JP2002209853A - Cornea thickness measurement attachment - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a cornea thickness measuring attachment capable of preventing secondary infection in the measuring probe of a cornea thickness measuring instrument for measuring the cornea thickness of an eyeball by using ultrasonic waves. SOLUTION: The cornea thickness measuring probe (probe) has a vibrator 2 and a resin acoustic chip 3 at its tip part, and the chip 3 is adhered to the vibrating surface of the vibrator 2. The chip 3 is conical and its tip part is worked flatly to be in contact with the cornea. A detachable and exchangeable attachment is installed at the tip of the probe and the attachment is exchanged or disposed for measuring each eye to be tested, thereby infection is prevented. It is necessary to fit the attachment and the probe acoustically closely. Thus, the attachment and the probe are fitted surely and closely by applying or fitting a gel or a liquid ultrasonic medium to the attachment in advance.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a corneal thickness measurement performed as a preoperative examination such as an eyesight correction surgery, and the like.
The present invention relates to a corneal thickness measurement attachment that can prevent infection by replacing or disposable attachments for each eye to be examined.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Corneal thickness measurement using ultrasonic waves is performed as a preoperative examination such as a vision correction surgery. The measurement must be performed by bringing the tip of the probe into direct contact with the cornea 4 of the subject. The used probe is sterilized with alcohol, sodium hypochlorite, or the like, or sterilized with ethylene oxide gas (hereinafter, EOG sterilized), and used again.

However, disinfection with alcohol or sodium hypochlorite has no effect on spores,
Sterilization requires a treatment time of 15 hours or more. Therefore, when performing a large number of tests at once, it is necessary to prepare a plurality of probes. In addition, in recent years, in order to sterilize the infectious prion protein, which is said to be a pathogen of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, which is a problem in recent years, it is not effective with a general sterilizing solution or gas sterilization with ethylene or the like, A method of autoclaving the probe in an autoclave (1 hour at 132 ° C.), a 1N aqueous solution of sodium hydroxide, 5%
It is necessary to perform treatment under severe conditions such as a method of immersing in an aqueous solution of sodium hypochlorite for 1 to 2 hours. There is no single disinfection method that works for all viruses, bacteria, and spores.

[0004] Once the tip of the probe becomes contaminated and an effective disinfection method is not applied to the contaminants, secondary infection may occur.

As a type in which the tip of the probe is detached and replaced, there is a type in which the acoustic chip 3 itself is detached and replaced, an ultrasonic medium is applied, and the probe is directly installed on the vibrator 2. Since the fitting surface with the vibrator 2 requires precise processing, the cost increases when used disposably. In addition, in order to sterilize and disinfect the acoustic chip 3 itself, a member that can withstand the above sterilization and disinfection conditions and that can be used for medical purposes must be selected. Also, the fitting surface of the vibrator 2 with the acoustic chip 3 is
It is necessary to improve durability by performing processing such as coating.

[0006]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides an attachment which can be easily detached and replaced at the probe tip of an ultrasonic corneal thickness measuring apparatus in order to sterilize the probe tip which comes into contact with the cornea 4. , To provide it at low cost.

[0007] By making the tip of the probe detachable and replaceable, a small space is created between the tip of the probe and the attachment, which causes multiple echoes during measurement. An object of the present invention is to ensure that the probe tip and the attachment are acoustically and securely adhered to each other.

In order to achieve the above object, a corneal thickness measuring attachment according to the present invention divides an acoustic tip 3 of a probe into two parts, a tip side and a vibrator side. The point is that by providing a concave-shaped attachment capable of covering the tip of the cornea, the contact portion with the cornea 4 can be easily replaced.

Further, in order to hold the corneal thickness measuring attachment, a projection or a depression is provided in the mounting portion.

In addition, the corneal thickness attachment is
The gel or liquid ultrasonic medium 5 is placed on the fitting surface with the probe body.

In order to easily attach and detach the corneal thickness measurement attachment, drain holes 9 and 10 are provided for draining air or gel or liquid as an ultrasonic medium accumulated in the mounting portion.

The corneal thickness measurement attachment having the above-described structure can be easily and inexpensively prevented by replacing, sterilizing, or disposable attachments for each eye to be examined when measuring the corneal thickness. And

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, an embodiment of a corneal thickness measuring chip of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

In FIG. 2, a tip type attachment 6 is provided at the tip of the probe main body 1. A gel or liquid ultrasonic medium 5 is interposed between the tip attachment 6 and the probe main body, and the tip tension is fixed by the surface tension, and the attachment and the probe are acoustically Make sure that they adhere.

In FIG. 3, a compact tip type attachment 7 is attached to the tip of the probe main body 1. The attachment at the tip is miniaturized, and a gel or liquid ultrasonic medium 5 is provided on the fitting surface between the attachment and the probe. The cost can be reduced by reducing the size of the attachment.

In FIG. 4, a chip type attachment 6 is shown.
By providing a gel or liquid ultrasonic medium 5 to a user in advance in a product form on a fitting surface of the compact chip type attachment 7 with the probe main body 1,
Since there is no need for the user to apply the ultrasonic medium 5, replacement of the attachment becomes easier. Further, by providing the air groove 9 or the air hole 10 on the inner wall surface of the attachment, the air is not sealed when the attachment is fitted to the probe main body, and the adhesion can be improved.

In FIG. 5, a compact tip type attachment 8 is attached to the tip of the probe main body 1. As with the compact chip attachment 7, the compact chip attachment 8 can be reduced in size and cost. In the compact chip type attachment 8, since the portion to which the ultrasonic medium 5 is applied is concave, the ultrasonic medium 5 hardly adheres to other parts. Therefore, handling during packaging and use becomes easy.

In FIG. 6, a concave attachment 11 is attached to the tip of the probe body 1.
The ultrasonic medium 5 is applied between the concave attachment 11 and the tip of the probe body 1 so as to be acoustically firmly connected. By filling the tip of the concave-shaped attachment 11 with the ultrasonic medium 5, it is possible to securely adhere to the cornea 4.

[0016]

As is apparent from the above description, the corneal thickness measuring attachment having the structure according to the present invention allows the attachment to be easily replaced at the time of measuring the corneal thickness, and has a simple structure. Because
It can be manufactured at low cost. In addition, the corneal thickness measurement attachment is acoustically and securely adhered to the probe body 1. These can provide a simple and inexpensive means for preventing secondary infection.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the structure of a corneal thickness measurement probe.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a structure of a corneal thickness measurement attachment as one embodiment of the present description, and illustrating a usage pattern thereof.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a structure of a corneal thickness measurement attachment as one embodiment of the present description, and showing a use form thereof.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a structure of a corneal thickness measurement attachment as one embodiment of the present description, and showing a use form thereof.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a structure of a corneal thickness measurement attachment as an embodiment of the present description.

FIG. 6 is a view showing a structure of a corneal thickness measurement attachment as one embodiment of the present description, and showing a use form thereof.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Probe main body 2 Transducer 3 Acoustic tip 4 Cornea 5 Ultrasonic medium 6 Tip type attachment 7 Compact tip type attachment (male type) 8 Compact tip type attachment (female type) 9 Air groove 10 Air hole 11 Concave shape attachment

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A probe of a corneal thickness measuring apparatus for measuring a corneal thickness of an eyeball using an ultrasonic wave, wherein an acoustic tip 3 at a tip portion of the probe which comes into contact with the cornea is composed of two components, a tip side and a transducer side. A corneal thickness measurement attachment characterized by being made. 2. A corneal thickness attachment, wherein a tapered cylindrical projection is provided on a divided surface of the acoustic chip on the distal end side. 3. A corneal thickness attachment, wherein a tapered cylindrical depression is provided on a divided surface of the acoustic chip on the distal end side. 4. A corneal thickness measurement attachment characterized in that it has a cylindrical structure capable of covering the tip of a probe, and has a concave enclosure for filling an ultrasonic medium at the tip. 5. The gel or liquid ultrasonic medium 5 is attached to the corneal thickness measuring attachment according to claim 1 or 4 in advance.
Characterized in that it has a structure in which is applied to a fitting surface of the probe body and the probe body and the attachment are acoustically and securely adhered to each other. 6. The corneal thickness attachment according to claim 1, further comprising a discharge hole for discharging extra ultrasonic medium and air on the fitting surface.