles against the U-shaped profile of the guide groove 14 and can be supported in this direction on the flexible shaft 7.
• Fig. 4 shows a second preferred embodiment of the invention in an expanded state.
• the endoscope 1 according to the second embodiment has many similarities to the endoscope of the first embodiment.
• this endoscope 1 also has an endoscope head with an imaging device 10, an actively curvable section 3 and a flexible shaft 7.
• the working channel 4 in the endoscope 1 according to the second embodiment does not run outside the endoscope body 2 instead the endoscope body 2 or its cross section is divided into two relatively movable segments 20, 22 extending in its longitudinal direction.
• 5 shows a front view of the endoscope head 8 of the endoscope 1 according to the second embodiment of the invention in its basic state.
• the endoscope 1 is similar to conventional flexible endoscopes in that it has an endoscope body 2 with an essentially circular shape
• the endoscope body 2 shown has a separating plane parallel to the longitudinal axis, so that the U-shaped working channel wall segment 22 extending in the longitudinal direction of the endoscope, as shown in FIG
• Endoscope body can move away to expand the working channel 4.
• the working channel wall segment 22 On its side / surface facing the working channel wall segment 22, the
• Base segment 22 has a guide groove 14 for guiding the feed direction
• the two segments 20, 22 are encased by the surface-elastic envelope 5.
• the segments 20, 22 of the endoscope body 2 have at their interface complementary guide geometries 23 which engage in one another in the basic state in order to bring about a positive fit between the segments 20, 22 in the transverse direction to the predetermined / desired expansion direction of the working channel 4.
• FIG. 7 shows a third embodiment of the present invention.
• a cross section through a vortex-like segment of an actively curvable section 3 of said endoscope 1 according to the third embodiment is shown.
• the third embodiment of the invention shown in FIGS. 7 and 8 also has an expandable working channel 4.
• the working channel runs internally between a first basic segment 20 of the endoscope body 2, in which the aforementioned channels 24, 26 run, and a working channel wall segment 22 that can be moved in the radial direction relative to this.
• the working channel wall segment 22 is pivotally connected to the base segment 20 via a hinge device 28. In a basic state in which the working channel wall segment 22 on
• Base segment 20 abuts, the two segments 20, 22 together form an essentially circular cross section of the endoscope body 2.
• the working channel wall segment 22 forms a radial outside
• the tubular, surface-elastic working channel 4 is arranged between the two segments 20, 22 and within the guide groove 14.
• the segments 20, 22 could as well seek the cavity between them per se
• the working channel wall segment 22 can preferably be prestressed in the basic position.
• the hinge device 28 can, for example, be designed to be spring-biased.
• the shell 5 can also contribute to preloading the two segments 20, 22 in their basic position by means of an internal surface elasticity.
• FIG. 9 shows a locking mechanism for an endoscope 1 according to the third embodiment of the invention described above.
• the working channel wall segment 22 is also in
• Endoscope longitudinal direction is subdivided into several segments 22, which are each pivotably articulated on the base segment 20.
• the locking mechanism has a series of first eyelets 30, which are assigned to the base segment 20, and has a series of second eyelets 32, which are assigned to the working channel wall segments 22.
• the eyelets 30, 32 are arranged running in the longitudinal direction of the endoscope.
• An elongated closure means 34 for example a wire, a cord, a thin rod or the like, is threaded through the eyelets 30, 32 and holds them in a positive manner in their relative position.
• FIGS. 1 to 3 show a fourth embodiment of the invention.
• an endoscope with a guide groove 14 is provided in its lateral surface, as has already been described in the first exemplary embodiment (see FIGS. 1 to 3).
• the endoscope shown according to the fourth embodiment is additionally surrounded by a rigid, rolled outer wall layer 36.
• the outer wall layer 36 is again covered in use by a casing 5, which is hidden here for the sake of better illustration.
• the outer wall layer 36 is made in the illustrated embodiment from a thin spring steel sheet, but the use of adapted plastics is also possible. Analog can as
• Outer wall layer 36 also an elastic tube slotted in the longitudinal direction can be used.
• An outer wall layer 36 according to one of the variants described can be designed to be more rigid than a closed tube or
• Hose structures since the overlapping (or opposite one another in the case of the slotted tube) free end edges of the rolled / slotted structure in the case of
• Pushing a tool with a larger diameter can perform a relative movement in the circumferential direction.
• the endoscope 1 is covered by a multi-lumen tube 38.
• the multi-lumen tube has a main lumen 40, in which the flexible shaft 6, the actively bendable section 3 and the endoscope head 8 are arranged.
• the multi-lumen tube 38 also has a working channel lumen 42 which runs parallel to the main lumen 40 and adjoins the circumference thereof in order to form the working channel 4.
• the multi-lumen hose 38 shown is made of a material with surface elastic properties as well as good sliding properties, for example a polyurethane or a silicone. 11 clearly shows how the working channel lumen 42 widens for a large diameter portion of a minimally invasive surgical
• the multi-lumen tube 38 is formed from a material with nonlinear elastic or nonlinear viscoelastic properties, i.e. from a certain
• FIGS. 12 and 13 show a sixth in a sectional view
• the multi-lumen tube can also form several (here three) working channel lumens 42, which adjoin a central flaumen lumen 40 distributed in the circumferential direction.
• a suction tube 46 can be placed in a working channel lumen 42, while a tool W is placed in a second working channel lumen 42.
• the expandable working channel 4 and / or the sheath 5 of all embodiments can preferably be formed from non-linear surface-elastic material already explained.
• the working channel 4 and / or the casing 5 can also be designed as a textile tubular structure or at least have a textile layer.
• a working channel 4 is shown by way of example in FIG. 14, which has such a textile tubular layer 48.
• Woven fabrics, knitted fabrics, knitted fabrics, braids or nets are particularly suitable here, which already provide structural expandability / expandability by virtue of the threads being able to move relative to one another.
• the textile can in principle be made from fibers / threads with elastic properties, into which additional tensile-rigid, big-flexible threads, for example made of aramid, are incorporated with a certain amount of play, so that they form a stretching limitation.
• a thin elastomer layer 50 should preferably be inside and / or applied on the outside to a smooth surface for better
• the textile hose layer 48 has the advantage that a
• FIG. 15 shows a further preferred exemplary embodiment of an expandable working channel 4.
• the working channel 4 shown is reinforced by a spiral spring 52 which forms the working channel 4 in conjunction with an elastomer layer 50.
• FIG. 16 shows a further preferred embodiment of the working channel 4, which, like the previous embodiment, is reinforced by a spiral spring 52.
• the spiral spring 52 is flat or as a spiral
• the band-shaped spiral spring 52 can be screwed in, so that there is a closed hose with a basic diameter that is under prestress.
• the two axial ends (not shown) are first fixed relative to one another about the longitudinal axis of the working channel 4. To widen the working channel, the rotation fixation is released. Under the pretension of the
• a working channel with such a spiral spring 52 is also preferably one
• An outer wall construction for a working channel 4 according to FIG. 16 can also be used for an outer wall of an endoscope body 2.
• the expandability of the working channel 4 and / or sheath 5 does not have to be surface elastic but could just as well be brought about by a plastic deformation and extension of the material. It is important that the smaller working channel diameter in the basic state when inserting the endoscope is available. An endoscope with a plastically widened working channel can usually be removed without any problems.

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• 2018
  • 2018-12-21 DE DE102018133368.4A patent/DE102018133368A1/de active Pending
• 2019
  • 2019-12-20 WO PCT/EP2019/086843 patent/WO2020128072A1/de unknown
  • 2019-12-20 US US17/415,799 patent/US20220047152A1/en active Pending
  • 2019-12-20 EP EP19832128.3A patent/EP3897345A1/de active Pending
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