JP2898067B2 - Laser treatment device handpiece - Google Patents

Description

Description: BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a laser treatment apparatus for performing laser treatment, and more particularly to an improvement of a handpiece thereof.

[Related Art] Laser devices are used in various fields such as laser applications and medical applications such as bruise treatment in addition to industrial applications such as laser processing.

By the way, looking at the laser scalpel among medical applications of laser, it focuses laser light such as a carbon dioxide laser with a lens, makes it about 0.1 mm in diameter, obtains a high energy level, and incises a living body such as skin. And resection.

In the case of a laser scalpel, a handpiece for an operator to hold and operate with a hand has a structure as shown in FIG. That is, as shown in the figure, the handpiece 1 has a tubular and pen-shaped handpiece body 1a in which the optical fiber 2 is inserted and held from the rear end, and the tip 1b of the handpiece body 1a is It is opened and has a lens 3 inside.
Is provided. A laser beam output from a laser light source (not shown) is guided by an optical fiber 2, condensed by a lens 3, and then converged when coming out of the handpiece tip 1 b by 2 to 3 mm to set a focus. Have been. Therefore, during treatment, the surgeon holds the handpiece distal end portion 1b slightly away from the patient's skin, cuts the skin by irradiating the skin with laser light while focusing the laser light on the skin.

On the other hand, laser is also used to treat bruises such as hemangiomas and flat nevus. In this case, hemangiomas are mainly treated with argon laser or dye laser, and melanin-based nevus such as flat nevus. The ruby laser is mainly used for the treatment.

Bruises are responsible for color disorders at approximately constant depth in the epidermis or dermis of the skin. That is, capillaries are abnormally concentrated in the hemangiomas in this portion, and melanin-based nevus such as flat nevus are a cluster of melanocytes.

When laser treatment is performed on these bruises, it is not a laser beam in the form of a spot beam, but a laser beam that has a certain irradiation field area and has a uniform light energy distribution within the irradiation field. In order to obtain an irradiation field having such a uniform light energy distribution, a fifth field is required.
A handpiece having a structure as shown in the figure is used.

As shown in FIG. 5, the handpiece 1 for bruise treatment, like a laser scalpel, has a cylindrical and pen-shaped handpiece body 1a into which an optical fiber 2 is inserted from its rear end and held. The tip portion 1b of the piece main body 1a is opened, and a lens 3 and a laser beam equalizing member 4 are provided therein. Laser light output from a laser light source (not shown) is guided by an optical fiber 2, diffused by a laser light equalizing member 4, then condensed by a lens 3, and a handpiece tip
It is emitted to the outside from 1b.

The laser beam homogenizing member 4 disposed between the optical fiber 2 and the lens 3 is a quadrangular prism made of a transparent member as shown in JP-A-61-91984 (see FIG. 3 (a)). Alternatively, a four-sided prism made of a transparent member as disclosed in JP-A-59-19332 (see FIGS. 3 (b) and 3 (c))
Alternatively, an optical member having the same function as these is used, and the laser light is made uniform by internal scattering.

Thereby, a laser beam having a uniform distribution having a square irradiation field or a circular irradiation field can be obtained. This is condensed by the lens 3 for treatment. The focal point of the condensed laser light at a position where a predetermined energy distribution is obtained (the focal position of the lens 3 if the laser light incident on the lens is a parallel beam, In order to irradiate the skin with the emitted laser light at the position where the light is actually focused if it is a diffused light or a focused light, the tip of the handpiece 1
The length of 1a is equal to the length of the focal point distance of the emitted light from the lens 3, and when the distal end portion 1b of the handpiece 1 is brought into contact with the skin, the focal point of the emitted laser light is placed on the skin surface. Is coming. As the shape of the irradiation field, a square, a circle, a hexagon, or the like is used. The uniformity of the emitted laser light is only on a specific surface, that is,
Good results can be obtained only on the surface perpendicular to the optical axis, and good uniformity cannot be obtained when the optical axis of the handpiece 1 is inclined with respect to the skin surface. If good uniformity is not obtained, uneven baking will occur,
This is a problem because it leaves a scar after treatment.

On the other hand, as a guide for knowing the irradiation field of the handpiece 1 and the surface on which good uniformity can be obtained, a guide plate 7 having holes 6 corresponding to the irradiation field is provided as shown in FIG. It is known that an irradiation field 7 is applied to an affected area and an irradiation field is known by a hole 6.

However, in this configuration, the focal point of the lens at the handpiece tip 1b (when the incident laser light is a parallel beam) or the actual focusing point position of the laser light condensed by the lens (when the incident laser light is diffused or focused) In this case, a guide plate 7 made of a transparent plastic plate is placed on the tip of a pair of support arms 8 extending from the tip 1b of the handpiece so as to be aligned with a plane perpendicular to the laser optical axis, and placed. A hole 6 corresponding to the irradiation field is formed in the guide plate 7, but it is very difficult to match the shape and direction of the hole 6 with the true laser beam irradiation field.
Since it is very difficult to see the hole 6 from the gap of the handpiece, it is not easy to use. That is, the guide plate 7 is applied to the treatment position of the skin, and the irradiation field is
In performing the operation while positioning so as to come to the target treatment area, the gap between the handpieces (between the support arms 8)
Since the operation is advanced while looking at the hole 6 part, the hole 6 part is very difficult to see and the operation is difficult.

Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 7, the handpiece body
There is also a method in which a thin guide bar 9 is projected from the tip 1b of 1a to the focal plane position of the lens in the handpiece 1, and the tip 9a of the guide bar 9 is brought into contact with the skin to determine the position. For accurate positioning, He-Ne (helium-neon) laser light, which is visible light, is used as guide light, and He-Ne laser light is sent from the optical fiber 2 prior to treatment, and the actual irradiation field is adjusted. It can be confirmed with the aiming light of visible light.

Since the inclination of the handpiece 1 with respect to the affected part appears as distortion of the irradiation field shape due to the visible light irradiated to the affected part, the irradiation is performed with the position corrected so that the distortion is not expressed.

However, in this method, the tip of the guide bar 9 is
9a is often rounded for safety reasons, taking into account skin contact. However, with such a shape, it is difficult to abut the handpiece 1 vertically on the skin surface, and the distortion of the aiming light is small with respect to the irradiation area of the affected part while observing the irradiation light as the guide light. The inclination of the guide bar 9 must be adjusted so that the operation is troublesome.

[Problem to be Solved by the Invention] As described above, with the structure of the handpiece in the conventional laser treatment apparatus for bruise treatment, it is difficult to easily and accurately irradiate the affected part with a laser beam having a uniform distribution. It required skill.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a handpiece of a laser treatment apparatus capable of easily irradiating laser light having a uniform light distribution onto a skin surface in an optimum state.

[Means for Solving the Problems] The present invention is configured as follows to achieve the above object. That is, the laser light from the laser light source is homogenized by a light homogenizing member provided in the main body of the handpiece, which homogenizes the light energy, and is condensed by a lens so as to be emitted in a predetermined irradiation field. In the handpiece of the laser treatment device, firstly, at the end of the handpiece on the laser beam emission side,
A rod-shaped guide bar is projected along the axis of the handpiece while being positioned in a region not obstructing the irradiation field, and the end face of the guide bar has an end face of the lens for condensing laser light emitted from the inside of the handpiece. It is configured to be a flat surface that is perpendicular to the optical axis and coincides with a surface passing through the focused position of the collected laser light.

Secondly, a plurality of rod-shaped guide bars are provided at the end of the laser beam emitting side of the handpiece so as not to obstruct the irradiation field, and a plurality of bar-shaped guide bars are projected along the axis of the handpiece. Is formed perpendicular to the optical axis of the lens that converges the laser light emitted from the handpiece and coincides with a plane passing through the converging position of the converged laser light.

[Operation] In the handpiece having the above-described configuration, in the case of the first configuration, the end face of the guide bar is perpendicular to the optical axis of the lens for condensing laser light, and is condensed by this lens. Since it is a flat surface that matches the surface that matches the focal point of the laser beam, if the end surface of the guide bar is brought into contact with the skin surface,
Since there is no inclination of the handpiece with respect to the affected part, anyone can easily make the handpiece perpendicular to the skin surface and slightly coincide with the plane passing through the focal point of the focused and emitted laser light. In addition to this, since there is nothing extra on the end face of the guide bar, it is easy to confirm the treatment area, and it is easy to see the guide light irradiated on the skin, so that the operability is extremely good.

Further, in the case of the second configuration, a plurality of rod-shaped guide bars along the axis of the handpiece are protruded from the laser beam emission side end of the handpiece in a region not obstructing the irradiation field. The end of the guide bar is aligned with a plane perpendicular to the optical axis of the lens for condensing the laser light emitted from the handpiece and passing through the focal position of the condensed laser light. All guides
Touching the bar to the skin surface helps to keep the handpiece in the best condition without tilting against the skin surface, and the guide bar has no excess on the end face. Since the treatment area can be easily confirmed and the guide light applied to the skin can be easily seen, the operability is extremely good.

Therefore, according to the present invention, the guide piece
A simple configuration of providing a bar, flattening the shape of the end face thereof, and aligning the position of the guide bar end face with a plane passing through the focal point of the focused laser beam and perpendicular to the optical axis, or A handpiece is provided with a plurality of guide bars, and the position of the end of the guide bar is adjusted to a plane passing through the focal point of the focused laser beam and perpendicular to the optical axis. Anyone can easily abut the handpiece vertically on the skin, suppress the inclined abutment, and irradiate the treatment surface with a predetermined uniform laser light distribution. Anyone can easily and obtain a favorable therapeutic result without the need for.

[Embodiment] In the present invention, at least one foot is provided at a tip of a handpiece, a laser beam is focused on the tip, and a portion of the tip of the foot that contacts the skin is flattened. The laser beam is arranged so that the piece is perpendicular to the skin surface so as to obtain a laser beam that is correctly and uniformly distributed. Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a front sectional view showing an example of a bruise treatment handpiece according to the present invention.

As shown in the figure, a handpiece 10 is attached to a tubular and pen-shaped handpiece body 10a by an optical fiber 2 from its rear end.
Is inserted and held. The tip 10b of the handpiece body 10a is opened, and a lens 3 and a laser beam uniformizing member 4 are provided inside. The lens 3 irradiates the laser light emitted from the light equalizing member with enlargement or reduction at a constant magnification. Laser light output from a laser light source (not shown) is guided by an optical fiber 2 and
Then, the light is condensed by the lens 3 and emitted to the outside from the handpiece tip 10b.

The laser beam homogenizing member 4 disposed between the optical fiber 2 and the lens 3 is a square prism (third prism) as described in the conventional example.
FIG. 3A) or a four-sided prism (FIG. 3B).
(See (c)) or an optical member having the same function as these, and the laser light is made uniform by internal scattering.

Thereby, a laser beam having a uniform distribution having a square irradiation field or a circular irradiation field can be obtained.

A focal point where a predetermined energy distribution is obtained when the light is condensed and emitted by the lens 3 (the focal position of the lens 3 when the input light beam is a parallel beam, and in the case of other diffused light, etc.). Is a position at which the light passing through the lens 3 is focused), so that the laser beam emitted from the tip 10b of the handpiece 10 is perpendicular to the optical axis of the emitted laser light from the handpiece 10 and corresponds to the focal point position. A durable guide bar 17 of appropriate thickness is led out in the direction along the axis of the handpiece body 10a at a position not obstructing the treatment irradiation field up to the surface, and the distal end face 17a of the guide bar 17 is The position is determined by contacting the skin.

Therefore, the end face of the tip of the guide bar 17 from the lens 3
The length up to 17a is equal to the length of the distance to the point where the image is focused by the lens 3 (hereinafter, this will be referred to as a focal point for convenience).

In addition, in order to make it easier to match the plane perpendicular to the laser optical axis, the end face 17a of the distal end of the guide bar 17 has a surface shape (flat surface) that matches the plane perpendicular to the laser optical axis.

In such a configuration, the handpiece body 10a is gripped during treatment, and the distal end face 17a of the guide bar 17 projecting from the distal end 10b is brought into contact with the skin. This brings focus to the skin surface and guide bar
Since the tip end face 17a of 17 is a flat face, and this flat face coincides with the vertical face with respect to the laser optical axis, if the guide bar tip end face 17a is brought into contact with the skin surface, the inclination of the handpiece 10 with respect to the affected part is obtained. Therefore, the handpiece can be brought into vertical contact with the skin surface, and can be slightly aligned with the surface of the focal point position of the emitted laser light.

In this state, when laser light for treatment is generated from a laser light source (not shown), the generated laser light is guided to the handpiece 10 by the optical fiber 2, and the laser light in the handpiece body 10a is made uniform. The distribution is made uniform by the member 4. The laser light emitted from the laser light equalizing member 4 is converged by the lens 3, expanded or reduced, and condensed on the light condensing surface to have a uniform distribution.

The irradiation field may be a square, a circle, a hexagon, or another polygon. The uniformity of the emitted laser light is good only on a specific surface, that is, only on a surface perpendicular to the optical axis, and the optical axis of the handpiece 10 is Although good uniformity cannot be obtained in the case where the laser beam is tilted, the present device prevents the optical axis of the handpiece 10 from tilting and focuses the laser beam focused by a lens having a necessary energy distribution. The laser treatment can be performed with good uniformity, and the treatment that does not cause uneven burning can be performed without skill.

In a laser treatment apparatus using this handpiece as an auxiliary means for accurate positioning, He-Ne (helium-neo) which is visible light as guide light (aiming light) is used.
A neon) laser light source is provided, and prior to treatment, He-Ne laser light is sent from the optical fiber 2 as aiming light so that the actual irradiation field can be confirmed with visible light. Since the inclination of the handpiece 1 with respect to the affected part appears as distortion of the irradiation field shape due to the visible light irradiated to the affected part,
As a result, it becomes possible to more accurately perform the positioning during the operation. Since nothing is attached to the tip of the guide bar, the field of view is open and the operability is not impaired.

While the above description has shown a configuration in which positioning can be easily performed by using one guide bar 17, a handpiece that can more easily perform positioning will be described below.

This embodiment is as shown in FIG. 2. As shown in FIG. 2, the handpiece body 20a, which is an outer cylinder forming the handpiece 20, comprises the optical fiber 2, the laser beam uniformizing member 4, the lens 3 Hold. Furthermore, the handpiece body 20a
A pair (two) of durable and stick-shaped guide bars 18 having an appropriate thickness are protruded in a direction along the axis of the handpiece body 20a from the front end portion 20b of the handpiece body 20a.
The guide bar 18 is brought out of position by abutting the distal end face 18a thereof on the skin. Therefore, the length of the guide bar 18 up to the end surface 18a is equal to the length of the lens 3
Is equal to the length of the focusing distance of the light from.

In addition, in order to make it easy to match the vertical plane with respect to the emission laser optical axis of the handpiece, the end surface of the tip of the guide bar 18 is used.
18a has a surface shape (flat surface) coinciding with a plane perpendicular to the laser optical axis. Further, needless to say, the pair of guide bars 18 are arranged at positions where an irradiation field at the time of treatment can be secured, so as not to hinder treatment.

In such a configuration, the pair of guide bars 18 protrude from the distal end portion 20b of the handpiece body 20a, and the distal end surface 18b of the guide bar 18 has a plane perpendicular to the long axis of the handpiece. In addition, the position coincides with the position of the laser light focusing surface. That is, the surface including the guide bar tip end surface 18b perpendicular to the long axis of the handpiece is the laser light focusing surface.

Therefore, if the tip end surfaces 18a of the pair of guide bars 18 are parallel to the skin surface, the handpiece 20 does not tilt with respect to the affected part, so that the handpiece is brought into vertical contact with the skin surface, and Thus, the laser light can be made to coincide with the converging surface of the emitted laser light. Since there are a pair of guide bars, the alignment becomes easier as compared with the configuration of FIG. Also, in this case, since nothing is attached to the tip of the guide bar, the field of view is wide, and the operability at the time of surgery is not impaired.

The number of the guide bars 18 can be three or more.
The more the number, the easier it will be for accurate positioning,
In consideration of various conditions, the practical limit is about four wires. However, the number is not limited.

Also, in the case of a laser treatment apparatus in which the guide bar 18 uses a plurality of handpieces, visible light is used as guide light (sighting light) as auxiliary means for accurate positioning.
A He-Ne laser light source is provided, and a He-Ne laser beam is sent from the optical fiber 2 as aiming light prior to treatment, so that an actual irradiation field can be confirmed with visible light.

In addition, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above and shown in the drawings, and can be appropriately modified and implemented within a scope that does not change the gist thereof. Although the shape is a circular tube, the shape may be a square, an ellipse, a polygon, or the like. Also, as shown in FIG. 8, guides protruding from the handpiece body 20a are provided.
The end surface 18b of the bar 18 may be a ring that is perpendicular to the lens optical axis and forms a surface that coincides with the surface located at the focal point of the laser beam.

As described above, the laser light from the laser light source is made uniform by the light homogenizing member provided in the main body of the handpiece, which makes the light energy uniform, and is condensed by the lens and emitted so as to have a predetermined irradiation field. In the handpiece of the laser treatment apparatus as described above, the present invention is such that the guide bar is arranged along the axial direction of the handpiece at the laser light emission side end of the handpiece in a region not obstructing the irradiation field. At the same time, the end face of the guide bar is a flat surface which is a condensing position of laser light condensed and emitted from the inside of the handpiece via a lens and coincides with a plane perpendicular to the optical axis of the lens. If the entire end surface of the guide bar is brought into contact with the skin surface, the handpiece 10 will not automatically tilt with respect to the affected part, In this case, the guide bar is vertically abutted, and can be made to coincide with the condensing surface of the emitted laser light. In addition, the end surface of the guide bar has nothing extra. Because there is no, it is easy to confirm the treatment area and it is easy to see the guide light irradiated on the skin,
Operability becomes extremely good, for example, irradiation positioning becomes easy.

Therefore, according to the present invention, a guide bar is provided on the handpiece, the shape of the end face is flat, and the position of the guide bar end face is adjusted to the focal plane of the laser beam. The handpiece can be easily abutted vertically on the skin, and it can be prevented from being abutted at an angle, and the treatment surface can be irradiated with a predetermined uniform laser light distribution. Without any need, anyone can easily and obtain good therapeutic results.

[Effects of the Invention] As described above, according to the present invention, the handpiece can be brought into perpendicular contact with the treatment surface during treatment, and the treatment surface can be irradiated with a predetermined energy distribution. As a result, it is possible for anyone to easily obtain a good treatment result without requiring skill, and to provide a handpiece of a laser treatment apparatus with extremely excellent operability.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front sectional view showing the structure of one embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a front sectional view showing the structure of another embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. FIGS. 4 to 7 are views for explaining the structure of a conventional handpiece,
FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing a modification of the present invention. Reference numeral 3 denotes a lens, 4 denotes a light equalizing member, 10, 20 denotes a handpiece, 10a, 20a denotes a handpiece body, 10b, 20b denotes a tip of the handpiece, 17, 18, a guide bar, 17a, 18a denotes a guide.
End face of bar 17 tip.

Claims (2)

(57) [Claims] 1. A laser beam from a laser light source is homogenized by a light homogenizing member provided in a main body of a handpiece for homogenizing light energy, and is condensed by a lens to emit a predetermined irradiation field. In the handpiece of the laser treatment apparatus, a bar-shaped guide bar is provided at an end of the handpiece on the laser beam emission side in a region where the irradiation field is not obstructed and a bar-shaped guide bar is projected along the axis of the handpiece. The end face of the guide bar is a flat surface perpendicular to the optical axis of the lens for condensing the laser light emitted from the inside of the handpiece and coinciding with the plane passing through the focused position of the condensed laser light. A handpiece for a laser treatment apparatus, characterized in that: 2. A laser beam from a laser light source is homogenized by a light homogenizing member provided in a main body of the handpiece for homogenizing light energy, and the laser beam is condensed by a lens and emitted so as to have a predetermined irradiation field. In the handpiece of the laser treatment apparatus, a plurality of rod-shaped guide bars are provided at the end of the laser beam emission side of the handpiece so as not to obstruct the irradiation field and to extend along the axis of the handpiece. The end of this guide bar is perpendicular to the optical axis of the lens that converges the laser light emitted from the handpiece, and coincides with the plane passing through the focused position of the converged laser light. A handpiece for a laser treatment apparatus, characterized in that the handpiece is configured to be constructed by performing the above operation.