JPS6359330B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to an endoscope used for diagnosis and examination of a living body, mainly a body cavity or a hollow vessel of a human body.

Today, fiberscopes are widely used for diagnosis, examination, and treatment and treatment of living bodies, mainly body cavities and hollow organs of the human body, such as the esophagus, stomach, upper gastrointestinal tract, small intestine, and large intestine. It has been done.

However, since this type of fiberscope is inserted directly into the body through a body cavity, various obstacles may occur when attempting to insert it into organs deep within the body. For example, when inserting a fiberscope for the small intestine from the oral cavity or anus into the small intestine, the small intestine is floating above the mesentery, so if you push the fiberscope in, the fiberscope will not advance into the small intestine, and the small intestine will If the fiberscope moves forward as one and pushes further, there is a risk of rupturing the small intestine. On the other hand, when inserting a fiberscope for the large intestine through the anus, the sigmoid colon is located in the upper part of the rectum, so there is a risk that the sigmoid colon will rupture if the fiberscope is pushed in too forcefully.

Therefore, conventional insertion methods include forcing the fiberscope into the body, using the sonde method, which inserts the fiberscope through peristaltic movement of the intestine, or having the patient swallow a string with a diameter of approximately 2 mm, which is then excreted the next day. There is a ropeway method in which a fiberscope is inserted by pulling a string. However, both the sonde method and the ropeway method have the disadvantage that not only do insertions take a long time, but they also cause pain to the patient for a long time.

An object of the present invention is to provide an endoscope that can be easily inserted in a short time and without causing great pain to the patient.

Therefore, in the present invention, the endless belt is
After passing through the inside of the fiberscope and guiding it from the proximal end to the distal end, at least a part of the outer surface of the fiberscope is exposed along the longitudinal direction and wound up to the proximal end, and the endless belt is attached to the proximal end of the fiberscope. The above objective is achieved by providing a driving means for rotating the . In short, the endless belt exposed on the outer surface of the distal end of the fiberscope is brought into contact with the body cavity wall while being rotated by a driving means, and the fiberscope is guided into the body by the frictional resistance. The purpose is to enable easy insertion without causing pain to the patient.

Hereinafter, one embodiment of the present invention will be described based on the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows the appearance of the endoscope of this embodiment. In the figure, in a fiberscope 1, an eyepiece 4 is integrally formed at the proximal end of an insertion tube 2 made of a flexible material in the shape of a thin tube, via an operating section 3.

As shown in FIG. 2, the insertion tube 2 is provided with an end cap 5 at its tip, and a dovetail-shaped guide groove 6 along the longitudinal direction on one side of the outer surface.
(See Fig. 3), and furthermore, two light guides 7 each having a plurality of optical fibers bundled therein, one image guide 8 having a plurality of optical fibers bundled together, and a part of the guide groove An endless belt 9 made of a flexible material that is rotated along the insertion tube 6, a forceps guide tube, a water supply tube, etc. (not shown) are housed along the longitudinal direction of the insertion tube 2. As shown in FIG. 3, the end cap 5 is provided with a belt guide port 10 at the center for guiding the endless belt 9 to the outside, and around the belt guide port 10 is provided a belt guide port 10 at a position corresponding to the tip of the light guide 7. An image receiving aperture 12 is located at a position where the light aperture 11 corresponds to the tip of the image guide 8, a forceps port 13 is located diagonally to this image receiving aperture 12, and an image receiving aperture 12
A water supply port 14 is provided at a position adjacent to the water supply port 14, respectively. A guide roller 15 is provided inside the belt guide opening 10 for guiding the endless belt 9 from the outer end surface of the end cap 5 to the guide groove 6. Further, an objective lens 16 is fitted into the image receiving aperture 12 to collect light from the outside and make it enter the image guide 8.

Further, on the outside of the operation section 3, a flexible connecting tube 21 for connecting the light guide 7 to a light source device (not shown), and forceps 22 (see FIG. 1) are provided as a forceps guide of the insertion tube 2. The forceps insertion port 23 is made to protrude from the forceps port 13 through the tube, and the washing water is passed through the water supply pipe of the insertion tube 2 to the water supply port 1.
A water supply port 24 for cleaning the objective lens 16 by spraying water from the water supply port 4 and an operation knob 25 for bending the distal end of the insertion tube 2 are provided, respectively. Furthermore, inside the operation section 3, there are two guide rollers 26 for guiding the base end side of the endless belt 9,
27, and a driving means 28 for rotating the endless belt 9. The driving means 28 includes a pair of clamping rollers 29 and 30 that clamp both sides of the endless belt 9, and a motor 31 that rotates one of the clamping rollers 30.

Further, an eyepiece lens 32 is provided inside the eyepiece section 4 to condense the light emitted from the base end side of the image guide 8. This results in
The image formed on the distal end of the image guide 8 by the objective lens 16 is transmitted to the proximal end side through the optical fiber of the image guide 8, and is transmitted to the eyepiece lens 32.
It is becoming more visible through.

Next, how to use it will be explained. In order to insert the present fiberscope 1 into a body cavity, for example, the anus, one of the clamping rollers 30 is first driven by the motor 31.
The endless belt 9 is rotated in the direction of the arrow shown in FIG. In this state, when the tip of the insertion tube 2 is inserted into the anus, the endless belt 9 exposed from the tip of the insertion tube 2 comes into contact with a part of the body cavity wall 51, as shown in FIG. Due to contact resistance, the insertion tube 2 is connected to the body cavity wall 5.
1. Therefore, even if the body cavity is curved or has a relatively weak mucosal layer such as the intestine, the insertion tube 2 can be inserted along the body cavity wall.
Since the distal end of the insertion tube 2 is guided, the insertion tube 2 can be smoothly inserted deep into the body without breaking the body cavity wall.

Therefore, according to this embodiment, an endless belt 9 is disposed on the fiberscope 1, with one part exposed from the outer surface of the distal end toward the proximal end, and the endless belt 9 is rotated. Since the drive means 28 is provided, when the tip of the fiberscope 1 is inserted into the body cavity while the endless belt 9 is being rotated by the drive means 28, the contact resistance between the endless belt 9 and the body cavity wall 51 causes Since the fiberscope 1 is inserted into the body while being guided along the body cavity wall 51, the fiberscope 1 can be inserted quickly and without causing great pain to the patient. Moreover, in this embodiment, since the endless belt 9 is exposed over the entire length of the outer surface of the insertion tube 2, the contact between the body cavity wall and the endless belt 9 increases as the insertion length of the insertion tube 2 into the body increases. Since the area is large, it can be easily inserted deep into the body without applying excessive contact resistance to a part of the body cavity wall. Furthermore, since the endless belt 9 is guided by the guide groove 6, it does not separate from the insertion tube 2 even when the insertion tube 2 is bent due to the bending of the body cavity wall 51, and it always follows the body cavity wall 51. can be contacted without causing damage to the body cavity wall 51 or poor progression. Furthermore, since the insertion tube 2 is inserted through the anus to observe the small intestine, etc., it can be made quite large in diameter, for example, about 14 to 20 mm in diameter, which makes it easier to arrange the endless belt 9, form the guide groove 6, etc. It's advantageous.

In addition, in carrying out the implementation, it is not necessary to provide the endless belt 9 over the entire length of the insertion tube 2; for example, as shown in FIG. fiber scope 1
The length is preferably 1/3 or more of the total length of. ) may be provided. In this case, endless belt 9
For example, a fiberscope 1 is attached to one of the clamping rollers 29 and 30 that clamps both sides of the fiberscope 1.
By transmitting the rotation from the motor provided on the proximal end side of the endless belt 9 through a flexible rotating shaft, the endless belt 9 can be rotated on the distal end side. On the other hand, endless belt 9
The number is not limited to one as described in the above embodiment, but may be a plurality of numbers. For example, as shown in FIG. 5, two endless belts 9A and 9B are arranged on both sides of the insertion tube 2 facing in opposite directions, and the endless belts 9A and 9B are configured to rotate in opposite directions. You may. Further, as shown in FIG. 6, two endless belts 9A and 9B are arranged in opposite directions so as to be plane symmetrical with respect to the center of the insertion tube 2.
A and 9B may be made to rotate in opposite directions. With this configuration, when inserting the fiberscope 1, the insertion tube 2 can be inserted into the body cavity without meandering. Furthermore,
When there are three or more endless belts, by arranging them at equiangular positions with respect to the center of the insertion tube 2, it is possible to prevent the insertion tube 2 from meandering in the vertical and horizontal directions.

Further, the driving means 28 may have a configuration other than the above-mentioned embodiment, for example, as shown in FIG. 7 or FIG. 8. The drive means shown in FIG.
An endless belt 9 constituted by a timing belt is wound between these gears 41 and 42, and one gear 41 is rotated by a motor 43. Further, the driving means shown in FIG.
5, 46, and 47 are provided, and one of the pulleys 45 is rotated by a motor 48, and tension is applied to the belt portion between the pulleys 46 and 47. The tension mechanism in this case includes a pulley 49 that is brought into contact with the surface of the endless belt 9 opposite to the surface that the pair of pulleys 46 and 47 come into contact with, and a pulley 49 that is attached in the direction of the pair of pulleys 46 and 47. It is composed of a spring 50 that applies pressure. Furthermore, the means for aligning the endless belt 9 along the insertion tube 2 is not limited to the guide groove 6, but may be other means such as rings provided at appropriate intervals on the surface of the insertion tube 2, or a holder. Furthermore, the eyepiece section 4 is not limited to the one provided on the opposite side of the insertion tube 2 with respect to the operation section 3 as shown in FIGS. This allows the eyepiece 4 to be connected to the operating section 3.
It can be provided on the side surface, for example, on the surface where the operation knob 25 in FIG. 1 is located, or on the opposite surface thereof,
In this way, the endless belt 9 can be wound up to the rear end of the operating section 3, that is, to the position where the eyepiece section 4 is currently located in FIG.

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide an endoscope that can be quickly and smoothly inserted into the body without causing great pain to the patient.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing one embodiment of the present invention;
Figure 3 is a front view of the distal end of the fiberscope, Figure 4 is a partial sectional view showing a modification of the endless belt, and Figures 5 and 6 each show a modification of the endless belt. Figure, 7th
FIG. 8 and FIG. 8 are explanatory diagrams each showing a modified example of the driving means. 1... Fiberscope, 9... Endless belt, 28... Drive means, 29, 30... Clamping roller, 31, 43, 48... Motor, 41, 4
2... Gear, 44, 45, 46, 47, 49...
Pulley, 50...spring.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. After guiding the endless belt from the proximal end to the distal end through the inside of the fiberscope, exposing at least a portion along the longitudinal direction of the outer surface of the fiberscope and winding it to the proximal end, An endoscope characterized in that a driving means for rotating the endless belt is provided on the proximal end side of the fiberscope. 2. The endoscope according to claim 1, wherein the driving means includes a pair of rollers that sandwich both sides of the endless belt, and a motor that rotates one of the rollers. .