JP7357441B2 - ultrasound probe - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an ultrasonic probe used in an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus.

For example, in order to introduce a catheter into a central vein or perform nerve block therapy, it is necessary to accurately puncture a specific site within the body. In such cases, an ultrasound guided method is widely used in which puncturing is performed while confirming the target and needle tip positions in real time using an ultrasound diagnostic device.

JP2017-176638A

When performing puncture using the ultrasound guided method, it is necessary to hold the ultrasound probe with one hand and perform the puncture with the other hand. Generally used body surface linear probes have a vertically elongated shape with an ultrasonic transmitter/receiver at the tip, as described in Patent Document 1, so they are held in a position away from the body surface by hand. During puncturing, it is difficult to maintain the probe with one hand at an angle and position where a desired tomographic image can be obtained.

The present invention has been made in view of the problems of the prior art, and it is an object of the present invention to provide an ultrasonic probe suitable for puncturing using an ultrasonic guided method.

The above-mentioned purpose is to provide a accommodating portion for accommodating a plurality of ultrasonic transducers arranged in a straight line, and a cylindrical receiving portion provided in the accommodating portion for receiving signal lines connected to the plurality of ultrasonic transducers. and a cable that accommodates a signal line and is inserted into the receiving part, wherein a plurality of straight lines parallel to the length direction of the receiving part and touching the bottom end of the receiving part are provided. The angle between the direction in which the ultrasound probe transmits and receives ultrasound and the length direction of the receiving part is determined so that the focus depth of the ultrasound probe is at the center in the array direction of the ultrasound transducers. This is achieved by a featured ultrasound probe.

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an ultrasonic probe suitable for puncturing using an ultrasonic guided method.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of an ultrasound probe according to an embodiment. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of an ultrasound probe according to an embodiment. It is a figure showing an example of composition of a holding attachment concerning an embodiment. It is a figure showing an example of composition of a holding attachment concerning an embodiment. It is a figure showing an example of composition of a holding attachment concerning an embodiment.

Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail based on exemplary embodiments thereof with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the appearance of an ultrasound probe according to an embodiment of the present invention. The ultrasound probe 100 of this embodiment is a linear probe in which a plurality of ultrasound transducers are arranged in a straight line. The ultrasonic probe 100 includes a housing portion including a housing portion 110 and a receiving portion 111, and a cable bush 120 connected to the receiving portion and for introducing a cable 122 into the housing portion.

For example, the housing portion formed from a hard resin component has a hollow structure, and accommodates an acoustic lens, an acoustic matching layer, an ultrasonic vibrator, a backing material, wiring, a board, etc. inside. In this embodiment, for example, 128 ultrasonic transducers are placed in a rectangular parallelepiped-shaped housing part 110 whose longitudinal size (Dw in FIG. 2) is about 25 to 30 mm, and whose longitudinal size is larger than its height. It is accommodated. Therefore, the ultrasound probe 100 of this embodiment has a short, horizontally long housing portion. Note that the accommodating portion 110 may be formed such that the height of the tip (distal end) is lower than the height of the end (proximal end). By forming the accommodating portion 110 in such a shape, operability in a narrow area is improved. Similarly, the accommodating portion 110 may be formed so that the width at the tip is narrower than the width at the distal end.

The cable bush 120 is attached to the receiving portion 111 of the housing portion and has a hole 121 through which a cable 122 connected to the main body (not shown) of the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus is passed. The cable bush 120 is made of an elastic material such as rubber in order to prevent the signal line within the cable 122 from breaking. Since the cable 122 accommodates a large number of thin signal wires connected to individual ultrasonic transducers, fixing the sheathed portion inside the receiving part 111 prevents the signal wires from breaking due to tension on the cable 122. is prevented.

The housing portion of the ultrasonic probe 100 can be constructed from a resin component in which the accommodating portion 110 and the receiving portion 111 are integrally formed. In the ultrasonic probe 100, a cylindrical receiving portion 111 for receiving a signal line accommodated in a cable 122 in a housing portion is configured to have a specific angle with respect to a rectangular parallelepiped-shaped receiving portion 110. ing. This point will be explained with reference to FIG. 2 as well.

FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining the angle of the receiving part 111 with respect to the receiving part 110 of the ultrasound probe 100. In FIG. 2, Dw is the length of the housing section 110 in the longitudinal direction, and the plurality of ultrasonic transducers are arranged in the longitudinal direction. Further, the ultrasonic waves are transmitted and received in the vertical direction of the plane of FIG. 2, which is indicated by a straight line 201. The straight line 201 passes through positions that equally divide the length Dw and extends in the vertical direction. Straight line 202 is the center line of receiving portion 111. In this embodiment, straight line 202 is also the centerline of cable bushing 120 and cable 122. Further, the straight line 203 is parallel to the straight line 202 and is in contact with the bottom end of the housing section 110.

As shown in FIG. 2, the receiving section 111 is provided in the accommodating section 110 so as to have an angle θ (the angle formed by the straight line 201 and the straight line 202 (or the straight line 203)) with respect to the ultrasonic transmission/reception direction. ing. This angle θ is determined by the value of the depth of focus Df of the ultrasound probe 100. Here, the focus depth Df of the ultrasound probe 100 is a distance (fixed value) at which the beam width in the slice direction becomes the narrowest, which is determined by the characteristics of the mechanical elements of the ultrasound probe 100. Here, the mechanical element that determines the depth of focus Df of the ultrasound probe 100 is, for example, an acoustic lens and/or an ultrasound transducer.

In puncture using the ultrasound guided method, in order to reach the target site while checking the position of the tip of the puncture needle in real time using ultrasound tomographic images, the ultrasound probe is held directly above the target site while the needle tip is placed on the body surface. Generally, a needle is punctured diagonally from near the bottom of the ultrasound probe, which is in contact with the ultrasound probe, directly below the ultrasound probe. According to the configuration of this embodiment, as shown by the straight line 203, the needle is moved in a direction parallel to the center line of the receiving part (and the cable bush) so as to be in contact with the bottom end of the receiving part 110 of the ultrasound probe 100. By puncturing, a tomographic image with particularly high resolution can be obtained with the tip of the needle near the depth of focus Df, which is useful for highly accurate puncturing.

In addition, in this embodiment, the receiving portion 111 is formed on the short side of a rectangle forming the upper surface of the accommodating portion 110 having a rectangular parallelepiped shape, so that the center line of the receiving portion 111 is parallel to the longitudinal direction of the accommodating portion 110. It is set up like this. The longitudinal direction of the housing section 110 (the length direction of the long side forming the upper surface) is the direction in which the ultrasonic transducers are arranged. Therefore, by advancing the needle parallel to the receiving part 111 (and cable bush 120) and in contact with the lower end of the receiving part 110, the needle can be operated within the space where a tomographic image can be obtained. Therefore, there is an advantage that it is easy to constantly check the position of the needle.

The angle θ of the receiving portion 111 can be determined from the depth of focus Df of the ultrasound probe 100 and the length Dw of the receiving portion 110 as follows.
θ＝tan ^-1 ((Dw/2)/Df)
Here, when puncturing the needle at an angle θ with respect to the ultrasonic transmission/reception direction from a position in contact with the longitudinal end of the housing section 110, it is assumed that the center of the plurality of ultrasonic transducers in the arrangement direction The value of the angle θ was determined so that the depth of focus was at the center position (Dw/2) of the portion 110 in the longitudinal direction. As a result, when a tomographic image (B-mode image) is formed by ultrasonic scanning, if the tip of the needle is punctured so that it reaches the center of the scan direction (direction perpendicular to the scan line) in the tomographic image, the tip of the needle The needle can be punctured so that it is located at the depth of focus, and even an inexperienced operator can easily puncture the needle at an appropriate position.

Note that when the needle is punctured at an angle θ with respect to the ultrasound transmission and reception direction from a position in contact with the bottom end of the housing section 110, at what position in the scanning direction in the tomographic image does the tip of the needle reach the depth of focus? does not necessarily have to be at Dw/2 as long as the operator can grasp it.

A needle guide that is detachable from an ultrasound probe is known as an auxiliary tool for inserting a needle in an appropriate direction during puncture. However, the configuration of the ultrasonic probe 100 of this embodiment has the advantage that the direction in which the needle should be inserted can be intuitively known without preparing or attaching a separate part such as a needle guide. be.

In addition, in FIGS. 1 and 2, an example has been described in which the receiving portion 111 is provided on the short side portion of the rectangle forming the upper surface of the rectangular parallelepiped-shaped accommodating portion 110. However, the receiving part 111 can be provided at any position other than the bottom surface (the ultrasonic wave transmitting/receiving surface) of the accommodating part 110. For example, it can be provided on the long side of the rectangle forming the upper surface of the housing section 110, within the upper surface of the housing section 110, within the side surface, or the like.

Next, a holding attachment that can be used with the ultrasound probe of this embodiment will be explained using FIGS. 3 to 5. The ultrasonic probe 100 of this embodiment is small and has a shape that is smaller in height (shorter) than in the longitudinal direction. Therefore, compared to a general vertical linear probe, it is possible to hold the probe more stably by, for example, pinching the side surface with your fingers. However, a holding attachment, which is a useful auxiliary member for small ultrasound probes, can be used to assist in holding the ultrasound probe during puncture or measurement, and to improve usability depending on the observation site. .

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a first embodiment of the holding attachment. The holding attachment 300 includes a main body 301 having a substantially U-shaped cross-sectional shape or a gutter-like shape, a holding part 302 provided on the top surface, and a pair of protrusions provided on both inner surfaces of the main body. 303. FIG. 3(b) shows the shape seen from the directions of arrows A and B in FIG. 3(a).

The main body 301 is formed of an elastic resin material, and is placed over the top surface of the housing section 110 of the ultrasound probe 100 so that its opposing sides sandwich both side surfaces parallel to the arrangement direction of the ultrasound transducers. (Fig. 3(c)). The protrusions 303 provided on both inner sides of the main body 301 enter into the recesses 130 provided on both sides of the accommodating part 110 when attached to the accommodating part 110, and prevent the holding attachment 300 from easily falling off. There is. Note that the structure for maintaining the attached state of the holding attachment 300 is not limited to the combination of the protrusion 303 and the recess 130, but any other arbitrary structure may be adopted. Note that when using the ultrasound probe 100, the entire ultrasound probe 100 is generally housed in a thin bag-like cover for the purpose of preventing infectious diseases. According to the configuration of the holding attachment 300 of this embodiment, it is also possible to attach it to the accommodating part 110 from above the cover.

The holding part 302 includes a shaft part 3021 which is a shaft-shaped member extending outward from the main body 301 in the attached state, and a plate-shaped (disc-shaped as an example here) stopper 3022 provided at the end of the shaft part 3021. has. The holding attachment 300 is useful, for example, when the ultrasound probe 100 is used at a location where it is easy to hold the ultrasound probe 100 by lightly pressing it against the body surface with a finger. In this case, the ultrasound probe 100 can be easily held by sandwiching the shaft portion 3021 between two fingers inserted between the top surface of the main body 301 and the stopper 3022 of the holding portion 302. Moreover, if the ultrasound probe 100 is held by pinching the holding part 302, the ultrasound probe 100 can be easily rotated by rotating the holding part 302 clockwise or counterclockwise. Therefore, it is useful, for example, when puncturing a blood vessel while observing a cross section along the length direction and a cross section perpendicular to the length direction.

Note that the shape of the holding portion 302 is not limited to the illustrated example. For example, the shape of the stopper 3022 does not have to be plate-like, and may have any shape having a diameter larger than the end of the shaft portion 3021. Further, the stopper 3022 is not essential, and only the shaft portion 3021 may be provided. In this case, the diameter of the shaft portion 3021 may be partially reduced to make it easier to hold with fingers. In other words, the holding portion 302 may be a shaft-shaped member having a diameter larger at the end than at the other portion. Further, instead of the shaft portion 3021 or at the end of the shaft portion 3021, a ring having an opening into which a finger can be inserted may be formed. Further, instead of the shaft portion 3021, a protruding member that can be pinched or held with fingers may be provided. Further, the holding portion 302 is not limited to the top surface of the main body 301, but may be provided on the side surface.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a second embodiment of the holding attachment. The holding attachment 400 having a substantially U-shaped cross-sectional shape or a gutter-like shape includes a mounting portion 401 and an inclined portion 402 connected to the mounting portion 401 and inclined in the length direction. The holding attachment 400 has a length larger than the length Dw (FIG. 2) of the housing section 110 in the arrangement direction of the plurality of ultrasonic transducers. This makes it possible to hold the ultrasound probe 100 at a position away from the housing portion. Further, the angle θ that the inclined portion 402 has with respect to the ultrasound transmission/reception direction is equal to the angle θ that the receiving portion 111 described in FIG. 2 has with respect to the ultrasound transmission/reception direction.

In the example shown in FIG. 4, the inclined portion 402 has a length that extends beyond the cable bush 120 and covers a portion of the cable, as shown in FIG. 4(c). A pair of shelves 404 projecting inwardly from both inner surfaces of the ramp 402 are provided to support cables within the ramp 402 . Similar to the holding attachment 300 shown in FIG. It is attached to the sonic probe 100.

As described above, the holding attachment 400 has the elongated sloped portion 402, thereby making it possible to hold the ultrasound probe 100 at a position away from the region to which the ultrasound probe 100 is to be brought into contact. Therefore, the holding attachment 400 is useful when using the small ultrasonic probe 100 at a location where it is undesirable or difficult to hold the small ultrasound probe 100 with the housing portion. Such sites include, for example, the oral cavity, the abdominal cavity, and small blood vessels.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a third embodiment of the holding attachment. The holding attachment 500 having a substantially U-shaped cross-sectional shape or a gutter-like shape includes a mounting portion 501, an inclined portion 502 connected to the mounting portion 501 and inclined in the length direction, and an inclined portion 502. , and has an extension portion 503 that is less inclined in the length direction than the slope portion 502 (here, as an example, is horizontal in the length direction). Here, as shown in FIG. 5(d), the angle θ that the inclined portion 502 has with respect to the ultrasound transmission/reception direction is the angle θ that the receiving portion 111 described in FIG. 2 has with respect to the ultrasound transmission/reception direction. is equal to

Like the holding attachment 400, the holding attachment 500 can hold the ultrasonic probe 100 at a position away from the casing of the ultrasonic probe 100 when there is little space around the area where the ultrasonic probe 100 is used. Make it. In order to be able to use the ultrasound probe 100 in a narrower space in the height direction than when the holding attachment 400 is attached, the inclined part 502 is made shorter than the inclined part 402 of the holding attachment 400, and the direction of the cable is changed. It is configured to extend along the extension portion 503. Note that the holding attachment 500 may be used when there is sufficient space around the area where the ultrasound probe 100 is used.

Since the protrusion 504 and the shelf 505 are the same as the protrusion 403 and the shelf 404 that the holding attachment 400 has, a description thereof will be omitted. Due to the extension portion 503 of the holding attachment 500, the function of guiding the insertion angle of the needle during puncturing may be impaired. However, even in this case, there is an advantage that the small ultrasonic probe 100 can be held at a position apart from the housing portion, which is useful during general ultrasonic diagnosis.

In this way, the holding attachments 300, 400, and 500 are suitable for small ultrasonic probes having a horizontally long rectangular parallelepiped shape whose height is smaller than the length in the array direction of the ultrasonic transducers. enables retention according to the requirements. Therefore, it is possible to use one type of ultrasound probe 100 for various regions, and there is no need to replace the ultrasound probe depending on the region to be observed, unlike in the past. Furthermore, since the holding attachment is easy to attach and detach, the user can select and use a holding attachment that has a shape that is easy for him or her to use. Therefore, it is expected to contribute to improving the accuracy of measurements and punctures.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100... Ultrasonic probe, 110... Accommodating part, 111... Receiving part, 120... Cable bush, 122... Cable

Claims (6)

a housing section that houses a plurality of linearly arranged ultrasonic transducers;
a cylindrical receiving portion provided in the accommodating portion for receiving signal lines connected to the plurality of ultrasonic transducers;
An ultrasonic probe comprising a cable that accommodates the signal line and is inserted into the receiving part,
The ultrasonic probe is arranged such that a straight line parallel to the length direction of the receiving part and touching the bottom end of the receiving part corresponds to the depth of focus of the ultrasound probe at the center in the arrangement direction of the plurality of ultrasound transducers. An ultrasonic probe characterized in that an angle between a direction in which the acoustic probe transmits and receives ultrasonic waves and a longitudinal direction of the receiving portion is determined. 2. The accommodating portion has a shape with a height smaller than the size of the plurality of ultrasonic transducers in the arrangement direction, and the receiving portion is provided at an upper end of the accommodating portion. 1. The ultrasonic probe according to 1. The ultrasonic probe according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the accommodating portion is formed such that the height of the tip is lower than the height of the distal end. The ultrasound probe according to any one of claims 1 to 3 , wherein the focus depth is a fixed value determined by the characteristics of a mechanical element included in the ultrasound probe. The ultrasonic probe according to claim 4 , wherein the mechanical element is an acoustic lens or an ultrasonic transducer. The ultrasonic probe according to any one of claims 1 to 5 , wherein the angle is determined from the length of the housing section in the arrangement direction of the plurality of ultrasonic transducers and the focus depth. .

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