JPS6359B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to an endoscope for diagnosing deep internal organs such as the pancreas.

In recent years, the application of ultrasound to the medical field for diagnosis has become popular. The principle of this diagnostic device that uses ultrasound pulses is that when an ultrasound beam is intermittently radiated into the body for a very short period of time, as the ultrasound waves propagate into the human tissue, the tissues and organs emit acoustic waves depending on the type. Because their physical properties are somewhat different, some of them are reflected back from the boundaries of different organizations.

As this ultrasound pulse propagates inside the body, the reflected echoes that occur one after another are detected and displayed on a cathode ray tube, etc., and the distribution of acoustic properties of body tissues can be seen. They have different properties, and the presence or absence of an abnormality within the tissue and its location can be determined from the pattern displayed on the cathode ray tube.

Conventionally, an ultrasound probe is brought into contact with the external surface of a living body and the ultrasound is propagated into the living tissue to detect the presence or absence of an abnormality within the tissue. If the ultrasonic probe is deeply embedded in the ultrasonic probe, the distance from the ultrasonic probe becomes long, resulting in a significant decrease in resolution. Another disadvantage is that the pancreas is obstructed by the spine, making it difficult to make an accurate diagnosis. Therefore, attempts have been made to insert an ultrasound probe into the stomach through the mouth and transmit and receive ultrasound from within the stomach, but it is extremely difficult to insert the ultrasound probe to the diagnostic site within the body. Furthermore, it was impossible to precisely control the direction and position of the probe. In addition, there were cases where the body cavity wall was damaged during insertion.

This invention was developed with attention to the above-mentioned circumstances, and its purpose is to improve insertability by providing an ultrasonic transducer on the distal end of the endoscope in the same direction as the observation window. The objective is to provide an endoscope that can control the vibrator to a precise position.

The present invention will be explained below based on an embodiment shown in the drawings. 1 in Figure 1 is the operation part of the endoscope,
This operating section 1 is provided with an eyepiece section 2 and a bending operating section 3. Further, a universal cord 4 and a flexible tube 5 are connected to the operating portion 1, and a tip portion 7 is connected to the tip of the flexible tube 5 via a curved portion 6.
is provided. As shown in FIG. 2, this tip 7 has an objective lens 9 facing the end surface of the image guide 8 and an observation window 11 made of a cover glass.
is provided on the distal end surface, and constitutes a direct viewing type observation optical system 12. Furthermore, a recess 13 is provided on the side adjacent to the observation window 11, and an absorber 14 made of rubber or foamed synthetic resin material is attached to the recess 13 to absorb vibrations.

An ultrasonic transducer 15 protruding from the outer surface of the tip 7 is mounted on the surface of the absorber 14. Therefore, this ultrasonic transducer 15 is oriented in the same direction as the observation window 11. moreover,
The ultrasonic transducer 15 is connected to one end of a cord 16, and the other end thereof is connected to a pulse generation circuit 17 and an amplification/detection circuit 18 through the flexible tube 5 and the universal cord 4. This amplification/detection circuit 18 is connected to a display device 19 such as a cathode ray tube.

Therefore, when diagnosing the pancreas using an endoscope configured in this manner, the distal end 7 of the endoscope is inserted into the stomach while observing from the eyepiece 2 through the direct viewing optical system 12. The ultrasound transducer 15 adjacent to the observation window 11 is brought into close contact with the stomach wall corresponding to the pancreas. When an ultrasonic pulse is generated from the ultrasonic transducer 15 by the pulse generation circuit 17 in this state, the ultrasonic wave propagates through the human tissue. and,
Reflected echoes reflected from tissue boundaries and abnormal tissue portions are displayed as tomographic images on the display device 19 via the amplification and detection circuit 18. Therefore, the presence or absence of an abnormality in the pancreas and its location can be known from the tomographic image displayed on the display device 19.

As explained above, in this invention, an ultrasonic transducer is provided on the distal end surface of an endoscope having a direct viewing optical system in the same direction as the observation window. This makes insertion very easy and does not damage the body cavity wall during insertion.
Furthermore, the direction and position of the vibrator can be accurately controlled while observing it. In addition, by inserting the device into a body cavity and emitting ultrasonic waves by bringing the ultrasonic transducer into close contact with the wall of the body cavity, it is possible to determine the presence or absence of an abnormality within the tissue and its location. Therefore, when diagnosing deep internal organs such as the pancreas, it can be inserted into the stomach and closely adhere to the stomach wall corresponding to the pancreas, resulting in improved resolution and accurate diagnosis. .

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is an overall side view of an endoscope showing an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional side view of the distal end thereof. 7... Tip portion, 11... Observation window, 12... Observation optical system, 15... Ultrasonic transducer.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. An endoscope having at least a direct viewing optical observation system, characterized in that an ultrasonic transducer is provided on the distal end face in the same direction as the observation window.