KR20140100451A - Catheter for denervation - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention discloses a nerve block catheter which has multiple electrodes to effectively block nerves around blood vessels while having an improved structure of a tip in order that the size of the tip is not large; and a nerve block apparatus comprising the catheter. The catheter according to the present invention is a catheter for nerve blocks, which comprises: a catheter body which is extended lengthwise in one direction, has a proximal end portion and a distal end portion, and has an inner space along the longitudinal direction of the catheter body; a movable member mounted on the distal end portion of the catheter body and formed to be movable along the longitudinal direction of the catheter body; an operation member moving the movable member when the distal end portion is connected to the movable member; multiple supporting members, each of which has one side end portion connected to the distal endmost portion of the catheter body and the other side end portion connected to the movable member, wherein at least one portion of each supporting member is bent to allow a bent portion to keep apart from the catheter body when the movable member moves so the distance between the distal endmost portion of the catheter body and the movable member becomes narrow; multiple electrodes respectively mounted on bent portions of the multiple supporting members and generating heat; and a lead wire electrically connected to each of the multiple electrodes and providing a power supply path for each of the multiple electrodes.

Description

Catheter for denervation}

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a catheter, and more particularly, to a catheter for nerve blocking that allows nerve conduction to be inactivated by ablating a part of the nerve, and a nerve blocker including the catheter.

Neural blockade is a procedure in which a part of the nerve pathway is blocked so that stimulation or information is not transmitted to the nerve such as the sensory nerve or autonomic nerve. Such neural blockade is becoming increasingly used for the treatment of various diseases including arrhythmia, pain relief, and molding.

Particularly, recently, it has been confirmed that such neural blockade is effective for the treatment of hypertension, and efforts to apply such neural blockade as a method for effectively treating hypertension have been attempted.

In the case of hypertension, since most of the blood pressure can be controlled as a drug, many hypertension patients are currently being treated for hypertension depending on the drug. However, such a method of lowering blood pressure by drugs has various problems such as inconvenience of continuous drug taking, cost aspect, and side effects such as organ damage due to prolonged use of the drug. In addition, some hypertensive patients suffer from refractory hypertension that is not controlled by blood pressure as a drug. Such refractory hypertension is not treated as a drug, and therefore, there is a great risk of causing an accident such as stroke, arrhythmia, kidney disease, etc., and treatment of intractable hypertension is a serious and urgent problem.

In this situation, neural blockade has attracted attention as a breakthrough method for treating hypertension. In particular, neural blockade for treating hypertension can be accomplished in such a way that the neural conduction is deactivated by ablating the sympathetic nerve around the kidney, i. E. Activation of the kidneys increases renal hormone production by the kidneys, which can lead to elevated blood pressure. Therefore, it has recently been shown through various experiments that hypertension can be treated, as nerve conduction can not be achieved by blocking these kidney nerves.

As such, a typical method of blocking the kidney nerve for the treatment of hypertension is to use a catheter. Neuroprotection using a catheter is a technique in which a catheter is inserted into a part of the body, such as a thigh, and the distal end of the catheter is placed in the renal artery along the blood vessel. Thereby blocking the sympathetic nerve around the renal artery.

These catheter-based neuroblastomas are much smaller than neural blockade through open surgery, which can greatly reduce the potential complications and side effects, and the advantages of partial anesthesia treatment and recovery time are very short, Is attracting attention as a treatment for hypertension.

However, neural blockade using such a catheter, and neural blockade for treating hypertension, have yet to be developed and have many improvements.

Particularly, some of the nerve-interrupting catheters proposed so far have only one electrode for releasing energy such as high frequency, and are disposed in the inside of the blood vessel, such as the inside of the kidney artery, to block the nerve around the blood vessel. However, according to such a configuration method, since the electrode is not properly positioned at the portion where the kidney nerve is located, the kidney nerve is often missed and the kidney nerve can not be properly blocked. Therefore, in order to properly block the kidney nerve in such a catheter, the electrodes must be disposed at various positions in the kidney artery, so that the procedure time may increase and the procedure may become complicated.

In order to solve such a problem, recently, a configuration in which a plurality of electrodes are disposed at the distal end of the catheter has been proposed. However, in the case of such a configuration in which a plurality of electrodes are disposed, the distal end portion of the catheter in which the electrodes are disposed, that is, the structure of the catheter tip becomes complicated and has a problem in that its size increases. When the size of the distal end of the catheter is increased, it is difficult to move the catheter along with a vessel having a small inner diameter, such as the renal artery, and may damage the vessel wall. Further, when the catheter is currently used, a tube called a sheath is placed in an organ such as a blood vessel so as to protect organs such as blood vessels and smooth the movement of the catheter to the target point. It can be moved to the vicinity of the target point. In this case, if the size of the distal end of the catheter is large, it is difficult to move the catheter to the inside of the sheath, so that the procedure using the sheath may become difficult.

In addition, according to some catheters of the conventional catheters, there is a possibility that stenosis may occur due to narrowed blood vessels in the cut-off portion, and the operation is not easy.

In addition, in the case of the conventional catheter, the contact between the electrode and the blood vessel is not properly performed. In this case, the thermal energy generated by the electrodes may not reach the nerve at a proper level for interception, and the nerve blocking effect may not be achieved well.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, the present invention has been made keeping in mind the above problems occurring in the prior art, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a nerve blocking catheter having a plurality of electrodes and capable of effectively blocking nerves around blood vessels, And a nerve block device including the same.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention can be understood by the following description, and will be more clearly understood by the embodiments of the present invention. It will also be readily apparent that the objects and advantages of the invention may be realized and attained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a catheter for blocking a nerve, the catheter comprising: a catheter body having a proximal end and a distal end extending in one direction and having an internal space along a longitudinal direction; A moving member provided at a distal end of the catheter body and configured to be movable along a longitudinal direction of the catheter body; An operating member having a distal end connected to the moving member to move the moving member; At least one portion of which is connected to the distal end of the catheter body and the other end is connected to the moving member and when the moving member is moved such that the distance between the distal end of the catheter body and the moving member is narrowed, A plurality of support members configured to move away from the catheter body; A plurality of electrodes respectively provided at bending portions of the plurality of support members to generate heat; And a lead wire electrically connected to each of the plurality of electrodes to provide a power supply path to the plurality of electrodes.

Preferably, the moving member is provided outside the catheter body.

More preferably, a catheter according to the present invention is configured to extend longitudinally of the catheter body and is provided between the catheter body and the moving member, wherein the distal end is fixed to the moving member and the proximal end And a reinforcing member inserted into the through-hole of the catheter body, the proximal end of the reinforcing member passing through the through-hole of the catheter body along with the movement of the moving member.

Preferably, the moving member is provided in an inner space of the catheter body, and the catheter body is provided with an opening for allowing the bending portion of the supporting member to be drawn out of the catheter body when the supporting member is bent do.

Also preferably, with the bending portion of the support member away from the catheter body, the plurality of electrodes are spaced a predetermined distance from one another in the longitudinal direction of the catheter body.

Also preferably, with the bending portion of the support member away from the catheter body, the plurality of electrodes are configured to be spaced apart from each other by a predetermined angle relative to a longitudinal central axis of the catheter body.

Also preferably, the catheter body and the moving member are configured such that the surface to which the support member is connected is perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the catheter body.

Preferably, the plurality of electrodes generate heat in a radio frequency manner.

Also preferably, the catheter body is formed with a guide hole so that the guide wire can pass through the distal end.

Also preferably, the catheter according to the present invention includes at least one stopper which limits the moving distance of the moving member.

Also preferably, the catheter according to the present invention further comprises an elastic member connected to the movable member to provide a restoring force for the movement of the movable member.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a nerve blocker according to the present invention.

According to an aspect of the present invention, by providing a plurality of electrodes at the distal end of the catheter body, nerves around the blood vessel can be effectively prevented from being missed.

In particular, according to an embodiment of the present invention, since the plurality of electrodes are disposed at a predetermined angle with respect to the central axis of the catheter body and are disposed in a wide angle in the 360 ° direction along the inner circumferential surface of the blood vessel, .

In addition, according to an embodiment of the present invention, a plurality of electrodes are positioned on a cross section of a blood vessel in a longitudinal direction of the blood vessel, thereby preventing stenosis due to ablation.

In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, the distal end of the catheter body, i.e., the catheter tip, can be configured so that the structure is not complicated and its size is not large. Thus, not only can the catheter tip move easily within the small-diameter vessel, but also the vessel wall can be prevented from being damaged due to the movement of the catheter. In addition, the catheter may be easily inserted into a blood vessel by inserting a separate component such as a sheath without inserting the catheter directly into the blood vessel, and then inserted into the sheath.

Further, according to another aspect of the present invention, it is possible to prevent the electrode from being damaged due to the electrode when the distal end of the catheter moves along the inside of the blood vessel, because the electrode can be prevented or minimized from protruding out of the catheter body .

Meanwhile, the present invention can be widely used for various diseases and pain relief using a catheter, and more effectively applied to treat hypertension by blocking the sympathetic nerve around the kidney artery.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of the specification, illustrate preferred embodiments of the invention and, together with the description of the invention given below, serve to further the understanding of the technical idea of the invention, And should not be construed as limiting.
1 is a perspective view schematically showing a configuration of a distal end portion of a catheter according to an embodiment of the present invention.
2 is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A 'in Fig.
Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view schematically showing a configuration in which the electrode is moved away from the catheter body by the movement of the movable member in the configuration of Fig. 2;
Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the configuration of Fig. 3. Fig.
Fig. 5 is a front view of the configuration of Fig. 4. Fig.
6 is a cross-sectional view schematically showing the configuration of a distal end portion of a catheter according to another embodiment of the present invention.
Fig. 7 is a cross-sectional view schematically showing a configuration in which the movable member moves away from the catheter body in the configuration of Fig. 6; Fig.
8 is a cross-sectional view schematically showing a configuration of a distal end portion of a catheter according to another embodiment of the present invention.
9 is a cross-sectional view schematically showing a configuration in which the electrode is moved away from the catheter body by the movement of the movable member in the configuration of Fig. 8;
10 is a perspective view schematically showing a configuration of a distal end portion of a catheter according to another embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 11 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the catheter configuration of Figure 10;
Fig. 12 is a cross-sectional view schematically showing a configuration in which the electrode is moved away from the catheter body by the movement of the movable member in the configuration of Fig. 11;
13 is a perspective view of the configuration of Fig.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Prior to this, terms and words used in the present specification and claims should not be construed as limited to ordinary or dictionary terms, and the inventor should appropriately interpret the concepts of the terms appropriately It should be construed in accordance with the meaning and concept consistent with the technical idea of the present invention based on the principle that it can be defined.

Therefore, the embodiments described in the present specification and the configurations shown in the drawings are only the most preferred embodiments of the present invention and do not represent all the technical ideas of the present invention. Therefore, It is to be understood that equivalents and modifications are possible.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view schematically showing a configuration of a distal end portion of a catheter according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line A-A 'of FIG. In FIG. 2, for convenience of explanation, all the supporting members, electrodes, and lead wires included in the configuration of FIG. 1 are displayed.

Here, the distal end of the catheter means the end of the longitudinally opposite end of the catheter extending in one direction reaching the treatment site, and may be referred to as a catheter tip. And, the end of the side opposite to the distal end of the catheter may be referred to as the proximal end. Hereinafter, for various constituent elements of the catheter extending in the longitudinal direction of the catheter and having both ends, an end located on the distal end side of the catheter for distinguishing the both ends is referred to as a distal end, The end located on the proximal end side is referred to as a proximal end.

1 and 2, a catheter according to the present invention includes a catheter body 100, a moving member 200, an actuating member 300, a supporting member 400, an electrode 500, and a lead wire 600 .

The catheter body 100 is formed in a tubular or tubular shape elongated in one direction and has a hollow space formed along the longitudinal direction thereof. Herein, the catheter body 100 has both ends along the longitudinal direction. In the procedure using the catheter, the distal end of the catheter body 100 which is inserted into the body and reaches the target point, that is, the treatment site is referred to as a distal end portion 101, (Not shown) on the side where the operation of the operator is performed is as described above.

Since the catheter body 100 has a hollow tube shape and an internal space is formed in the longitudinal direction, various components for the operation can be provided or moved along the internal space, and materials such as medicines and cleaning liquids can be administered have. For this purpose, the proximal end of the catheter body 100 may be formed with an internal space open to the outside.

The catheter body 100 may be formed in various shapes depending on the part or purpose to be used, and the inner and outer diameters may be formed in various sizes. In addition, the catheter body 100 may have a variety of materials, and may be made of a flexible material such as rubber or plastic, or a hard material such as metal. The present invention is not limited by the specific shape, material, size, etc. of the catheter body 100, and the catheter body 100 may be configured in various shapes, materials, sizes, and the like.

The movable member 200 is provided at the distal end 101 of the catheter body and can be configured to be movable along the longitudinal direction of the catheter body 100. And, through the movement of the movable member 200, the distance between the distal end 110 of the catheter body and the movable member 200 can be moved away or close to each other.

In particular, the moving member 200 may be provided outside the catheter body 100, as shown in FIGS. That is, the shifting member 200 may be located outside of the distal end 110 of the catheter body (right side of FIG. 2) in a form separate from the catheter body 100. In this case, when the moving member 200 moves to the left, the distance between the moving member 200 and the catheter body 100 becomes close to each other. When the moving member 200 moves to the right, The distance between the bodies 100 can be increased.

Preferably, the distal end 101 of the catheter body and / or the moving member 200 may be constructed of a soft and flexible material. Since the distal end 101 of the catheter body and the moving member 200 are located at the front end of the catheter, there is a high probability that the catheter will come into contact with the inner wall of a blood vessel when the catheter moves along a blood vessel or the like. It is possible to minimize or prevent damage to blood vessels and the like caused by these, and to easily change the direction.

Also, in a similar aspect, the distal end 101 of the catheter body and / or the moving member 200 may be configured in rounded corners. In particular, the moving member 200 may be configured in such a manner that the outer surface (right surface in FIG. 2) protrudes round in the front end direction of the catheter, as shown in the figure. Further, the moving member 200 may be configured such that the inner surface (left surface in Fig. 2) has rounded corners.

The operating member 300 may be formed to extend along the longitudinal direction of the catheter body 100 and may move the moving member 200 through the longitudinal movement. To this end, the actuating member 300 may be positioned along the inner space of the catheter body 100, with one end, i.e., a distal end, connected to the movable member 200 and secured thereto. And the proximal end of the actuating member 300 may be exposed to the outside of the catheter body 100 through an open portion of the proximal end of the catheter body 100. [ In this case, the practitioner can push or pull the proximal end of the operation member 300 manually or automatically using a separate device. 2, the moving member 200 connected to one end of the actuating member 300 is moved in the left-right direction as indicated by an arrow b1, . ≪ / RTI >

2, the actuating member 300 is connected to the moving member 200 outside the catheter body 100, so that the catheter body 100 is provided with such an actuating member 300 that it can be moved through An operation hole 120 may be formed.

The support member 400 may be formed in a rod shape or a plate shape elongated in one direction and may be connected between the catheter body 100 and the movable member 200. That is, the support member 400 may be connected at one end to the distal end 110 of the catheter body, i. E. At the distal end 101 of the catheter body, and the other end to the displacing member 200 . 2, the proximal end (left end) of the support member 400 is fixed to the outer surface of the distal end 110 of the catheter body, and the distal end (right end) (Not shown).

Here, the catheter body 100 and the surface of the moving member 200 provided at both ends of the support member 400 may be flattened while being erected perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the catheter body 100. 2, the left side surface of the moving member 200 to which the distal end of the distal end 110 of the catheter body connected with the proximal end of the supporting member 400 is connected to the distal end of the supporting member 400 And may be erected perpendicular to the longitudinal center axis of the catheter body 100. [

Meanwhile, as described above, the movable member 200 may be configured to move away from or near the distal end 110 of the catheter body 100 in the longitudinal direction of the catheter body 100 by the actuating member 300.

Particularly, in the present invention, when the moving member 200 moves so that the distance between the distal end 110 of the catheter body and the moving member 200 becomes narrow, the supporting member 400 can be bent at least in part And this bending portion may be configured to be away from the catheter body 100. This will be described in more detail with reference to Figs. 3 to 5.

3 is a cross-sectional view schematically showing a configuration in which the bending portion of the support member 400 is moved away from the catheter body 100 by the movement of the movable member 200 in the configuration of Fig. Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the configuration of Fig. 3, and Fig. 5 is a front view of the configuration of Fig. 4. Fig.

3 to 5, when the moving member 200 moves in the direction of the catheter body 100, as indicated by the arrow e, the distance between the moving member 200 and the catheter body 100 becomes narrower . Then, the plurality of support members 400 provided between the moving member 200 and the catheter body 100 are each brought close to each other, so that at least a part thereof can be bent. And, as the moving member 200 moves toward the catheter body 100, the bending portion of such a supporting member 400 may gradually move away from the catheter body 100. Here, the bending portion may be located at the vertex of the bent portion, that is, at the bent portion of the support member 400, or at the bent portion of the support member 400, as indicated by c2 in Fig. It may be said to mean the part farthest from the central axis O of the catheter body 100. [ Also, the fact that the bending portion is away from the catheter body 100 means that the bending direction of the bending portion is formed in the outward direction of the catheter body so that the bending portion is away from the central axis O of the catheter body 100 do.

The support member 400 may be made of a material that can be bent when the distance between both ends is narrowed because the bending portion must be formed as the moving member 200 moves. For example, the support member 400 may be made of a material such as a metal or a polymer. However, the present invention is not limited to the specific material of the support member 400, and the support member 400 may be made of various materials as long as the bending portion can be formed.

On the other hand, the electrode 500 is provided on the bending portion c2 of the plurality of support members 400. For example, as shown in the embodiment of FIGS. 1 to 4, each of the electrodes 500 may be provided on the bending portion c2 of the plurality of support members 400, respectively.

The electrode 500 may be connected to an energy supply unit (not shown) through the lead 600 to generate heat. In addition, the heat generated by the electrode 500 may ablate the surrounding tissue. For example, the electrode 500 can generate heat of about 40 ° C or more, preferably 40 to 80 ° C to excise the nerve around the blood vessel, thereby blocking the nerve. However, it is needless to say that the temperature of the heat generated by the electrode 500 may be variously changed according to the purpose or purpose of the catheter.

Since the electrode 500 can apply heat to the nerve tissue located in the vicinity of the blood vessel in contact with the blood vessel wall, it is preferable that the electrode 500 is brought into close contact with the blood vessel wall. Accordingly, the electrode 500 may have a curved shape, such as a circle, a semicircle, or an ellipse so as to correspond to the shape of the inner wall of the blood vessel. According to this embodiment, the degree of adhesion of the electrode 500 to the blood vessel wall is improved, and the heat generated by the electrode 500 can be transmitted to the nerve tissue around the blood vessel.

The electrode 500 may be provided at a portion of the bending portion of the support member 400 that is farthest from the center axis O of the catheter body 100. That is, when the distance between the moving member 200 and the distal end 110 of the catheter body is shortened and the bending portion is formed on the supporting member 400, the electrode 500 is positioned on the center axis O of the catheter body 100, At the vertex of the bending portion located farthest from the center of the bending portion. According to this embodiment, by making the electrode 500 protrude from the catheter body 100 as much as possible, it is possible to further improve the contact force of the electrode 500 with respect to the blood vessel wall.

The electrode 500 may be formed of a material such as platinum or stainless steel. However, the present invention is not limited to the specific material of the electrode 500. The electrode 500 may be formed of various materials in consideration of various factors such as a heat generation method and a treatment part.

Preferably, the electrode 500 may generate heat in a radio frequency (RF) manner. For example, the electrode 500 may be connected to the high-frequency generating unit through the lead 600 to emit high-frequency energy to excise the nerve.

Meanwhile, the electrode 500 existing in the catheter may act as a cathode, and the anode corresponding to the cathode may be connected to an energy supply unit such as a high frequency generating unit like a cathode, Lt; / RTI >

When the distance between the catheter body 100 and the moving member 200 is narrowed by the movement of the moving member 200, the electrode 500 is provided at the bending portion of the supporting member 400, As shown in FIG. When the moving member 200 moves and the distance between the catheter body 100 and the moving member 200 is increased, the electrode 500 provided at the bending portion is moved toward the center axis O of the catheter body 100 Can be approached.

For example, as shown in FIG. 3, when the moving member 200 moves in the e direction, the bending portion gradually moves away from the central axis O of the catheter body 100, The electrode 500 is also moved in a direction away from the central axis O of the catheter body 100, as indicated by arrows f1, f2 and f3. Conversely, when the movable member 200 moves in the direction opposite to the direction e in FIG. 3, the electrode 500 provided at the bending portion of the support member 400 may be configured to approach the catheter body 100 again .

That is, the electrode 500 moves in the outward direction of the catheter body 100 with respect to the longitudinal central axis O of the catheter body 100 as the moving member 200 moves, As shown in Fig.

The supporting member 400 supporting and supporting the electrode 500 at the bending portion is formed so that the electrode 500 moves away from the center axis O of the catheter body 100 as the moving member 200 moves And may be configured in any suitable material or form to allow for close proximity.

For example, the supporting member 400 may have a bent portion formed at least in part as shown by c1 in Fig. That is, even when the distance between the moving member 200 and the catheter body 100 is the longest, the support member 400 can be made to bend slightly at the bent portion without being completely flat. In this case, when the moving member 200 moves and the distance between both ends of the supporting member 400 becomes short, the bending portion c2 can be formed while the degree of bending of the bending portion c1 is increased. Therefore, in this embodiment, the bending portion c2 may be formed at the portion where the bent portion c1 of the support member 400 is formed.

The support member 400 may be a pre-formed member such that the bending portion can be moved in a direction away from the central axis of the catheter body 100 without moving in a direction approaching the central axis of the catheter body 100. [ shaped shape. For example, the support member 400 may have a preformed shape so as to have a shape as shown in Figs. 3 and 4 when the distance between both ends is shortened.

In this case, the support member 400 may be formed of a shape memory alloy such as Nitinol. According to this embodiment, when the distance between the moving member 200 and the catheter body 100 is shortened, the support member 400 may be configured to move away from the catheter body 100, have.

In addition, the support member 400 may be formed with a notch at a predetermined position to form a bending portion. In this case, if the distance between both ends of the support member 400 becomes short, a bending portion may be formed in a portion where the notch is formed in the support member 400. In this embodiment, by adjusting the notch formation direction, the bending portion can be moved away from the catheter body 100 when the both end distances of the support member 400 are shortened.

As described above, in the nerve blocking catheter according to the present invention, the electrode 500 is provided at the bending portion of the support member 400 and is configured to move away from or close to the catheter body 100. Therefore, in case of performing the neural block using the catheter according to the present invention, the distal end of the catheter, that is, the distal end of the catheter, The catheter tip can be moved through the blood vessel to the site to be treated. When the catheter tip reaches the treatment site, the bending portion of the support member 400 provided with the electrode 500 is moved away from the catheter body 100 so that the electrode 500 contacts or approaches the inner wall of the blood vessel can do. In this state, energy for heat generation, such as high-frequency energy, is diverted through the electrode 500, so that the nerve around the blood vessel can be blocked. Then, when the nerve blockage is completed by energy dissipation through the electrode 500, the bending portion of the support member 400 provided with the electrode 500 approaches the catheter body 100, and then the catheter is taken out of the blood vessel Or moved to another site.

The distance between the electrode 500 and the central axis of the catheter body 100 in a state where the electrode 500 is away from the central axis of the catheter body 100 may be variously configured depending on the size of the operation site, . For example, the distance between each electrode 500 and the central axis of the catheter body 100 may be configured to be between 2 mm and 4 mm, with the electrodes 500 farthest from the center axis of the catheter body 100 have.

The lead wire 600 is electrically connected to each of the plurality of electrodes 500 to provide a power supply path to the plurality of electrodes 500. That is, the lead 600 may be connected between the electrode 500 and the energy supply unit so that the energy supplied from the energy supply unit may be transmitted to the electrode 500. For example, the lead wire 600 is connected at one end to the high-frequency generating unit and at the other end to the electrode 500 so that the energy generated by the high-frequency generating unit is transmitted to the electrode 500, The heat generation by the high-frequency energy can be made possible.

The lead wire 600 may be attached to the upper or lower portion of the support member 400 between the distal end 110 of the catheter body and the electrode 500, The lead wire 600 may not be fixed to the support member 400 but may be connected to the electrode 500 while being separated from the support member 400.

Further, the lead wire 600 is not separately formed from the support member 400, but may be implemented as one component with the support member 400. [ For example, at least a portion of the support member 400 may be constructed of an electrically conductive material so that the support member 400 functions as a lead 600, at least in a section from the distal end 110 of the catheter body to the electrode 500 .

Preferably, in the present invention, the plurality of electrodes 500 are arranged such that the bending portions of the support member 400 are spaced apart from the catheter body 100, Can be configured to be spaced apart.

For example, referring to the embodiment of Figure 3, with three electrodes 500 configured to move away from the catheter body 100, between the three electrodes 500, as indicated by d1 and d2, (Not shown).

When heat is radiated from each of the plurality of electrodes 500, a phenomenon of swelling in a direction from the heated part of the blood vessel toward the inside of the blood vessel may occur, which may result in stenosis. However, according to the configuration in which the three electrodes 500 are spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance in the longitudinal direction of the catheter body 100 as in the above embodiment, the heating portion of the blood vessel is formed to be spaced a predetermined distance along the longitudinal direction of the blood vessel, It is possible to prevent such stenosis from occurring.

In particular, the distance between the electrodes 500 in the longitudinal direction of the catheter body 100, as denoted by d1 and d2, may be varied depending on the size of the catheter, the procedure site, and the like. For example, the catheter may be configured such that the distance between the electrodes 500 in the longitudinal direction of the catheter body 100 is 0.3 cm to 0.8 cm, with the plurality of electrodes 500 away from the catheter body 100 . In this embodiment, it is possible to prevent the stenosis of the blood vessel and to minimize the problem that the nerve around the blood vessel passes between the electrodes 500, and the nerve ablation by the electrode 500 can not be performed.

The configuration in which the plurality of electrodes 500 are spaced apart from the catheter body 100 by a predetermined distance between the electrodes 500 in the longitudinal direction of the catheter body 100 may be configured in various manners as in this embodiment .

For example, as described above, it is possible to form a bending portion in such a bent portion by forming a bent portion in a plurality of the supporting members 400. In this embodiment, the distance between the bent portions of the plurality of supporting members 400 May be spaced a predetermined distance in the longitudinal direction of the catheter body (100).

Further, in the embodiment in which the support member 400 is made of a material such as a shape memory alloy, the distance between the bending portions between the plurality of support members 400 may be a predetermined distance in the longitudinal direction of the catheter body 100 A plurality of support members 400 in which shapes are memorized in advance may be used.

The plurality of electrodes 500 may be disposed in the center of the longitudinal center axis of the catheter body 100 while the bending portion of the support member 400 is away from the catheter body 100, And can be configured to be spaced apart from each other by a predetermined angle.

For example, as shown in FIG. 5, the movement of the moving member 200 may be adjusted so that the three electrodes 500 are configured to move away from the catheter body 100, When the angles between the three electrodes 500 are g1, g2 and g3, g1, g2 and g3 have a predetermined angle, and the angles between the three electrodes 500 are different from each other. For example, g1, g2, and g3 may all be equally configured to be 120 degrees.

In addition, in the embodiment including four or more support members 400 and electrodes 500, the plurality of electrodes 500 based on the center axis O of the catheter may be configured to extend at a predetermined angle.

According to the embodiment in which the electrode 500 is spaced at a predetermined angle between the electrodes 500 with respect to the center axis of the catheter body 100, the electrode 500 may be configured to spread in a 360 ° direction around the catheter body 100 have. Accordingly, the electrode 500 can be configured so as not to miss such nerves even if the nerve is disposed at any part of the blood vessel.

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view schematically illustrating the configuration of the distal end portion of the catheter according to another embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of the distal end portion of the catheter body 100, As shown in Fig.

Referring to FIGS. 6 and 7, the nerve blocking catheter according to the present invention may include a reinforcing member 700.

The reinforcing member 700 may be formed in a rod or a plate extending elongated in the longitudinal direction of the catheter body 100 and may be provided between the catheter body 100 and the moving member 200. The reinforcing member 700 has a distal end connected to and fixed to the moving member 200, and can move according to the movement of the moving member 200.

At this time, the catheter body 100 may have a through hole 130, and the proximal end of the moving member 200 may be inserted into the through hole 130.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 7, when the movable member 200 moves in the leftward direction, i.e., in the direction of the catheter body 100, the reinforcing member 700 can also be moved in the leftward direction. The proximal end of the reinforcing member 700 is inserted into the through hole 130 of the catheter body 100 and moves while sliding through the through hole 130 as the moving member 200 moves.

According to this embodiment, the connection between the catheter body 100 and the moving member 200 can be more strongly supported by the reinforcing member 700. [ That is, in the embodiment where the moving member 200 is separated from the catheter body 100 as in the above embodiment, when the catheter body 100 and the moving member 200 are connected by only one operating member 300, The connection state and the supporting force between the catheter body 100 and the moving member 200 may be weak. However, if the reinforcing member 700 is provided separately from the operating member 300 as in the above-described embodiment, the supporting force of the moving member 200 separated from the catheter body 100 is further strengthened and the catheter body 100 And the movable member 200 can be more firmly maintained. In addition, since the reinforcing member 700 can guide the movement of the moving member 200, the moving direction of the moving member 200 can be smoothly performed without deviating from the central axis of the catheter body 100.

6 and 7, only one reinforcing member 700 is shown, but more than two reinforcing members 700 may be provided.

Although only one actuating member 300 is shown in the drawings, the actuating member 300 may be provided in more than one manner.

Also, preferably, the nerve blocking catheter according to the present invention may include a stopper 800. The stopper 800 is a component limiting the moving distance of the moving member 200, and may be included in the catheter.

More preferably, the stopper 800 can be fixed to the actuating member 300, as shown in Figs. 6 and 7. Fig. The stopper 800 includes a first stopper 810 fixed to a portion of the operation member 300 positioned inside the catheter body 100 and a stopper 810 fixed to a portion of the operation member 300 located outside the catheter body 100 And a second stopper 820 fixed to the portion. Here, the first stopper 810 can restrict the movement of the movable member 200 so that the movable member 200 is no longer moved in the direction away from the catheter body 100. The second stopper 820 can restrict the movement of the movable member 200 so that the movable member 200 does not move further in the direction in which the movable member 200 approaches the catheter body 100.

According to the embodiment in which the stopper 800 is provided as described above, the operation of the practitioner can be facilitated, and damage to various components included in the catheter can be prevented. 6, the first stopper 810 prevents the shifting member 200 from moving further in the right direction, so that the shifting member 200 is excessively moved away from the catheter body 100, It is possible to prevent the connection between the catheter body 400 and the catheter body 100 or the connection between the support member 400 and the moving member 200. The second stopper 820 prevents the moving member 200 from moving further in the leftward direction so that the moving member 200 is too close to the catheter body 100 so that the supporting member 400 is damaged, The connection between the catheter body 400 and the catheter body 100 or the connection between the support member 400 and the moving member 200 can be prevented. In addition, since the distance is limited by the stopper 800 when the operator pushes or pulls the operation member 300, the operation distance of the operation member 300 may not be greatly distracted.

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view schematically illustrating the configuration of the distal end of a catheter according to another embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of the distal end portion of catheter body 100 In the direction perpendicular to the surface of the wafer W. As shown in Fig.

8 and 9, a guide hole 140 may be formed in the catheter body 100 so that the guide wire W can pass through the distal end thereof. Here, the guide wire W is a wire for guiding the catheter to the treatment site, and can be configured to reach the treatment site prior to the catheter. In this embodiment, the guide wire W can be inserted into the catheter through the guide hole 140, and the catheter tip can reach the treatment site along this guide wire W. [

The guide holes 140 may be provided in one or more of the catheter body 100. 8 and 9, the catheter body 100 is provided with a first guide hole 141 at its distal end, and a second guide hole 141 is formed at a portion spaced from the distal end 110 of the catheter body by a predetermined distance. As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, Holes 142 may be provided. In this case, the guide wire may be drawn into the inner space of the catheter body 100 through the first guide hole 141 and then drawn out of the catheter body 100 through the second guide hole 142. In this case, the guide wire drawn into the inner space of the catheter body 100 through the first guide hole 141 may be inserted into the inner space of the catheter body 100 And may be drawn out of the catheter body 100 at the proximal end of the catheter body 100.

Meanwhile, in this embodiment, a guide hole 210 may be formed in the moving member 200 so that the guide wire can pass through.

According to the embodiment in which the guide hole 140 is provided in the catheter body 100, the guide wire inserted into the guide hole guides the movement of the catheter tip, so that the catheter can be smoothly reached to the treatment site, The operation of the catheter can be facilitated. In addition, since it is not necessary to provide a component for adjusting the moving direction of the catheter inside the catheter, the structure of the catheter can be simplified, which is advantageous for miniaturization of the catheter.

Also, preferably, the nerve blocking catheter according to the present invention may further include an elastic member (900).

One end of the elastic member 900 is connected to the moving member 200 to provide a restoring force when the moving member 200 is moved. For example, the elastic member 900 may be connected between the distal end 110 of the catheter body and the moving member 200, as shown in Fig. 9, when the moving member 200 moves in the left direction so as to move the electrode 500 away from the catheter body 100, the restoring force of the elastic member 900, that is, the elastic recovery force Acting in the right direction. Therefore, after the nerve block by the electrode 500 is completed, the movable member 200 moves back to the right side to return to a circular state as shown in FIG. 8. However, due to the restoring force of the elastic member 900, The rightward movement of the movable member 200 can be made easier. Thus, the practitioner does not need much effort to bring the electrode 500 close to the center axis of the catheter body 100 after nerve block by the electrode 500 is completed.

The elastic member 900 can prevent the electrode 500 from moving away from the center axis of the catheter body 100 during movement of the catheter tip, It is possible to prevent damage or the like, and smooth movement of the catheter tip. In addition, even if the stopper 800 is not provided, the moving distance of the moving member 200 can be limited by the elastic member 900, so that damage to various components due to excessive movement of the moving member 200 can be prevented .

Also preferably, the nerve blocking catheter according to the present invention may further include a temperature measuring member (not shown).

In particular, the temperature measuring member may be provided around the electrode 500 to measure the temperature of the electrode 500 and the temperature around the electrode 500. And, the temperature measured by the temperature measuring member can be used to control the temperature of the electrode 500 as described above. Here, the temperature measuring member may be connected to a separate wire from the lead 600, which extends through the inner space of the catheter body 100 to the proximal end of the catheter body 100, As shown in FIG.

In the above embodiments, the moving member 200 is disposed outside the catheter body 100, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view schematically illustrating the configuration of the distal end of a catheter according to another embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 11 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the catheter configuration of FIG. Hereinafter, a detailed description of the parts to which the description of the embodiments of FIGS. 1 to 9 is applicable will be omitted, and differences will be mainly described.

Referring to FIGS. 10 and 11, the moving member 200 may be provided in the inner space of the catheter body 100. The moving member 200 can move in the left and right directions in the inner space of the catheter body 100. Here, unlike the embodiment of FIGS. 1-9, the support member 400 may have a proximal end connected to the moving member 200 and a distal end secured to the distal end 110 of the catheter body.

Since the moving member 200 is located on the proximal end side of the catheter body 100 than the catheter body 100, when the operator pushes the operating member 300, the moving member 200 moves in the right direction of FIG. The distance between the catheter body 200 and the distal end 110 of the catheter body becomes narrow. On the other hand, when the practitioner pulls the operation member 300, the moving member 200 moves in the left direction of FIG. 11, and the distance between the moving member 200 and the distal end 110 of the catheter body is distant.

When the distance between the moving member 200 and the distal end 110 of the catheter body is narrowed, the electrode 500 provided at the bending portion of the supporting member 400 is moved away from the catheter body 100 Which will be described in more detail with reference to FIGS. 12 and 13. FIG.

12 is a cross-sectional view schematically showing a configuration in which the electrode 500 is moved away from the catheter body 100 by the movement of the movable member 200 in the configuration of FIG. FIG. 13 is a perspective view of the configuration of FIG. 12. FIG.

12 and 13, when the moving member 200 moves in the direction of the distal end 110 of the catheter body (rightward direction in FIG. 12) so that the distance between the moving member 200 and the distal end 110 of the catheter body is narrow The distance between both ends of the support member 400 can be shortened. Accordingly, the bending portion of the support member 400 may be away from the catheter body 100, and the electrode 500 provided at the bending portion may be away from the catheter body 100.

10 to 13, the support member 400 and the electrode 500 are positioned in the inner space of the catheter body 100 and are positioned on the outer side of the catheter body 100 according to the movement of the movable member 200. [ As shown in Fig. For this purpose, the catheter body 100 may be provided with an opening 150 for allowing the support member 400 and the electrode 500 to protrude to the outside. That is, when the distance between the moving member 200 and the distal end 110 of the catheter body becomes narrower as the moving member 200 moves, the bending portion of the supporting member 400 and the electrode 500 are separated from the catheter body 100, Through the opening 150 of the catheter body 100. When the distance between the moving member 200 and the distal end 110 of the catheter body is increased according to the movement of the moving member 200, the bending portion of the supporting member 400 and the electrode 500 may be separated from the catheter body 100, Through the opening 150 of the catheter body 100.

It should be noted that, in the case of the catheter according to the embodiment of FIGS. 10 to 13, various preferred configurations of the embodiments of FIGS. 1 to 9 may be applied. 10 to 13, the plurality of electrodes 500 are arranged in the longitudinal direction of the catheter body 100 in a state where the bending portion of the support member 400 is away from the catheter body 100 It is preferable to be spaced apart by a predetermined distance. The plurality of electrodes 500 may be configured to be spaced apart from each other by a distance along the longitudinal center axis of the catheter body 100 with the bending portions of the support member 400 being away from the catheter body 100 have.

10 to 13, a guide hole may be formed in the catheter body 100, and the catheter may further include a stopper or an elastic member.

In particular, when the stopper is included in the catheter, the stopper may be provided in the catheter body 100 in one or more fixed form. That is, since the movable member 200 can move in the lateral direction along the longitudinal direction in the inner space of the catheter body 100, the stopper can be positioned on the left side and / or the right side of the movable member 200 in the inner space of the catheter body 100, Or the right space, so that the shifting of the shifting member 200 in the lateral direction can be restricted.

In addition, when the catheter includes an elastic member, an elastic member may be provided between the moving member 200 and the distal end 110 of the catheter body. That is, the proximal end portion of the elastic member is connected and fixed to the moving member 200, and the distal end portion of the elastic member is fixed to the distal end 110 of the catheter body, and the elastic member is moved in the leftward direction And the like.

Although the present invention has been described with reference to the configuration in which the number of the support member 400 and the number of the electrodes 500 is three, the present invention is not necessarily limited to the specific number of the support member 400 and the electrode 500 It goes without saying that the number of the support member 400 and the number of the electrodes 500 may be variously configured.

In the above-described embodiments, only one bending portion is formed on one support member 400. However, two or more bending portions may be formed on one support member 400, Two or more electrodes 500 may be provided on the support member 400 of the plasma display panel.

The nerve block device according to the present invention includes the above-described nerve block catheter. In addition, the nerve block device may further include an energy supply unit and a counter electrode in addition to the nerve blocking catheter. Here, the energy supply unit may be electrically connected to the electrode 500 through the lead wire 600. The counter electrode may be electrically connected to the energy supply unit through a lead wire separate from the lead wire 600. In this case, the energy supply unit can supply energy to the electrode 500 of the catheter in the form of high frequency or the like, and heat is generated in the electrode 500 of the catheter to cut off the nerve around the blood vessel, .

While the present invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to exemplary embodiments thereof, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed exemplary embodiments. It will be understood that various modifications and changes may be made without departing from the scope of the appended claims.

In this specification, terms indicating directions such as a distal, a proximal, an upper, a lower, a left, and a right are used, but these terms are merely relative positions for convenience of explanation, It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the present invention can be practiced with other terminology.

100: catheter body
110: End of catheter body
200: moving member
300: operating member
400: support member
500: electrode
600: Lead wire

Claims (15)

A catheter body extending proximal in one direction and having a proximal end and a distal end and having an internal space along the length;
A moving member provided at a distal end of the catheter body and configured to be movable along a longitudinal direction of the catheter body;
An operating member having a distal end connected to the moving member to move the moving member;
At least one portion of which is connected to the distal end of the catheter body and the other end is connected to the moving member and when the moving member is moved such that the distance between the distal end of the catheter body and the moving member is narrowed, A plurality of support members configured to move away from the catheter body;
A plurality of electrodes respectively provided at bending portions of the plurality of support members to generate heat; And
A lead wire electrically connected to each of the plurality of electrodes to provide a power supply path for the plurality of electrodes,
Wherein the catheter is inserted into the catheter. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the bending portions of the plurality of support members are spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance in the longitudinal direction of the catheter body while the bending portion of the support member is away from the catheter body. 3. The method of claim 2,
Wherein the plurality of electrodes are spaced 0.3 cm to 0.8 cm apart in the longitudinal direction of the catheter body with the bending portion of the support member being away from the catheter body. 3. The method of claim 2,
Wherein at least one of the plurality of support members is formed with a bent portion so that a bending portion due to the movement of the moving member can be determined. 3. The method of claim 2,
Wherein at least one of the plurality of support members is preformed so as to define a bending part according to movement of the moving member. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the moving member is provided outside the catheter body. The method according to claim 6,
Wherein the distal end is fixed to the moving member and the proximal end is inserted into the through hole of the catheter body so that the distal end of the catheter body Further comprising a reinforcing member through which the proximal end passes through the through-hole of the catheter body as the member moves. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the moving member is provided in an inner space of the catheter body,
Wherein the catheter body is formed with an opening for allowing the bending portion of the support member to be drawn out of the catheter body when the support member is bent. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the catheter body and the movable member are perpendicular to a longitudinal direction of the catheter body, the surface to which the support member is connected. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the catheter body is formed with a guide hole so that the guide wire can pass through the distal end. The method according to claim 1,
And at least one stopper for restricting a movement distance of the moving member. 12. The method of claim 11,
Wherein the stopper is fixed to the operating member by one or more fasteners. 12. The method of claim 11,
Wherein the stopper is secured to the catheter body by one or more fasteners. The method according to claim 1,
Further comprising an elastic member connected to the moving member to provide a restoring force against movement of the moving member. 14. A nerve blocker comprising the nerve blocking catheter according to any one of claims 1 to 14.

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