JP3411759B2 - Endoscope device for fluorescence diagnosis - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an endoscope apparatus for fluorescence diagnosis for diagnosing early cancer etc. by fluorescence observation using an endoscope.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art The following are known cancer diagnosis methods by fluorescence observation using an endoscope.

(1) Photodynamics in which a photosensitizer having a characteristic of being selectively taken up by tumor tissue and emitting fluorescence by excitation light of a specific wavelength is injected into a patient's body and fluorescence is observed under irradiation of excitation light. -Diagnosis (PDD).

(2) Laser-Induced-Fluorescence utilizing the fact that normal tissue emits fluorescence stronger than tumor tissue by irradiating the mucosa in the body cavity with blue or ultraviolet laser light such as He-Cd laser as excitation light. -System (LIF system).

[0005]

However, in PDD, since it is necessary to inject a photosensitizer into the body, the patient must be hospitalized for a considerable period of time in order to be diagnosed, which is a heavy burden.

In the LIF system, He-
Since a laser generator for generating blue or ultraviolet laser light such as a Cd laser is required, the cost of the device becomes high. In addition, the safety of laser light in the blue to ultraviolet region to the human body has not yet been proved.

[0007] Therefore, the present invention, without burdening the patient,
An object of the present invention is to provide an endoscopic apparatus for fluorescence diagnosis, which is capable of safely performing cancer diagnosis by endoscopic fluorescence observation with a low-cost apparatus.

[0008]

In order to achieve the above object, an endoscope apparatus for fluorescence diagnosis of the present invention is an illumination light source that generates illumination light including light in a wavelength range that excites fluorescence from a living body, An illumination light intermittent irradiation means for intermittently and repeatedly irradiating the subject with illumination light generated from the illumination light source, a solid-state image sensor for transferring image data according to the accumulation control signal, and the accumulation control signal Fluorescence for capturing the subject image immediately after the irradiation of the illumination light to the subject from the illumination light intermittent irradiation means is interrupted, including a solid-state image sensor control circuit for sending to the solid-state image sensor at predetermined time intervals. An image capturing unit and a unit for blocking or invalidating capturing of the subject image by the fluorescent image capturing unit while the illumination light is being emitted from the illumination light intermittent irradiation unit to the subject. Characterized by providing the image element means.

The illumination light intermittent irradiation means has a first shutter member provided between the illumination light source and the subject, and the image pickup device means is provided between the subject and the solid-state image pickup device. A second shutter member that is provided and may be opened immediately after the first shutter member is closed to allow the solid-state imaging device to capture a subject image is provided.

In this case, the first and second shutter members may be repeatedly opened and closed a plurality of times within the predetermined time interval, and the fluorescence image pickup means includes a storage means, and the first and second shutter members may be stored. The second shutter member is opened only once within the predetermined time interval, and the image data transferred from the solid-state image sensor is integrated in the storage means a plurality of times and then output to the image display means. Good.

Further, the image pickup device means has an electronic shutter pulse output means for sweeping out charges accumulated in the solid-state image pickup device while the illumination light is emitted to the object by the illumination light intermittent emission means. Good.

[0012]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a first embodiment of the present invention. Reference numeral 1 denotes an endoscope, and an image of a subject 100 formed by an objective lens 3 arranged at the tip of the insertion section 2 is transmitted to an eyepiece section 5 via an image guide fiber bundle 4. Reference numeral 6 is an eyepiece lens.

Reference numeral 7 denotes a light guide fiber bundle for transmitting the illumination light that illuminates the subject 100, and its incident end is connected to the light source device 10. Then, the illumination light emitted from the light source lamp 11 using, for example, a xenon lamp is transmitted through the light guide fiber bundle 7 to illuminate the subject 100.

An infrared cut filter 1 is provided between the light source lamp 11 and the incident end of the light guide fiber bundle 7.
2 and the first shutter 13 are arranged. By repeatedly opening and closing the first shutter 13, it is possible to make the illumination light incident on the light guide fiber bundle 7 intermittently. Reference numeral 14 is a drive circuit for the first shutter 13.

A color television camera 20 is detachably attached to the eyepiece unit 5, and an endoscopic observation image transmitted to the image exit end face 4a of the image guide fiber bundle 4 is passed through an imaging lens 21. For example, it is projected on the light receiving surface of the solid-state imaging device 22 using a charge coupled device (CCD). The solid-state image sensor 22 has a characteristic of being able to capture an optical image of at least the entire wavelength region of the visible range.

The image pickup signal output from the solid-state image pickup device 22 is subjected to predetermined processing by the video processor 23, and an image is displayed on the television monitor 24. A drive signal for driving the solid-state image sensor 22 is sent from the solid-state image sensor drive circuit 27.

A second shutter 25 is disposed in the observation image projection optical path to the solid-state image pickup device 22, and by closing the second shutter 25, the exposure of the image light to the solid-state image pickup device 22 is interrupted. be able to. 26
Is a drive circuit for the second shutter 25.

The operation of the two shutters 13 and 25 is CP
It is interlocked and controlled by the control part 30 which incorporates U and the like. A keyboard 31 for operating an observation mode changeover switch and the like is connected to the control unit 30.

An instruction signal for switching the image processing mode in the video processor 23 is sent from the control unit 30 to the video processor 23, and the normal image processing mode and the fluorescent image processing mode are switched. From the video processor 23 to the control unit 30,
A synchronization signal or the like is sent.

Next, the operation of the above apparatus will be described with reference to the time chart of FIG. In the normal observation mode in which the fluorescence observation switch provided on the keyboard 31 is off, the two shutters 13 and 25 are both open,
A normal observation image of the subject 100 is captured by the solid-state image sensor 22, and the image is displayed on the television monitor 24.

When the fluorescence observation switch of the keyboard 31 is turned on, as shown in FIG.
Repeatedly open and close at high speed, and the subject 100 is intermittently illuminated.

The solid-state image pickup device 25 repeats accumulation and transfer by a timing pulse (TG pulse) given at a period of 1/60 second, and the first shutter 13 is opened and closed while the solid-state image pickup device 25 continues accumulation. Is repeated 4 times.

The second shutter 25 is opened and closed in synchronization with the first shutter 13 so that it is closed when the first shutter 13 is open and opened when the first shutter 13 is closed.

The synchronization with the transfer timing of the solid-state image pickup device 22 is performed by adjusting the first opening timing of the first shutter 13 to the TG pulse having a 1/60 second cycle.

The opening time T1 of the first shutter 13 is about several ms, and the illumination light applied to the subject 100 at this time is normal illumination light that generally includes light in the visible region.
Therefore, the subject 100, which is a living body, emits fluorescence in the wavelength region of 500 to 600 nm by being irradiated with light (excitation light) in the wavelength region of 300 to 500 nm included in the illumination light.

Of the subject 100 irradiated with the excitation light, the tumor tissue portion emits only weaker fluorescence than the normal tissue portion. Therefore, although tumor diagnosis can be performed by observing the fluorescence image, the fluorescence image is not visible because the fluorescence is weak.

During the illumination period in which the first shutter 13 is open, the second shutter 25 is closed and the image light exposure for the solid-state image pickup device 22 is not performed. However, the fluorescence emission from the subject 100 is performed for about 5 to 10 ns for a short time even after the first shutter 13 is closed and the irradiation of the excitation light is stopped.

Therefore, when the first shutter 13 is closed,
The second shutter 25 is opened while the fluorescence is being emitted. Then, the fluorescence image is captured by the solid-state imaging device 2 for an extremely short period until the fluorescence emission from the subject 100 ends.
The two light receiving surfaces are exposed. The second shutter 25 opens for a few ms and then closes, then the first shutter 13 opens again, and the above operation is repeated.

The video signal of the fluorescent image picked up by the solid-state image pickup device 22 in this manner is greatly amplified by the video processor 23 and sent to the television monitor 24, where the subject 10 is detected.
The fluorescent image of 0 is displayed on the television monitor 24.

FIGS. 3 to 5 are flowcharts showing the contents of the software program executed by the control unit 30 in order to perform the above-mentioned operation, and S indicates a processing step.

Here, first, in S1, it is determined whether or not the main switch provided on the keyboard 31 is turned on, and if not turned on, the process ends. When the main switch is on, in S2, both the first and second shutters 1
After performing predetermined initialization control such as closing 3,25,
In S3, the light source lamp 11 is turned on.

Next, in step S4, the state of the fluorescence observation switch of the keyboard 31 is determined. If the fluorescence observation switch is not on, the first and second shutters 13 and 25 are opened in step S5, and the state of the main switch is determined in step S6. To judge.

When the main switch is not on, the process is ended as it is, and when the main switch is on, S7
In step S6, it is determined whether the fluorescence observation switch is on. If not, the process is repeated from S6.

When the fluorescence observation switch is turned on in S7,
In S8, the first and second shutters 13 and 25 are closed, and the process proceeds to S9. If the fluorescence observation switch is turned on in S4, the process proceeds from there to S9.

In S9, the solid-state image pickup device driving circuit 2
It is determined whether or not a TG pulse has been issued from 7 to the solid-state image sensor 22, and when the pulse has not been issued, the determination in S9 is repeated.

When a TG pulse is issued to the solid-state image pickup device 22, the counter is set to "1" in S10, and then S
In 11 to S13, the first shutter 13 is opened and closed for T1 time.

When the first shutter 13 is closed, S14-
In S16, the second shutter 25 is opened and closed for T2 time. The opening time T1 of the first shutter 13 and the opening time T2 of the second shutter 25 are (T1 + T2) ≈24.
It is set to 1/0 second.

After the second shutter 25 is closed, if the counter reaches "4" in S17, the process returns to S4 and repeats from there. If the counter does not reach "4", the counter value is set to "1" in S18. Is added and the process is repeated from S11.

In this way, each time the second shutter 25 is opened, a fluorescent image of the subject 100 is picked up by the solid-state image pickup device 22, and the image is displayed on the television monitor 24. However, although the second shutter 25 is opened and closed 240 times per second, the actual number of image capturing frames is 60 per second.

FIG. 6 is a circuit block diagram of the second embodiment of the present invention, in which the video processor 23 is provided with a memory 28 for temporarily storing image data. Although the configurations of the endoscope 1 and the light source device 10 are omitted, they are the same as those in the first embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a time chart showing the operation of the second embodiment, in which the TG pulse is given every 1/240 second and the first and second shutters 13 and 25 are opened and closed once. Each time, the image pickup data in the solid-state image pickup device 22 is accumulated and transferred.

8 to 11 are flowcharts showing the contents of the software executed by the control unit 30 of the second embodiment, and S21 to S36 are S of the first embodiment.
Since it is the same as 1 to S16, the processing after S37 will be described.

In this embodiment, when the first and second shutters 13 and 25 have been opened and closed once, in S37,
It is determined whether the counter is "1". When the counter is "1", the output data of the solid-state image pickup device 22 (that is, the image pickup signal of the fluorescence image) is stored in the memory 28 built in the video processor 23 in S38, and the counter is displayed in "S39". 1 ”is added and the process is repeated from the shutter opening / closing in S31.

If the counter is not "1" in S37, it is determined in S40 whether the counter is "4". If it is not "4", in S41, the current solid-state image pickup device 22 is read. The output data is added to the data remaining in the memory 28 and stored in the memory 28.
At "49", "1" is added to the counter, and the shutter opening / closing in S31 is repeated.

When the counter is "4" in S40, the data stored in the memory 28 (that is, the accumulated data for four times) is processed via the video processor 23 in S43, and the television monitor is processed. The image is displayed on 24. By doing so, the fluorescent image of the subject 100 is displayed on the television monitor 24 at a brighter level.

[0046]

[0047]

[0048]

[0049]

[0050]

[0051]

[0052]

[0053]

[0054]

According to the present invention, illumination light including light in a wavelength region that excites fluorescence from a living body is intermittently and repeatedly applied to a subject, and immediately after the illumination light irradiation to the subject is interrupted. Since it is possible to obtain the fluorescence image of the subject by capturing only the fluorescence image emitted from the subject for a short time, it is not necessary to use a photosensitizer or a special ultraviolet laser, and the burden on the patient is eliminated. It is possible to safely perform cancer diagnosis by endoscopic fluorescence observation with a low-cost device.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall configuration diagram of a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a time chart diagram showing the operation of the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the contents of a software program according to the first embodiment of this invention.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the contents of a software program according to the first embodiment of this invention.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the contents of a software program according to the first embodiment of this invention.

FIG. 6 is a circuit block diagram of a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a time chart diagram showing an operation according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the contents of a software program according to the second embodiment of this invention.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing the contents of a software program according to the second embodiment of this invention.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing the contents of a software program according to the second embodiment of this invention.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing the contents of a software program according to the second embodiment of this invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

4 Image guide fiber bundle 7 Light guide fiber bundle 11 Light source lamp 13 First shutter 22 Solid-state image sensor 23 Video Processor 24 TV monitor 25 Second shutter 28 memory 30 control unit 100 subjects

Continuation of front page (58) Fields surveyed (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) A61B 1/00-1/32

Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] 1. An illumination light source that emits illumination light including light in a wavelength range that excites fluorescence from a living body, and illumination for intermittently and repeatedly illuminating a subject with the illumination light generated from the illumination light source. The illumination light including an intermittent light irradiation means, a solid-state image sensor for transferring image data according to a storage control signal, and a solid-state image sensor control circuit for sending the storage control signal to the solid-state image sensor at predetermined time intervals Fluorescent image capturing means for capturing the subject image immediately after the irradiation of the illumination light from the intermittent illuminating means to the subject is interrupted,
Fluorescence during the which the imaging blocking means for disabling or inhibiting imaging of the subject image by the fluorescent image capturing means is provided with illuminating light is irradiated to the subject from the illumination light intermittent illumination means In the endoscope apparatus for diagnosis, the illumination light intermittent irradiation means includes the illumination light source and the subject.
And a first shutter member disposed between
In addition, the image pickup device means includes the subject and the solid-state image pickup device.
The solid-state image sensor, which is placed between the camera and the child, captures a subject image.
It has a second shutter member that allows imaging.
The second shutter member is the first shutter portion.
When the material is open, it is closed and the first shutter part
The material is opened immediately after the material is closed, and the first shutter member is
An endoscope device for fluorescence diagnosis, which is closed before opening . Wherein said first and second shutter members, fluorescence diagnosis endoscope system according to claim 1, wherein repeating a plurality of times opened and closed within the predetermined time interval. 3. The fluorescence image pickup means includes storage means,
The first and second shutter members are opened only once within the predetermined time interval, and the image data transferred from the solid-state image sensor is accumulated in the storage means a plurality of times and then output to the image display means. The endoscope apparatus for fluorescence diagnosis according to claim 1 .