JP2016106888A - Exciting coil, and coil unit - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To retain the safety, efficiency or the like of an exciting coil to be used in stimulation therapy.SOLUTION: An exciting coil unit is characterized: in that an exciting coil for generating a magnetic field is disposed in a coil case; in that this coil case is disposed in a coil unit; in that the bottom face of the coil unit is constituted to contact a patient head; and in that a temperature sensor is disposed outside the coil case inside the coil unit .SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

  The present invention relates to an excitation coil and a coil unit, and more particularly to an excitation coil and a coil unit for use in a transcranial magnetic stimulation system.

Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) is a technique that applies non-invasive magnetic stimulation to specific parts of the brain, such as intracerebral nerves, to prevent neurological diseases such as pain after stroke, depression, and Alzheimer's. It is a treatment that can be used to treat or alleviate symptoms.
In transcranial magnetic stimulation therapy, magnetic generating means such as an excitation coil is arranged at a specific position on the surface of the patient's scalp, and magnetic stimulation is performed from the magnetic generating means to a specific part of the patient's brain. As a specific method, Patent Document 1 discloses that an electric current is passed through a coil unit installed on the surface of a patient's scalp to locally generate a small pulse magnetic field, and an eddy current is generated in the skull using the principle of electromagnetic induction. It is disclosed that stimulation is given to the nerve in the brain directly under the coil unit by causing

Various excitation coils are used for use in transcranial magnetic stimulation treatment. An 8-shaped exciting coil as shown in Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2 is generally used, but there are also mountain-shaped and circular-shaped ones.
The excitation coil emits Joule heat during magnetic stimulation, but if the temperature rises beyond the normal range, it is necessary to stop treatment because there is a possibility that an abnormality has occurred in the treatment device. At that time, there is a sensor provided with a temperature sensor in the main body (conductive wire portion) of the exciting coil, but a structure for ensuring the safety of the patient is required.

International Publication No. 2007/123147 International Publication No. 2014/163020

  An object of this invention is to ensure the safety | security of the excitation coil used for magnetic stimulation therapy, the comfort at the time of use, efficiency, etc.

In the present invention, an excitation coil for generating a magnetic field is provided in a coil case, the coil case is provided in a coil unit, and the bottom surface of the coil unit is configured to contact a patient's head. The exciting coil unit is characterized in that a temperature sensor is provided outside the coil case.
In the present invention, the temperature sensor is preferably provided on the bottom surface inside the coil unit.
Furthermore, the present invention is an exciting coil characterized in that an exciting coil for generating a magnetic field is composed of a spiral conducting wire portion, and an iron core is provided at the center of the spiral conducting wire portion.
In the present invention, it is preferable that the iron core is fixed to a central portion of the spiral conducting wire portion with a resin.

In the present invention, the temperature sensor is provided on the patient side of the coil unit, so that safety to the patient and comfort during use are improved.
Furthermore, magnetic field efficiency can be improved by providing an iron core at the center of the winding of the exciting coil in the present invention.

1 is a schematic diagram of a transcranial magnetic stimulation system. FIG. It is an exploded view which shows an example of the exciting coil and coil case in this invention. It is an exploded view of the coil unit in this invention. It is sectional drawing of the exciting coil and coil case in this invention. It is sectional drawing of the coil unit in this invention. It is a disassembled perspective view of an exciting coil provided with the iron core coil in this invention.

  Hereinafter, a transcranial magnetic stimulation system according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following embodiments, a transcranial magnetic stimulation system suitable for use in the medical field such as pain after stroke will be described. The same applies to the medical field.

  In the following description, terms and directions (for example, “upper surface” and “lower surface”) are used for convenience, but these are for the purpose of facilitating the understanding of the invention. The technical scope of the invention is not limited. Further, the following description is merely an example of one embodiment of the present invention, and is not intended to limit the present invention, an object to which the invention is applied, or an application thereof.

  FIG. 1 shows an outline of a transcranial magnetic stimulation system. A transcranial magnetic stimulation system 25 (hereinafter simply referred to as “magnetic stimulation system 1”) has an exciting coil 1 (magnetic field generating means) and is electrically connected to a coil drive power source 24 via a cable 23. Yes. The coil drive power supply 24 is connected to an external power supply or the like and has a function of flowing power to the exciting coil 1. The patient fixes the head by sitting on a treatment chair 26 and places the exciting coil 1 at a specific position on the scalp surface useful for treatment. A treatment or the like is performed by applying a magnetic stimulus of a predetermined intensity to the brain nerve of the patient from the exciting coil 1 arranged at this specific position. The coil drive power supply 24 controls the supply of current pulses to the exciting coil 1, and various types of conventionally known types can be used. The operator can perform on / off (ON / OFF) operation of the coil drive power supply 24, setting of the intensity and pulse waveform of a current pulse that determines the intensity and cycle of magnetic stimulation, and the like.

  The exciting coil 1 is incorporated in the coil cases 2 and 4 and further incorporated in the coil unit 28. In FIG. 2, the coil case is divided into a coil upper and lower case. The coil case houses the exciting coil 1 therein. The coil unit has a coil case inside, and a coil peripheral mechanism, such as a mechanism for guiding a lead wire that leads from the exciting coil to the coil driving power source, a mechanism for cooling the coil, or a structure for providing the coil cooling mechanism. It is a unit that contains. The coil unit in the present invention has at least an exciting coil, a coil case, a coil unit, and a shell. Preferably, the lower surface of the coil unit (that is, the surface facing the patient's scalp surface) is formed into a concave curved surface corresponding to the patient's head shape. Thereby, a coil unit can be moved smoothly along a patient's head surface. The planar shape of the coil unit may be an ellipse including an oval shape or an oval shape, or an egg shape.

  In a medical institution, the optimum coil position and posture of the exciting coil 1 that can most reduce the patient's neuropathic pain are determined by using a dedicated positioning device at the time of initial medical care of the patient. The optimum position and posture of the exciting coil 1 can be easily reproduced from the next treatment by a method such as forming a positioning marking on or in the surface of the patient's head. .

  FIG. 2 is an exploded view of the exciting coil 1 and the coil cases 2 and 4, FIG. 3 is an exploded view of the coil unit, and FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the exciting coil 1 and the coil cases 2 and 4. In the treatment coil, the exciting coil 1 is wound in the shape of a spherical surface 8 in accordance with the shape of the head. The exciting coil 1 is composed of a spiral conducting wire portion, and is composed of two spiral conducting wire portions in the figure. The coil cases 2 and 4 for storing the exciting coil 1 are coils each having a groove portion 13 provided in the coil lower case 2 in advance in order to fix the wound conducting wire (spiral conducting wire portion) in a shape according to a predetermined design value. It is preferable to have a lower case 2 and an upper coil case 4 provided with a cooling fan installation portion. Spacers 3 are provided at the overlapping portions of the eight-shaped circular coils. Further, the coil unit includes shells 6 and 7 installed on the outer periphery of the coil case for cooling, and a cable 8 having a treatment coil temperature detection function.

  The exciting coil 1 is composed of two loops 10 and 11 (spiral conducting wire portions) in which a conducting wire 9 is wound in a spherical eight shape. The 8-shaped spiral coil has a maximum induced current density immediately below the point corresponding to the intersection of the 8-characters, and can provide a localized stimulus. The loops 10 and 11 are held so that the portions wound tightly so that the interval between the conductive wires 9 is narrowed are overlapped with each other. The overlapping portions of the two loops 10 and 11 are separated by the spacer 3 to ensure insulation.

  FIG. 5 shows a cross-sectional view of the coil unit. An abnormal temperature rise in the treatment coil is not only an indicator that an abnormality has occurred in the transcranial magnetic stimulation system 25, but also causes discomfort for the patient who has the treatment coil in proximity to the irradiated part. There is a risk of burns. Therefore, in the present invention, the temperature sensor 19 is disposed at the end of the cable 8 so that the temperature can be detected near the patient 20, and is disposed outside the coil case inside the casing of the coil unit. In particular, it is preferable that the coil unit housing that surrounds the treatment coil is disposed on the patient side outside the coil case, that is, on the bottom surface of the coil unit (surface that contacts the patient's scalp). This makes it possible to stop the magnetic stimulation when the treatment coil abnormally rises in temperature or when the temperature reaches a certain level or more, and the patient 20 can be protected more reliably.

  Note that the temperature sensor may also be provided in the main body (conductor portion) of the exciting coil. By providing temperature sensors both in the main body of the exciting coil and in the coil unit, a safer device can be obtained.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the exciting coil is composed of an air core coil 22 without an iron core 21. The reason why the iron core 21 is not used is that the iron core 21 jumps out of the lower case 2 due to the Lorentz force, which is dangerous. However, compared with the case where the iron core 21 is used, the magnetic flux density is disadvantageous and the power consumption is large. Larger equipment. Therefore, as another aspect of the present invention, an iron core is embedded in the air-core coil 22 and the air-core coil 22 and the iron core 21 are fixed with a resin in order to prevent the iron core 21 from jumping out of the lower coil case 2. . The portions fixed with the resin are at least the air core coil 22, that is, the spiral central portion of the spiral conducting wire portion and the iron core. As a result, the magnetic field efficiency can be improved, and as a result, the power consumption can be reduced and the apparatus can be downsized as compared with the air-core coil.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Excitation coil 2 Coil lower case 3 Spacer 4 Coil upper case 6, 7 Shell 8, 23 Cable 9 Conductor 10, 11 Loop 13 Groove part 19 Temperature sensor 20 Patient 21 Iron core 22 Air core coil 24 Coil drive power supply 25 Transcranial magnetic stimulation System 26 Chair 28 Coil unit

Claims (4)

  An excitation coil for generating a magnetic field is provided in the coil case, the coil case is provided in the coil unit, and the bottom surface of the coil unit is in contact with the patient's head. The exciting coil unit is provided with a temperature sensor.   The exciting coil unit according to claim 1, wherein the temperature sensor is provided on a bottom surface side inside the coil unit.   An excitation coil for generating a magnetic field is composed of a spiral conductor portion, and an iron core is provided at the center of the spiral conductor portion.   The exciting coil according to claim 3, wherein the iron core is fixed to a central portion of the spiral conducting wire portion with a resin.