KR20160035507A - Catheter and manufacturing method thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

Disclosed in the present invention are a catheter having an improved head structure to be easily miniaturized, have a simple process, and have excellent repeatability, and a manufacturing method thereof. The catheter according to the present invention comprises: a hollow cylinder member; multiple electrodes mounted on the cylinder member; multiple power supply lines having one end connected to the electrodes, and supplying power to each of electrodes; and a distribution unit connected to the other end of at least two power supply lines among the power supply lines, and connected to one or more power input lines to distribute and output power supplied from a single power input line to two or more power supply lines.

Description

Catheter and manufacturing method thereof < RTI ID = 0.0 >

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a catheter, and more particularly, to a medical catheter for treating a disease, particularly, a nerve blocking catheter for allowing nerve conduction to be inactivated by ablating a part of the nerve, .

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, the catheter-related technology for applying to the neural blockade and the like has not yet been sufficiently developed, and has many parts to be improved.

In particular, the catheter must be small enough to be able to move freely along the interior of the blood vessel, so that its size should be very small. However, in the case of the prior art, there are many difficulties in downsizing such a catheter.

Furthermore, conventionally developed or proposed catheters are equipped with one or more electrodes and various devices for sensing, and various wires for transmitting power or electrical signals to such electrodes and sensing devices are also included. Therefore, it is very difficult to manufacture a catheter having both of these and a small size in the case of the prior art.

In addition, since the catheter, particularly the head portion of the catheter positioned at the most distal end, must be small in size, the various structures that enter it are also inevitably small in size and it is not easy to handle such a fine structure.

Therefore, manufacturing a catheter head using such fine structures in the past requires complicated processes, high precision, and high reproducibility, so that the catheter quality and manufacturing yield are lowered and the safety and stability of the catheter is poor It can cause problems.

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 catheter improved in its structure so that it can be easily miniaturized, its process is simple, and its reproducibility is improved.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following description, and it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the present invention is not limited thereto. 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 a nerve-blocking catheter, comprising: a cylinder member having a hollow; A plurality of electrodes mounted on the cylinder member; A plurality of power supply lines, one end of which is connected to the electrode, for supplying power to each of the plurality of electrodes; And at least two power supply lines connected to the other ends of the plurality of power supply lines and connected to at least one power input line to distribute the power supplied from one power supply line to two or more power supply lines, Unit.

Here, the distribution unit may be implemented using a multiplexer.

In addition, the cylinder member may be formed in a cylindrical shape, and the distribution unit may be formed in a curved shape mounted on an inner wall surface of the cylinder member and corresponding to an inner surface of the cylinder member.

In addition, the cylinder member may be fixedly coupled with two sides extending from one end of the hollow to the other end along the longitudinal direction of the hollow.

Also, the dispensing unit may be configured to be bendable.

In addition, the power supply line may be configured such that a conductor is printed on the cylinder member.

In addition, the cylinder member may include: a first cylinder having a power supply line printed from one end to the other end; A second cylinder coaxial with the first cylinder and spaced a predetermined distance in the longitudinal direction of the hollow cylinder from the first cylinder; At least one of which is connected at one end thereof to the first cylinder and the other end thereof is connected to the second cylinder, the electrode being mounted on the outer surface, And a plurality of connecting members printed with power supply lines up to a portion where the electrodes are mounted.

In addition, the connecting member may be configured such that at least a part of the connecting member is bent when the distance between the first cylinder and the second cylinder is narrowed so that the bending portion is away from the hollow.

At least one of the first cylinder and the second cylinder may be formed with a step or a slope in the longitudinal direction of the hollow on the surface to which the connecting member is connected.

Further, a catheter according to the present invention includes: a plurality of temperature sensing members; And a plurality of temperature sensing lines connected at one end to each of the plurality of temperature sensing members to provide a path for transmitting temperature information sensed by the temperature sensing member, the other end of the temperature sensing line connected to the distribution unit, The distribution unit may output temperature information input from two or more temperature sensing lines to one temperature output line.

Further, a catheter according to the present invention includes: a plurality of tactile sensing members; And a plurality of tactile sensing lines connected at one end to each of the plurality of tactile sensing members to provide a path for transmitting tactile information sensed by the tactile sensing member and the other end connected to the distribution unit, The distribution unit can output tactile information input from two or more tactile sensing lines to a single tactile output line.

The catheter according to the present invention may further include a shaft body formed to extend in one direction and formed with an inner space along the longitudinal direction and coupled to one end of the cylinder member.

Further, the distribution unit may be mounted in the inner space of the shaft body.

Further, the distribution unit may be formed in the shape of a hollow tube, and may be coupled to one end of the cylinder member coaxially with the cylinder member.

In addition, the catheter according to the present invention may further include an end tip coupled to the other end of the cylinder member.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of manufacturing a catheter, comprising: preparing a plate-shaped cylinder member; Printing a plurality of power supply lines on the plate-shaped cylinder member; Mounting a plurality of electrodes on the plate-shaped cylinder member to be connected to the plurality of printed power supply lines; Mounting a distribution unit on the plate-shaped cylinder member to be connected to the plurality of power supply lines; Bending the cylinder member such that two spaced apart sides of the cylinder member are adjacent to each other to form a hollow cylinder; And engaging and fixing two sides of the adjacent cylinder member by the bending.

Here, the catheter manufacturing method according to the present invention includes: printing a plurality of temperature sensing lines on the plate-shaped cylinder member; And mounting a plurality of temperature sensing members to the cylinder member to be connected to the printed plurality of temperature sensing lines, wherein the distributing unit mounting step includes the step of mounting the plurality of temperature sensing lines such that the distribution unit is connected to the plurality of temperature sensing lines .

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a catheter manufacturing method including: printing a plurality of tactile sensing lines on a plate-shaped cylinder member; And mounting a plurality of tactile sensing members on the cylinder member to be connected to the printed plurality of tactile sensing lines, wherein the distributing unit mounting step comprises the steps of: connecting the dispensing unit to the plurality of tactile sensing lines .

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

According to one aspect of the present invention, since the catheter includes the dispensing unit, the number of lines for supplying power to the various electrodes of the catheter can be reduced.

In addition, according to an aspect of the present invention, the catheter may include various sensing lines for temperature sensing and tactile sensing in addition to lines for supplying power. Also in this case, the number of sensing lines can be reduced through the distribution unit.

Therefore, according to this aspect of the present invention, it is possible to reduce the diameter of the catheter by reducing the number of power supply lines or sensing lines included in the catheter, thereby facilitating the miniaturization of the catheter, .

Further, according to this aspect of the present invention, the manufacturing process of the catheter can be simplified by reducing the number of lines in most of the rest except for the head portion of the catheter.

This aspect of the invention also makes it easier to add new technology to the catheter, as other components can be added as much as the space occupied by the reduced number of lines.

Further, according to one aspect of the present invention, one or more wirings are printed as an electrical path in the interior of the catheter, particularly inside the catheter head. Therefore, according to this aspect of the present invention, there is no need to separately provide a power supply wire (electric wire) for supplying power to the electrode. Furthermore, there is no need to additionally provide a sensing wire for transmitting / receiving an electrical signal to / from various sensing members in addition to the power supply wire.

Thus, according to this aspect of the invention, there is no need to include wires in the hollow of the catheter, wiring is printed to supply power to the inner walls of the catheter, etc., or to transmit electrical signals, . Particularly, in the case of the catheter head, since the electrode and the various sensing members can be mounted at the front end of the catheter, the effect of the miniaturization can be further enhanced.

Therefore, according to this aspect of the present invention, it is possible to prevent the catheter head from easily moving inside the vessel having a small diameter, and to prevent the vessel wall 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 one aspect of the present invention, the manufacturing process of the catheter can be simplified.

In addition, according to one aspect of the present invention, the catheter head portion is first formed into a two-dimensional shape in a wide plate shape, and then the catheter head portion is formed in a three-dimensional shape through a bending process.

In addition, according to one aspect of the present invention, the reproducibility in manufacturing the catheter is improved, so that the quality of the catheter can be improved, the defect rate can be lowered, and safety and stability can be improved.

Further, according to one aspect of the present invention, modularization with respect to the head portion of the catheter can be facilitated since it is not necessary to insert a wire into the head portion of the catheter or to connect such a wire to the electrode.

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 head configuration of a catheter according to an embodiment of the present invention.
2 is an exploded view of the configuration of Fig.
3 is a right side view of the configuration of Fig.
4 is a perspective view schematically showing a configuration of a catheter head according to another embodiment of the present invention.
5 is an exploded view of the configuration of FIG.
6 is a cross-sectional view taken along line F1-F1 'of FIG.
FIG. 7 is a view schematically showing a configuration in which the connecting member is bent in the configuration shown in FIG. 4;
8 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line F2-F2 'in Fig.
9 is a perspective view schematically showing a configuration of a catheter head according to another embodiment of the present invention.
10 is an exploded view of the configuration of FIG.
11 is an exploded perspective view schematically showing a configuration of a catheter according to another embodiment of the present invention.
12 is an assembled perspective view of the configuration of FIG.
13 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line M-M 'in Fig.
14 is a perspective view schematically showing a configuration of a catheter according to another embodiment of the present invention.
15 is a perspective view schematically showing a configuration of a catheter according to another embodiment of the present invention.
16 is a flow chart schematically illustrating a method of manufacturing a catheter in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

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 interpreted 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 head configuration of a catheter according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is an exploded view of the configuration of FIG. 1. More specifically, Fig. 2 is a view showing a state in which the portion A in Fig. 1 is separated and expanded in the B1 and B2 directions. 3 is a right side view of the configuration of Fig. 1. Fig. In FIGS. 1 and 2, for the sake of convenience of explanation, the configuration of a part that is not visible at the time of observation is indicated by a dotted line.

Here, the head of the catheter refers to the end of the longitudinally opposite end of the catheter extending in one direction to reach the treatment site, and is referred to as a catheter tip or a distal end It is possible. And, such a catheter may have a proximal end located at the operator side than the distal end, as opposed to the head of the catheter. Hereinafter, for the various constituent elements included in the catheter extending in the longitudinal direction of the catheter and having both ends, the end portion located on the head side, i.e., the distal end side of the catheter, is referred to as a distal end And the end located on the proximal end side of the catheter is referred to as the proximal end.

Referring to FIGS. 1 to 3, a catheter according to the present invention may include a cylinder member 100, an electrode 200, a power supply line 300, and a dispensing unit 400.

The cylinder member 100 is formed in the shape of a pipe or a tube extending in one direction and has a hollow space, that is, a hollow, formed therein along the longitudinal direction. Such a hollow may be configured such that at least one end portion is exposed along the longitudinal direction of the cylinder member 100. [ For example, in the configuration of FIG. 1, the cylinder member 100 may be configured such that both the left end and the right end of the hollow are open.

On the other hand, in the configuration of Fig. 1, the left side end of the cylinder member 100 is a proximal side end, and the right side end is a distal side end leading to the treatment site. Thus, the ratio of the length in the left-right direction and the length in the up-and-down direction of the cylinder member 100 shown in FIG. 1 is merely an example. Therefore, the ratio of the length of the cylinder member 100 in the left-right direction and the length in the up-down direction can be variously configured.

The cylinder member 100 may be formed in various shapes depending on a part or purpose to be used, and may have various sizes such as an inner diameter and an outer diameter.

The electrode 200 is mounted on the cylinder member 100 and can generate heat by receiving power. In this way, the heat generated by the electrode 200 can ablate surrounding tissue. For example, the electrode 200 generates heat of about 40 ° C or higher, preferably 40 ° C to 80 ° C, so that the nerve around the blood vessel can be removed, thereby blocking the nerve. However, it goes without saying that the temperature of the heat generated by the electrode 200 can be variously changed according to the purpose or purpose of the catheter.

Since the electrode 200 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 200 comes in close contact with the blood vessel wall. Therefore, the electrode 200 may be formed in a curved shape, such as a circular, semicircular or elliptical shape, so as to correspond to the shape of the inner wall of the blood vessel. According to this embodiment, since the adhesion of the electrode 200 to the blood vessel wall can be improved and contact with the inner wall of the blood vessel can be maximized, the heat generated by the electrode 200 can be transmitted to the nerve tissue around the blood vessel . In addition, when the electrode 200 is formed in a curved shape, the inner wall of the blood vessel can be prevented from being damaged by the electrode 200.

The electrode 200 may be made of a material such as platinum or stainless steel. However, the present invention is not limited to the specific material of the electrode 200, and various factors such as a heat generation method, It can be composed of various materials.

Preferably, the electrode 200 may generate heat in a radio frequency (RF) manner. For example, the electrode 200 may be electrically connected to the high-frequency generating unit to dissipate high-frequency energy to excise the nerve.

Meanwhile, the electrode 200 existing in the catheter can act as a cathode. The anode corresponding to the cathode can be connected to an energy supply unit such as a high frequency generating unit like a cathode, Lt; / RTI >

In the catheter according to the present invention, a plurality of the electrodes 200 may be included. In this case, the plurality of electrodes 200 can further increase the blocking rate for the nerves located around the blood vessel.

A portion of the power supply line 300 may be connected to the electrode 200 to provide a power supply path for supplying power to the electrode 200. For example, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the power supply line 300 is configured to extend from the proximal (left) end portion of the cylinder member 100 to the distal (right) end portion . Accordingly, the power supplied from the left side of the cylinder member 100 may be transmitted to the electrode 200 in the right direction along the power supply line 300.

The power supply line 300 is electrically connected to the high frequency generating unit so that the energy generated by the high frequency generating unit is transmitted to the electrode 200 so that heat generation by the high frequency energy is enabled in the electrode 200 .

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the plurality of power supply lines 300 may be provided. In particular, as described above, the catheter may include a plurality of electrodes 200. In this case, the power supply line 300 must be separately provided to supply power to the electrodes 200 separately. Therefore, it is preferable that a plurality of power supply lines 300 are provided.

The distribution unit 400 may distribute the power supplied from one power input line 500 to two or more power supply lines 300 and output the same.

For this, the distribution unit 400 may be connected to at least two power supply lines 300 among the plurality of power supply lines 300. In addition, the distribution unit 400 may be connected to one or more power input lines 500.

For example, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the distribution unit 400 may be connected to the left end of three power supply lines 300 and the right end of one power supply input line 500 . In this case, the power supplied from one power supply input line 500 can be distributed by the distribution unit 400 to be output to each of the three power supply lines 300. [

According to this embodiment of the present invention, the number of the power supply lines 300 can be reduced in most of the catheter, so that the diameter of the catheter can be reduced and the manufacturing process of the catheter can be simplified. For example, in the configuration of Figs. 1 and 2, in order to supply power to the three electrodes 200, the portion where three lines are provided is only the right portion of the distribution unit 400, and the distribution unit 400 Only one line needs to be provided in the left part. Thus, in the case of the left portion of the distribution unit 400, other components may be added as much as the diameter is reduced or the space occupied by the reduced number of lines.

In particular, the configuration shown in FIG. 1 may incorporate a catheter having a length much longer than the proximal end, i.e., the left end, as the head portion of the catheter, such as a shaft body as described below. In this case, since only one line for inputting power is provided in the shaft body, the diameter of the shaft body as a whole can be reduced, thereby enabling miniaturization of most of the catheter.

Preferably, the distribution unit 400 may be implemented using a multiplexer. Here, the multiplexer is a device that has a different number of input lines and output lines and multiplexes and divides one power source or an electric signal, or selects one of a plurality of power sources and electric signals.

Particularly, in the present invention, the distribution unit 400 may be configured to perform both a multiplexer in a narrow sense for outputting a plurality of inputs to one output and a narrower demultiplexer for outputting one input to a plurality of outputs .

Preferably, the cylinder member 100 may be formed in a cylindrical shape. That is, as shown in FIG. 1, the cylinder member 100 may be formed in a cylindrical shape so that a cross section in a direction perpendicular to the central axis of the hollow is circular.

In this case, the distribution unit 400 can be mounted on the inner wall surface of the cylinder member 100. Particularly, in the case of the cylindrical cylinder member 100, since the inner wall surface is formed in a curved shape, the distribution unit 400 can be formed in the shape of the inner surface of the cylinder member 100 As shown in FIG.

According to this configuration of the present invention, since the distribution unit 400 is closely attached to the inner surface of the cylinder member 100, the space occupied by the distribution unit 400 can be reduced to reduce the diameter of the cylinder member 100 have. Also, according to this configuration of the present invention, other components may be present or movable in the hollow of the cylinder member 100, at which time such components may be spaced or moved disturbed by the distribution unit 400 Can be minimized.

Preferably, the cylinder member 100 may be configured such that two sides extending from one end of the hollow to the other end are coupled and fixed along the longitudinal direction of the hollow.

For example, as shown in FIG. 1, when a hollow is formed to extend from the left end to the right end of the cylinder member 100, at one side of the cylinder member 100, Along the longitudinal direction (left-right direction).

These engaging portions may be portions where other mutually spaced apart sides of the cylinder member 100 are fastened to each other. Accordingly, when the engagement of the portion A is released and the cylinder member 100 is extended to the portions indicated by the arrows B1 and B2, the cylinder member 100 can be configured in a wide plate shape as shown in FIG.

2, for example, the cylinder member 100 includes a plurality of spaced apart sides (hereinafter referred to as " two sides " A1 and A2 of FIG. 2) are fastened and fixed to each other, thereby forming a hollow as shown in FIG. To this end, the two variables A1 and A2, which are coupled to each other, are bent by being bent in the directions as indicated by the arrows C1 and C2, and can be fastened and fixed in mutual contact.

Here, the two sides to be coupled to each other may be fixedly engaged with each other, or a part of the surfaces may be fixedly coupled with each other. Alternatively, the two sides joined to each other may not be in contact with each other but may be engaged and fixed in an adjacent state.

In this configuration, the distribution unit 400 can be configured to be bendable. That is, when the cylinder member 100 is deformed into a cylinder shape through bending in the form of a plate as in the above embodiment, the distribution unit 400 mounted on the cylinder member 100 can be bent into a curved shape in a planar shape It is preferable to be made of flexible material or shape.

2, a distribution unit 400 is mounted on a plate-shaped cylinder member 100 in a configuration before bending the cylinder member 100, and the cylinder member 100 is mounted on the cylinder member 100, Is bent in the directions of the arrows C1 and C2, it is possible to prevent the distribution unit 400 from being damaged by such bending. Further, in the case of this configuration, the manufacturing process of the catheter can be made easier. In addition, the distribution unit 400 can be more closely adhered to the inner surface of the cylinder member 100, so that the diameter of the cylinder member 100 can be reduced.

In order to allow the distribution unit 400 to be bendable, it is preferable that the distribution unit 400 is formed in a thin plate or sheet shape so as to have as wide a surface area as possible.

Particularly, as shown in FIG. 2, the distribution unit 400 is formed so as to be longer in the bending direction (the up-and-down direction in FIG. 2) of the cylinder member 100 than in the longitudinal direction It is good to do.

In particular, the cylinder member 100 may be formed in a cylindrical shape as shown in FIG.

According to this configuration of the present invention, the process of bending the cylinder member 100 in a plate form can be made easier. That is, in order to form the cylindrical cylinder member 100, the bending process as shown by C1 and C2 in FIG. 2 can be performed in a curved shape at one time, and it is not necessary to make a separate edge, Formation can be made easier.

In addition, as described above, in the case of the catheter according to the present invention, since the distribution unit 400 is also bent together with the cylinder member 100, the cylindrical shape facilitates prevention of bending and damage to the distribution unit 400 can do.

Meanwhile, in the cylinder member 100, the two sides can be coupled and fixed in such a manner that the projections are inserted into the insertion grooves. For example, in the configuration of FIG. 2, protrusions may be formed on the upper side A1 of the plate-shaped cylinder member 100, and grooves may be formed on the lower side A2. The plate-shaped cylinder member 100 is curved in a circular shape in the directions of the arrows C1 and C2 so that A1 and A2 adjoin each other and then the projection of A1 is inserted into the insertion groove of A2, Can be maintained.

Here, such an inserting method can be realized by a hook fixing method. For example, the protrusion of A1 is formed in the form of a hook, and such protrusion can be hooked to the insertion groove of A2.

However, the manner of fixing the engaging portions to the two sides of the cylinder member 100 is not necessarily limited to this embodiment, and may be embodied in various forms. For example, in the cylinder member 100, the two sides may be engaged and fixed by an adhesive. That is, when the plate cylinder member 100 as shown in Fig. 2 is bent in the C1 and C2 directions so that the two sides A1 and A2 meet each other, an adhesive is applied to at least one side, Can be intervened. Therefore, in this case, the bonding state of A1 and A2 can be maintained through such an adhesive.

As described above, in the case of the catheter according to the present invention, particularly the catheter head located on the distal end side of the catheter, the plate-shaped cylinder member 100 is formed in a tube shape by being bent and joined. Therefore, the cylinder member 100 may be made of a flexible material having insulation properties. For example, the cylinder member 100 may be made of a soft material such as rubber or plastic.

Preferably, the power supply line 300 may be printed on the cylinder member 100. For example, the power supply line 300 may be provided in the cylinder member 100 in such a manner as to leave a conductor as a two-dimensional pattern on one surface of the cylinder member 100, as shown in Figs. . That is, the power supply line 300 may be provided in the cylinder member 100 in the same shape as the wiring of the circuit board. The power supply line 300 may be configured to be exposed to the outside from the surface of the cylinder member 100. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and may be formed in a manner such that it is embedded in the cylinder member 100 It is possible.

When the power supply line 300 is printed in the form of a wiring in the cylinder member 100 as described above, the cylinder member 100 is generally electrically insulated. .

1, the power supply line 300 is printed on the inner wall surface of the cylinder member 100, but the present invention is not necessarily limited to such an embodiment. For example, the power supply line 300 may be printed on the outer wall surface of the cylinder member 100.

According to the configuration in which the power supply line 300 is printed on the cylinder member 100 as in the above embodiment, it is not necessary to separately provide an electric wire for supplying power to the electrode 200 to the head portion of the catheter . Thus, the size, particularly the diameter, of the head portion of the catheter can be reduced, making it easier to achieve miniaturization of the catheter. According to the present invention, the electrode 200 can be mounted on the power supply line 300, and the process of inserting the electrode 200 into the hollow of the cylinder member 100 and the process of connecting the electrode 200 and the wire So that the manufacturing process of the catheter is simplified and the reproducibility is improved, so that the safety and stability of the catheter can be improved.

Particularly, according to the structure in which the cylinder member 100 is formed in a cylindrical shape by bending the plate-shaped member as in the above embodiment, the mounting of the electrode 200 and the printing of the power supply line 300 can be easily performed have. That is, as shown in FIG. 2, the cylinder member 100 according to the present invention is formed in a plate shape, and a plurality of mutually spaced apart sides are fixed by bending, Printing of the mounting and / or power supply line 300 may be performed in the case of a plate form. Therefore, the mounting of the electrode 200 and / or the printing process of the power supply line 300 can be easily performed.

In addition, in the case of the catheter according to the present invention, the electrode 200 may be mounted on the cylinder member 100 in a printed form on the cylinder member 100. For example, the electrode 200 may be mounted on the cylinder member 100 such that a material capable of forming an electrode is printed on one surface of the cylinder member 100. According to this embodiment of the present invention, the structure of the catheter is simplified, miniaturization is easy, and the process can be simplified.

Meanwhile, the catheter according to the present invention may be provided with a plurality of electrodes 200. In this case, the at least two electrodes 200 may be spaced a predetermined distance in the longitudinal direction of the cylinder member 100. For example, as indicated by d1 and d2 in FIG. 2, the plurality of electrodes 200 may be spaced a predetermined distance from each other in the lengthwise direction of the cylinder member 100, that is, the longitudinal direction of the catheter.

According to this embodiment of the present invention, it is possible to prevent the stenosis from being caused due to the ablation by the plurality of electrodes 200. That is, when the heat is radiated from the plurality of electrodes 200, a phenomenon may occur in which the heated portion of the blood vessel swells in the direction of the blood vessel. If the distance between the electrodes 200 in the longitudinal direction of the blood vessel is short, Can occur. However, according to this embodiment of the present invention, since the plurality of electrodes 200 are spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance in the longitudinal direction of the catheter, the heating portion of the blood vessel may be formed to be spaced a predetermined distance along the longitudinal direction of the blood vessel . Therefore, according to this configuration of the present invention, it is possible to prevent stenosis from occurring at the site even if heat is applied to cut the nerve around the blood vessel.

Here, the distances d1 and d2 between the electrodes 200 may be variously configured depending on the size of the catheter, the operation site, and the like. For example, the catheter may be configured such that the distance between the electrodes 200 in the longitudinal direction of the cylinder member 100 (left-right direction in FIG. 1) is 0.3 cm to 0.8 cm. 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 200, and the nerve ablation by the electrode 200 is not performed.

Also, preferably, the two or more electrodes 200 may be configured to be spaced apart from each other by a predetermined angle relative to the center axis of the cylinder member 100.

For example, as shown in FIG. 3, the angles formed by the line segments connecting the respective electrodes 200 from the central point O, which is the central axis of the cylinder member 100 and the central axis of the hollow, are g1, g2, and g3 G1, g2, and g3 have angles greater than 0 DEG, and the angles between the three electrodes 200 may be different from each other. For example, g1, g2, and g3 may all be equally configured to be 120 degrees.

According to the embodiment in which the electrode 200 is spaced at a predetermined angle between the electrodes 200 with respect to the central axis of the cylinder member 100 as described above, the electrode 200 can be configured to spread in the 360 ° direction around the cylinder member 100 have. Therefore, the electrode 200 can be configured so as not to miss such a nerve even if the nerve is disposed at any part of the blood vessel.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view schematically showing the configuration of a catheter head according to another embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 5 is an exploded view of the configuration of FIG. More specifically, FIG. 5 is a view of the form in which the portions D and E of FIG. 4 are separated and expanded. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along line F1-F1 'of FIG. 4 to 6 will not be described in detail with respect to portions in which the description of the configurations of Figs. 1 to 3 can be similarly applied, and the differences will be mainly described.

4 to 6, an electrode 200 and a dispensing unit 400 are mounted on a cylinder member 100, and the electrode 200 is mounted on the cylinder 200, similarly to the configuration shown in Figs. 1 to 3, The power supply line 300 can be printed on the cylinder member 100 in a connected form.

1 to 3, the cylinder member 100 may include a first cylinder 110, a second cylinder 120, and a connecting member 130.

The first cylinder 110 is formed in the shape of a cylinder having a hollow, and the power supply line 300 may be printed from one end to the other end. For example, in the configurations of Figs. 4 and 5, the first cylinder 110 may be printed with the power supply line 300 from the left end to the right end.

The second cylinder 120 may be formed to be coaxial with the first cylinder 110 and spaced apart from the first cylinder 110 by a predetermined distance in the longitudinal direction of the hollow cylinder. 4 and 5, the second cylinder 120 is located on the right side of the first cylinder 110, that is, on the distal side, and is disposed in a form spaced apart from the first cylinder 110 by a predetermined distance .

The connecting member 130 is interposed between the first cylinder 110 and the second cylinder 120, which are spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance. That is, the connecting member 130 may be configured such that one end thereof is connected to the first cylinder 110, and the other end thereof is connected to the second cylinder 120. 4 and 5, the connecting member 130 may be configured such that its left end is connected to the first cylinder 110 and its right end is connected to the second cylinder 120. [

The connecting member 130 may be integrated with the first cylinder 110 and / or the second cylinder 120. In this case, the connecting member 130 may be formed by cutting a wide plate-shaped material into a shape as shown in FIG. According to this embodiment of the present invention, the first cylinder 110, the second cylinder 120, and the connecting member 130 can all be provided from one base plate, and the connecting member 130 and the first cylinder 110 and between the connecting member 130 and the second cylinder 120 may not be necessary. Therefore, the manufacturing process of the cylinder member 100 can be simplified and the structure can be prevented from becoming complicated.

Alternatively, the connecting member 130 may be implemented separately from the first cylinder 110 and / or the second cylinder 120. In this case, the connection member 130 may be made of a material or a material different from that of the first cylinder 110 and / or the second cylinder 120. In this case, in this case, the connecting member 130 may be formed in a variety of shapes, such as using a first cylinder 110 and / or a second cylinder 120 and a fastening member such as a projection, a screw, . ≪ / RTI >

The electrode 200 may be mounted on the surface of the connecting member 130. In particular, the electrode 200 may be mounted on the outer surface of the connecting member 130. Here, the outer surface means the side surface located outside the cylinder member 100, not the inner surface forming the hollow of the cylinder member 100. Thus, when the electrode 200 is positioned on the outer surface of the connecting member 130, the electrode 200 may be located closer to the inner wall of the blood vessel.

The connection member 130 can print the power supply line 300. Particularly, the power supply line 300 of the connection member 130 may be formed from one end of the connection member 130 to a portion where the electrode 200 is mounted. For example, referring to FIGS. 4 and 5, the power supply line 300 may extend from the left end of the connection member 130 to a portion where the electrode 200 is connected.

Here, the power supply line 300 printed on the connection member 130 is configured to be connected to the power supply line 300 of the first cylinder 110. 4 and 5, the left end of the power supply line 300 printed on the connecting member 130 is connected to the right end of the power supply line 300 printed on the first cylinder 110, Respectively. The power supplied from one end of the first cylinder 110 is supplied to the electrode 200 via the power supply line 300 of the first cylinder 110 and the power supply line 300 of the connection member 130 Lt; / RTI >

In addition, although the power supply line 300 is illustrated as being printed only up to the point where the electrode 200 is mounted, the present invention is not necessarily limited to such an embodiment. For example, in the configurations of FIGS. 4 and 5, the power supply line 300 may extend from the electrode 200 to the second cylinder 120 (120).

Meanwhile, the first cylinder 110 and the second cylinder 120 may be provided with engaging portions along the longitudinal direction of each hollow, as indicated by D and E in Fig. That is, in the first cylinder 110, the two sides D1 and D2, which are spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance, are adjacent to each other by bending of the cylinder member 100 and fixed to each other, have. The second cylinder 120 has two sides E1 and E2 which are spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance and are adjacent to each other due to bending of the cylinder member 100 and fixed to each other, have.

Preferably, the connecting member 130 may be configured such that at least a portion thereof is bent when the distance between the first cylinder 110 and the second cylinder 120 is narrowed, so that the bending portion is away from the hollow . This will be described in more detail with reference to Figs. 7 and 8. Fig.

FIG. 7 is a view schematically showing a configuration in which the connecting member 130 is bent in the configuration shown in FIG. 4, and FIG. 8 is a sectional view taken along the line F2-F2 'in FIG.

4, when the distance between the first cylinder 110 and the second cylinder 120 becomes close to each other, the distance between both ends of the connecting member 130 becomes close to each other, 7, at least a portion can be bent.

The bending portion of the connecting member 130 may be configured to move away from the hollow. Here, the bending portion is a portion bent at the vertex of the bent portion, that is, the bent portion of the connecting member 130 most severely or the bent portion of the connecting member 130 from the central axis of the cylinder member 100 It can be said that it means the part located farthest. Further, the fact that the bending portion is away from the hollow means that the bending direction of the bending portion is formed in the outward direction of the cylinder member 100, so that the bending portion is away from the center axis O of the hollow.

The connecting member 130 may be made of a flexible material so that a bending portion can be formed as the distance between the first cylinder 110 and the second cylinder 120 is narrowed.

In addition, according to one embodiment of the present invention, the connecting member 130 may be formed from a single flexible substrate together with the first cylinder 110 and the second cylinder 120, The member 130 may also be bendable.

However, the present invention is not necessarily limited to such an embodiment, and the connecting member 130 may be made of a material different from that of the first cylinder 110 and the second cylinder 120. [ For example, the connecting member 130 can be more flexibly bent than the first cylinder 110 and the second cylinder 120, so that the connecting member 130 is more flexible than the first and second cylinders 110 and 120, For example, it can be made of a material with better elongation.

6, the connecting member 130 has a cross section in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction, similar to the first cylinder 110 and the second cylinder 120, And may be formed in a bent shape with respect to the center axis O of the hollow. Accordingly, when the distance between both ends is close, the connecting member 130 can be bent in a direction in which the bending portion is away from the central axis O of the hollow, as indicated by arrows I1, I2 and I3 in Fig.

The electrode 200 may be provided at a bending portion of the connecting member 130. At this time, it is preferable that the electrode 200 is provided at a portion farthest from the central axis of the hollow among the bending portions of the connecting member 130. That is, when the first cylinder 110 and the second cylinder 120 are brought close to each other and the bending portion is formed on the connecting member 130, the electrode 200 is positioned at the vertex of the bending portion located farthest from the hollow central axis .

According to this embodiment, while the catheter head is moving to the treatment site, it moves in the form as shown in Fig. 4, and when the catheter head reaches the treatment site, as shown in Fig. 7, ) Can be bent. Then, by making the electrode 200 protrude from the cylinder member 100 as much as possible, the electrode 200 can be made closer to the blood vessel wall. In addition, since the electrode 200 can be prevented from protruding during movement, movement of the catheter head can be made more smooth, and damage of the blood vessel wall by the connecting member 130, the electrode 200, and the like can be prevented.

4 to 8, the cylinder member 100 may be provided with a plurality of connecting members 130. In this case, the electrode 200 may be mounted on two or more different connecting members 130, respectively.

For example, as shown in FIGS. 4 to 8, the cylinder member 100 may include three connecting members 130. Each of the three connecting members 130 may be provided with an electrode 200. In order to supply power to the three electrodes 200, a power supply line 300 may be separately provided to each of the three connection members 130. In correspondence with the three power supply lines 300, , The first cylinder 110 may also be printed with three power supply lines 300.

However, the distribution unit 400 may be mounted on the first cylinder 110. Therefore, three power supply lines 300 are formed on the distal side of the distribution unit 400, and one power supply line 500 may be formed on the left side of the distribution unit 400.

As described above, according to the embodiment in which a plurality of connecting members 130 are provided and a plurality of electrodes 200 are provided, the nerve blockage rate around the blood vessel can be further increased.

The plurality of connection members 130 may be configured such that the mounting points of the electrodes 200 are spaced a predetermined distance in the longitudinal direction of the hollow. In this case, the electrodes 200 may be spaced a predetermined distance from each other in the longitudinal direction of the hollow, that is, the longitudinal direction of the catheter. Therefore, according to this embodiment of the present invention, the nerve block rate can be further increased while preventing stenosis due to the plurality of electrodes 200 as described in the embodiments of FIGS. 1 to 3 above.

In addition, the plurality of connecting members 130 may be spaced apart from each other by a predetermined angle with respect to the central longitudinal axis of the hollow. For example, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 6, the connecting member 130 may be configured to be radially offset, such as 120 degrees, relative to the central axis of the hollow. According to this embodiment of the present invention, as described in the embodiments of FIGS. 1 to 3, the effect of preventing the stenosis and the nerve blocking effect due to the plurality of electrodes 200 can be further enhanced.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view schematically showing a configuration of a catheter head according to another embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 10 is an exploded view of the configuration of FIG. More specifically, Fig. 10 can be said to be a figure in which J and K portions of Fig. 9 are separated and expanded. 9 and Fig. 10 will not be described in detail with respect to portions in which the description of the configurations of the foregoing Figs. 1 to 8 can be similarly applied, and the differences will be mainly described.

9 to 10, the cylinder member 100 may include a first cylinder 110, a second cylinder 120, and a plurality of connecting members 130. The first cylinder 110 and the second cylinder 120 may have joint portions such as J and K, respectively.

9 to 10, the two or more connecting members 130 may be configured such that a connecting point with the first cylinder 110 and / or the second cylinder 120 is spaced a predetermined distance in the longitudinal direction of the hollow have.

10, when the three connecting members 130 are provided in the cylinder member 100, each connecting member 130 is connected to the first cylinder 110 at the left side The end portions may be configured to be spaced apart from each other by a distance of L1 and L2. 10, each connecting member 130 may be configured such that the right end, which is the point at which it is connected to the second cylinder 120, is spaced a predetermined distance from each other by L3 and L4 distances.

At least one of the first cylinder 110 and the second cylinder 120 may be formed in the first cylinder 110 and / or the second cylinder 120 so that the connecting point between the connecting member 130 and the first cylinder 110 and / 9 and 10, a step may be formed on the side surface to which the connecting member 130 is connected. For example, when three connecting members 130 are connected to the right side surface of the first cylinder 110, three stages may be formed on the right side surface of the first cylinder 110, . Also, the left surface of the second cylinder 120 to which the three connecting members 130 are connected may be formed with three steps having a step in the left-right direction.

When the connecting point of the connecting member 130 with respect to the first cylinder 110 and / or the second cylinder 120 is spaced a predetermined distance in the longitudinal direction of the hollow as described above, the first cylinder 110 and the second cylinder 120, The bending portions may be spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance when the connecting member 130 is bent. That is, when both ends of the connecting member 130 are bent to be bent, the bending portion is likely to be formed mainly at the center of the connecting member 130. According to the embodiment of the present invention, since the central portion of the connecting member 130 may be spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance in the longitudinal direction of the catheter, the bending portions of the connecting members 130 may be spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance . Therefore, if the electrode 200 is mounted on the central portion of each connecting member 130, a configuration in which the electrodes 200 are spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance can be easily achieved when the connecting member 130 is bent have.

9 and 10, the connecting points of the connecting member 130 are configured to be spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance through a configuration in which a step is formed in the first cylinder 110 and the second cylinder 120 , But the present invention is not necessarily limited to these embodiments.

As another example, by providing the inclined surface on the side surface of the first cylinder 110 and / or the second cylinder 120 to which the connecting member 130 is connected, Distance can be made.

In addition, in the catheter according to the present invention, the configuration for separating the connection points of the connection member 130 with respect to the first cylinder 110 and the second cylinder 120 may be implemented in various ways.

Preferably, the catheter according to the present invention may further include a temperature sensing member 610 and a temperature sensing line 620, as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10.

The temperature sensing member 610 is a component for measuring the ambient temperature. For example, the temperature sensing member 610 may be a thermocouple. Particularly, such a temperature sensing member 610 can be mounted around the electrode 200.

According to this embodiment of the present invention, since the ambient temperature can be measured through the temperature sensing member 610, whether the heat emitted from the electrode 200 is a temperature suitable for excising the nerve tissue around the blood vessel, It can be confirmed whether it is low or not.

In particular, in the case of the catheter head according to an embodiment of the present invention, the connecting member 130 is provided with the electrode 200, and the connecting member 130 is bent in a direction away from the center axis of the catheter head Can be bent. Accordingly, the temperature sensing member 610 is provided on the connection member 130 in the same manner as the electrode 200, so that the amount of heat by the electrode 200 can be more accurately measured.

Further, since a plurality of connecting members 130 may be provided, a plurality of such temperature sensing members may be provided and mounted on different connecting members 130.

The temperature sensing line 620 may be connected to a temperature sensing member 610 to provide a path for transmitting temperature information sensed by the temperature sensing member 610. For example, if the temperature sensing element 610 is implemented as a thermocouple, the current generated in the thermocouple may be delivered to an external temperature measurement device connected to the catheter through a temperature sensing line 620.

In the present invention, the temperature sensing line 620 may be two-dimensionally printed on the cylinder member 100 in the same manner as a circuit pattern, like the power supply line 300. 9 and 10, when the cylinder member 100 includes the first cylinder 110, the second cylinder 120, and the connecting member, the temperature sensing line 620 may be formed by, for example, May be formed to extend from the first cylinder 110 to a point where the temperature sensing member 610 of the connecting member 130 is mounted. The temperature sensing line 620 may be formed separately from the power supply line 300 without being electrically connected to the power supply line 300.

In particular, a plurality of the temperature sensing lines 620 may be provided, and at least two of the temperature sensing lines 620 may be connected to the distribution unit 400 at a proximal end thereof. In this case, the distribution unit 400 may be connected to one temperature output line 630 for transferring the temperature sensing information transmitted from the two or more temperature sensing lines 620.

For example, in the configuration of Figs. 9 and 10, the distribution unit 400 is connected to three temperature sensing lines 620 and one temperature output line 630. In this case, the distribution unit 400 can output the temperature information transmitted from the three temperature sensing lines 620 to one temperature output line 630. [

Thus, according to this embodiment of the present invention, the number of temperature output lines 630 for delivering temperature sensing information to the majority of catheters located on the proximal side of the dispensing unit 400 can be reduced, On the other hand, the structure can be simplified and the process can be simplified.

In addition, the catheter according to the present invention may further include a tactile sensing member and a tactile sense line 720, as shown in Figs. 9 and 10.

The tactile sensing member 710 is a component for measuring tactile information. The tactile sensing member 710 may be mounted inside or around the electrode 200. [ In this case, the tactile sensing member 710 may be capable of checking whether the electrode 200 is in contact with the blood vessel wall.

According to this embodiment of the present invention, when it is ascertained through the tactile sensing member 710 that the electrode 200 is touching the blood vessel wall, power is supplied to the electrode 200, . Further, the distance between the first cylinder 110 and the second cylinder 120 can be controlled by information through the tactile sensing member 710. [ For example, according to one embodiment of the present invention, when the distance between the first cylinder 110 and the second cylinder 120 approaches, the bending of the connecting member 130 causes the electrode 200 to be in contact with the blood vessel The distance between the first cylinder 110 and the second cylinder 120 can be narrowed until it is confirmed by the tactile sensing member 710 that the electrode 200 contacts the blood vessel wall.

9 and 10, the tactile sensing member 710 is mounted on the periphery of the electrode 200. However, the tactile sensing member 710 may be mounted inside the electrode 200 . In this case, the tactile sensing member 710 can provide more accurate information as to whether the electrode 200 has contacted the blood vessel wall.

The tactile sense line 720 may be connected to the tactile sense member 710 to provide a path for transmitting the tactile sense information sensed by the tactile sense member 710. [

In the present invention, the tactile sense line 720 may be printed two-dimensionally in the form of a circuit pattern on the cylinder member 100, similar to the power supply line 300. 9 and 10, when the cylinder member 100 includes the first cylinder 110, the second cylinder 120, and the connecting member 130, the tactile sensing line 720 May extend from the first cylinder 110 to a point where the tactile sensing member 710 of the connecting member 130 is mounted. The tactile sensing lines 720 may be formed separately from each other without being electrically connected to the power supply line 300. [ When the temperature sensing line 620 is formed on the cylinder member 100, the tactile sensing line 720 may be formed separately from the temperature sensing line 620.

In particular, a plurality of the tactile sensing lines 720 may be provided, and at least two of the tactile sense lines 720 may be connected to the distribution unit 400 at the proximal side ends thereof. In this case, the dispensing unit 400 may be connected to one tactile output line 730 for transferring the tactile sensing information transmitted from the two or more tactile sensing lines 720.

For example, in the configuration of Figs. 9 and 10, the distribution unit 400 is connected to three tactile sensing lines 720 and one tactile output line 730. In this case, the distribution unit 400 can output the tactile information transmitted from the three tactile sensing lines 720 to one tactile output line 730.

Therefore, according to this embodiment of the present invention, the number of tactile output lines 730 for transmitting tactile sensing information to most of the catheter positioned on the proximal side of the dispensing unit 400 can be reduced, On the other hand, the structure can be simplified and the process can be simplified.

In particular, even when a plurality of electrodes 200, a temperature sensing member 610, and a tactile sense sensing member 710 are provided on the catheter, according to the present invention, Since the number of lines can be greatly reduced by the dispensing unit 400, it can be more advantageous for miniaturization of the catheter and simplification of the structure.

For example, as shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, when three power supply lines 300, a temperature sensing line 620, and a tactile sense line 720 are provided, Lines may be provided. However, in the case of the present invention, these nine lines can be greatly reduced to three lines by the distribution unit 400.

The catheter according to the present invention may further include various sensing members in addition to the temperature sensing member 610 and the tactile sensing member 710. The line pattern for transmitting and receiving signals to / ). ≪ / RTI >

Preferably, the catheter according to the present invention may further comprise a shaft body.

FIG. 11 is an exploded perspective view schematically showing the configuration of a catheter according to another embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 12 is a perspective view of the configuration of FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line M-M 'in Fig.

11 to 13, the catheter according to the present invention includes the cylinder member 100, the electrode 200, the power supply line 300, and the dispensing unit 400, which are included in the catheter head 1000 As a component, it can be located at the most distal side of the catheter. The catheter according to the present invention may further comprise a shaft body 2000 as a component that engages the proximal end of such a catheter head 1000.

The shaft body 2000 is coupled to the proximal end side of the cylinder member 100, and this coupling structure can be achieved in various ways. For example, as shown in Fig. 11, the distal side end portion of the shaft body 2000 may be configured to be insertable into the hollow of the cylinder member 100. [ Alternatively, the coupling manner of the catheter head 1000 and the shaft body 2000 may be implemented in such a manner that the proximal side end of the catheter head 1000 is inserted into the distal side end of the shaft body 2000.

In particular, the shaft body 2000 may have a connection terminal on the distal end side so as to be able to engage with various wires provided in the catheter head 1000 when the catheter head 1000 is coupled with the catheter head 1000.

11 to 13, the inner surface of the cylinder member 100 of the catheter head 1000 is provided with a power input line 500, a temperature output line 630, and / or a tactile output line 730 ) May be printed. The shaft body 2000 has a power supply terminal 2110 connected to the power input line 500 and a temperature sensing terminal 2120 connected to the temperature output line 630 and / Or a tactile sensing terminal 2130 to be connected to the tactile output line 730.

The terminal 2100 of the shaft body 2000 may be formed in such a manner as to be printed on the surface of the shaft body 2000 similar to the catheter head 1000 or in a shape in which a small metal plate is inserted into the hole of the shaft body 2000 Or the like, or the like.

The terminal 2100 provided in the shaft body 2000 to be connected to the line of the catheter head 1000 may be formed in a shape elongated in the coupling direction of the catheter head 1000 and the shaft body 2000 have. 11, the power supply terminal 2110, the temperature sensing terminal 2120, and / or the tactile sense sensing terminal 2130 of the shaft body 2000 are formed in a shape elongated in the left-right direction, for example, . According to this embodiment of the invention, the power input line 500, the temperature output line 630 and / or the power supply line 500 of the catheter head 1000 in this coupling direction, when the catheter head 1000 and the shaft body 2000 are coupled, The terminal 2100 of the shaft body 2000 and the catheter head 1000 are connected to each other in the case where the terminals 2100 of the shaft body 2000 are formed to be elongated in the direction of this coupling as the tactile output line 730 slides in. ) Can be further improved.

In addition, for this reason, the power input line 500, the temperature output line 630 and / or the tactile output line 730 of the catheter head 1000 are arranged in the direction of engagement of the catheter head 1000 and the shaft body 2000 And may be formed in a long extended form.

Preferably, at least one of the catheter head 1000 and the shaft body 2000 may be formed with a coupling guide portion P so as to guide mutual coupling directions. 11 and 13, a projection P1 is formed at the distal end of the shaft body 2000, and the catheter head 1000 is positioned in a position and shape corresponding to the projection P1. A groove P2 may be formed in the proximal side end portion.

According to this embodiment of the present invention, when coupling between the catheter head 1000 and the shaft body 2000, the coupling direction can be guided. More particularly, one or more lines are formed in the catheter head 1000 and one or more terminals are formed in the shaft body 2000 such that when the catheter head 1000 and the shaft body 2000 are joined, Must be connected. Thus, according to the above-described embodiment, the coupling direction is guided by the coupling guide portion P, so that the coupling between the line of the catheter head 1000 and the terminal of the shaft body 2000 can be easily and accurately performed.

In addition, the catheter head 1000 may be provided with various types of lines such as a power input line 500, a temperature output line 630, and a tactile output line 730. In this case, It is necessary that various kinds of terminals are formed so that lines and terminals of the same kind are connected. Therefore, according to the configuration in which the coupling guide portion P exists as in the above-described embodiment, such coupling can be accurately performed.

Meanwhile, although not shown in the drawings, the catheter according to the present invention may further include a cover at a distal side end portion. That is, in the above drawings, the distal end of the cylinder member 100 is formed with a hollow opening, but the distal end of the hollow may be configured to be closed by the cover.

The cover may be integrally formed with the cylinder member 100. For example, in an exploded view as shown in FIG. 2, a circular cover may be configured to exist integrally with the cylinder member 100 at the right end of the cylinder member 100. In this case, the cylinder member 100 is bent in a circular shape in the directions of C1 and C2 in Fig. 2, and the circular cover can be engaged with the cylinder member 100 to seal the hollow at the right end of the cylinder member 100 have.

Alternatively, the cover may be configured separately from the cylinder member 100, and may be coupled to the distal-side end of the cylinder member 100 in a state where the cylinder member 100 is bent in a circular shape.

On the other hand, in the catheter according to the present invention, as in the above embodiment, when the catheter head 1000 and the shaft body 2000 are included, the dispensing unit 400 can be located on the shaft body 2000 side . For example, the dispensing unit 400 may be mounted in the interior space of the hollow shaft body 2000. According to this embodiment of the present invention, it is possible to prevent the size of the catheter head 1000 from increasing by the dispensing unit 400 and to introduce other components into the catheter head 1000. In addition, according to this embodiment of the present invention, the structure of the catheter head 1000 can be simplified, making it easier to manufacture.

14 is a perspective view schematically showing a configuration of a catheter according to another embodiment of the present invention. With respect to the configuration of Fig. 14, a detailed description will be omitted for the portions to which the description of the preceding embodiments can similarly be applied, and the differences will be mainly described.

Referring to FIG. 14, the distribution unit 400 may be configured as a hollow tube. At this time, the hollow of the distribution unit 400 may be coaxial with the hollow of the cylinder member 100. The distribution unit 400 may be coupled to the proximal end of the cylinder member 100, as shown in FIG. 14, particularly at one end of the cylinder member 100.

The shaft body 2000 may be coupled to the distribution unit 400. For example, the dispensing unit 400 may be coupled to the shaft body 2000 on the left side and the catheter head 1000 on the right side, as shown in FIG. In this case, the distribution unit 400 may be configured as a bushing.

According to this embodiment of the present invention, the catheter head 1000 and the shaft body 2000 are prevented from increasing in size by the dispensing unit 400 while the catheter head 1000 and the shaft body 2000 are mechanically In combining, a dispensing unit 400 may be utilized.

15 is a perspective view schematically showing a configuration of a catheter according to another embodiment of the present invention. With respect to the configuration shown in FIG. 15, a description of the configuration in which the description of the configurations of FIGS. 1 to 14 can be similarly applied will be omitted, and the differences will be mainly described.

15, a catheter according to the present invention may further include an end tip 800 at a distal end of the catheter, that is, at a distal end of the catheter head 1000.

The end tip 800 may be formed of a soft and flexible material. In particular, the end tip 800 may be formed of a composition comprising a polyether block amide (PEBA). Here, the composition forming the end tip 800 may include other additives besides polyether block amide. For example, the end tip 800 may be formed of a composition comprising 70% polyether block amide as a total weight% of the composition and 30% barium sulfate.

According to this configuration of the present invention, when the distal end of the catheter moves along a blood vessel or the like, the end tip 800 composed of a soft and flexible material is located at the frontmost position, so that damage to blood vessels and the like can be reduced, . Further, in the case of the end tip 800 of the above-described material, since the X-ray can be taken, the positioning of the catheter head 1000 can be facilitated.

Preferably, the end tip 800 may be configured in the form of a tube having a hollow. The hollow of the end tip 800 may be formed to extend in the same direction as the longitudinal direction of the catheter. As such, when the end tip 800 is formed in the form of a tube, the guide wire may pass through the hollow of the end tip 800. For example, the end tip 800 may have a length of 6 mm and be configured in the form of a tube having a hollow diameter of 0.7 mm.

The end tip 800 may be formed to extend elongated along the extension direction of the catheter. At this time, the end tip 800 may be formed to have a different size along the length direction thereof. In particular, when the end tip 800 is formed in a cylindrical shape, the diameter of the distal end portion may be smaller than that of other portions. For example, when the diameter of the thickest portion is 1.3 mm, the diameter of the distal end may be 1.1 mm, which is the thinnest.

The end tip 800 preferably has an appropriate length that is not excessively long or short. For example, the length of the end tip 800 may be 5 mm to 15 mm in the lateral direction of Fig. According to this configuration of the present invention, disturbance to movement due to the end tip 800 can be reduced in moving along the inner space of the blood vessel or the inner space of the sheath. According to this configuration of the present invention, the degree and direction of the warp of the end tip 800 can be grasped and the shape of the blood vessel can be easily grasped at the portion where the end tip 800 is positioned.

16 is a flow chart schematically illustrating a method of manufacturing a catheter in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

15, a method of manufacturing a catheter according to the present invention includes preparing a cylinder member 100 (S110), a power supply line printing step S120, an electrode mounting step S130, a dispensing unit mounting step S140, Bending the cylinder member 100 (S150), and fixing the engagement (S160).

The cylinder member preparation step S110 is a step of preparing the plate-shaped cylinder member 100 as shown in Figs. 2, 5 and 10. Fig. As described above, the cylinder member 100 may be a planar configuration spreading two-dimensionally widely.

The power supply line printing step (S120) is a step of printing a plurality of power supply lines on the cylinder member. For example, the step S120 may print the power supply line in a manner that leaves a conductor as a two-dimensional pattern on one surface of the cylinder member, as shown in Figs. 2, 5, and 10. Fig.

The electrode mounting step (S130) is a step of mounting electrodes on the cylinder member. In particular, the step S130 may include mounting a plurality of electrodes to be connected to a plurality of power supply lines of the cylinder member.

In addition, the step S130 may be performed by printing an electrically conductive material for forming an electrode on the cylinder member.

The step of mounting the distribution unit (S140) is a step of mounting the distribution unit on a plate-shaped cylinder member to be connected to a plurality of power supply lines.

The cylinder member bending step S150 is a step of bending the cylinder member to form a cylinder having a hollow shape. For example, in step S150, the cylinder member may be cylindrically shaped as shown in Fig. 1 by bending a plate-shaped cylinder member as indicated by C1 and C2 in Fig. The step S150 may be a configuration for three-dimensionally changing the two-dimensional configuration.

In step S150, the plate-shaped cylinder member may be bent so that two spaced apart portions of the cylinder member are adjacent to each other. For example, the step S150 may bend the plate-shaped cylinder member such that the upper side A1 and the lower side A2 are adjacent to each other, as shown in FIG.

The coupling and fixing step (S160) is a step in which other sides of the adjacent cylinder members are engaged and fixed by bending. For example, in step S160, the portion A may be coupled and fixed in the configuration shown in FIG. 1, so that the tube shape as shown in FIG. 1 may be maintained as it is.

Here, in step S160, the two sides of the cylinder member adjacent to each other by bending are inserted and inserted into the insertion grooves provided in the other side, so that the two sides can be engaged and fixed .

Alternatively, in step S160, two sides of the cylinder member adjacent to each other by bending may be adhered by an adhesive so that two sides of the cylinder member are engaged and fixed.

Meanwhile, in step S160, the fixing force may be entirely received from one end of the hollow to the other end, or only a part of the hollow may receive the fixing force.

The cylinder member preparation step S110 may include a cylinder member having a first cylinder 110, a second cylinder 120 spaced apart from the first cylinder 110 by a predetermined distance, and a first cylinder 110 having a first end, And the other end of the connecting member 130 is connected to the second cylinder 120.

For example, the step S110 may prepare a plate-shaped cylinder member such as the one shown in Fig. 5, the plate-shaped first cylinder 110 may be the first base plate, and the plate-shaped second cylinder 120 may be the second base plate. The plate-shaped connecting member 130 may be referred to as a connecting plate.

Also, preferably, the power supply line printing step S120 may print a power supply line from the point where the distribution unit of the first cylinder 110 is mounted to the point where the electrode of the connection member 130 is mounted . For example, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 10, in step S120, the power supply line is extended in the left-right direction from the distribution unit of the first cylinder 110 to the point where the electrode is mounted It is possible to print.

In the cylinder member preparing step S110, the cylinder member may include a plurality of connecting members 130, and the electrode mounting step S130 may include mounting the electrodes on two or more different connecting members 130 can do. For example, in step S110, as shown in FIG. 5, a cylinder member having three connecting members may be prepared, and in step S130, electrodes may be respectively mounted on the three connecting members.

Also, the electrode mounting step (S130) may be such that electrodes mounted on the two or more connecting members are spaced a predetermined distance in the longitudinal direction of the hollow formed in the bending step (S150). For example, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 10, in step S130, the plurality of electrodes may be mounted on the connecting member at a predetermined distance in the left-right direction.

Preferably, the cylinder member preparing step S110 is a step of preparing the cylinder member 110 and the second cylinder 120 by arranging the cylinder member 110 and the second cylinder 120 in a state where the connection member is connected to at least one of the first cylinder 110 and the second cylinder 120, So that a step or a slope can be formed in the longitudinal direction. For example, in the step S110, a cylinder member may be prepared in the form as shown in FIG. In this case, as shown in the figure, the first cylinder 110 and / or the second cylinder 120 in a plate shape may be formed with a step in the lateral direction at a point where the connecting member is connected.

Also, preferably, the step S110 may be such that a plurality of connecting members are spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the hollow formed in the step S150. For example, in step S110, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 10, in a cylinder member having a left-right direction in the longitudinal direction of the hollow, a plurality of connecting members are vertically spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance, Can be prepared. In this case, when the upper and lower sides of the cylinder member are bent so as to be adjacent to each other, the hollows are formed in the right and left directions, and the connecting members can be configured to be spaced apart from each other by a predetermined angle with respect to the center axis of the hollow.

On the other hand, the order shown in Fig. 16 is only an example, and the present invention is not necessarily limited to this order. For example, steps S130 and S140 may be performed before step S120.

Preferably, the catheter manufacturing method according to the present invention includes the steps of printing a plurality of temperature sensing lines 620 on a plate-shaped cylinder member, and printing a plurality And mounting the temperature sensing member 610 of the sensor unit 610. [

At this time, the distribution unit mounting step (S140) may be such that the distribution unit is connected to a plurality of temperature sensing lines.

Here, the temperature sensing line printing step and the temperature sensing member mounting step may be performed before step S110 and step S150, but the present invention is not necessarily limited to such a form.

Also preferably, the catheter manufacturing method according to the present invention comprises the steps of printing a plurality of tactile sensing lines 720 on a plate-shaped cylinder member, and printing a plurality And mounting the tactile sensing member 710 of the tactile sensing member 710.

At this time, in the distribution unit mounting step (S140), the distribution unit may be connected to a plurality of tactile sensing lines.

Here, the tactile sensing line printing step and the tactile sense sensing member mounting step may be performed before step S140 and step S140, but the present invention is not necessarily limited to such a form.

In addition, the method of manufacturing a catheter according to an embodiment of the present invention may include a power supply line 500, a temperature output line 630, and a tactile sensing line, similarly to the power supply line, the temperature sensing line, And printing the output line 730 on the cylinder member in the form of a plate.

Also, preferably, in the step S150, the cylinder member may be bent in a circular shape to have a cylindrical cylinder shape.

The method of manufacturing a catheter according to the present invention may further comprise preparing a shaft body as shown in FIGS. 11 to 13, and after step S160, combining the shaft body and the catheter head described above As shown in FIG.

Also preferably, the method of manufacturing a catheter according to the present invention further comprises the step of preparing an end tip as shown in Figure 15, wherein after step S160, the step of combining the end tip with the catheter head described above As shown in FIG.

The nerve block device according to the present invention includes the aforementioned 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 through a power input line. The counter electrode may be electrically connected to the energy supply unit through a wire or the like. In this case, the energy supply unit can supply energy to the electrodes of the catheter in the form of high frequency or the like, and heat is generated in the electrodes of the catheter, and the nerve is cut off by cutting 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: cylinder member
110: first cylinder
120: second cylinder
130:
200: electrode
300: Power supply line
400: Distribution unit
500: Power input line

Claims (19)

A cylinder member having a hollow formed therein;
A plurality of electrodes mounted on the cylinder member;
A plurality of power supply lines, one end of which is connected to the electrode, for supplying power to each of the plurality of electrodes; And
And a plurality of power supply lines connected to at least one of the plurality of power supply lines, wherein the power supply lines are connected to each other,
≪ / RTI > The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the dispensing unit is implemented using a multiplexer. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the cylinder member is formed in a cylindrical shape,
Wherein the dispensing unit is mounted on an inner wall surface of the cylinder member and formed to be curved so as to correspond to an inner surface of the cylinder member. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the cylinder member is fixedly coupled with two sides extending from one end of the hollow to the other end along the longitudinal direction of the hollow. 5. The method of claim 4,
Wherein the dispensing unit is configured to be bendable. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the power supply line is configured such that a conductor is printed on the cylinder member. The method according to claim 6,
Wherein the cylinder member comprises:
A first cylinder in which a power supply line is printed from one end to the other end;
A second cylinder coaxial with the first cylinder and spaced a predetermined distance in the longitudinal direction of the hollow cylinder from the first cylinder; And
At least one of the electrodes being connected to the first cylinder and the other end being connected to the second cylinder, the electrode being mounted on the outer surface, and being connected to the power supply line of the first cylinder, And a plurality of connection members
Wherein the catheter includes a catheter. 8. The method of claim 7,
Wherein the connecting member is configured such that at least a portion of the connecting member is bent when the distance between the first cylinder and the second cylinder is narrowed so that the bending portion is away from the hollow. 8. The method of claim 7,
Wherein at least one of the first cylinder and the second cylinder is formed with a step or a slope in the longitudinal direction of the cavity on a surface to which the connecting member is connected. The method according to claim 1,
A plurality of temperature sensing members; And
And a plurality of temperature sensing lines connected to the plurality of temperature sensing members, one end of each of the plurality of temperature sensing lines being connected to the plurality of temperature sensing members, for transmitting temperature information sensed by the temperature sensing member,
Further comprising:
Wherein the dispensing unit outputs temperature information input from two or more temperature sensing lines to a single temperature output line. The method according to claim 1,
A plurality of tactile sensing members; And
Wherein the tactile sense unit includes a plurality of tactile sensing members connected at one end to the plurality of tactile sensing members to transmit tactile information sensed by the tactile sensing member,
Further comprising:
Wherein the dispensing unit outputs tactile information input from two or more tactile sensing lines to a tactile output line. The method according to claim 1,
Further comprising a shaft body formed in a shape elongated in one direction and having an internal space formed along a longitudinal direction thereof and coupled to one end of the cylinder member. 13. The method of claim 12,
Wherein the dispensing unit is mounted in an internal space of the shaft body. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the dispensing unit is configured in the form of a hollow tube and is coupled to one end of the cylinder member coaxially with the cylinder member. The method according to claim 1,
Further comprising an end tip coupled to the other end of the cylinder member. Preparing a cylinder member in the form of a plate;
Printing a plurality of power supply lines on the plate-shaped cylinder member;
Mounting a plurality of electrodes on the plate-shaped cylinder member to be connected to the plurality of printed power supply lines;
Mounting a distribution unit on the plate-shaped cylinder member to be connected to the plurality of power supply lines;
Bending the cylinder member such that two spaced apart sides of the cylinder member are adjacent to each other to form a hollow cylinder; And
Engaging the two sides of the adjacent cylinder member by the bending;
Wherein the catheter includes a catheter. 17. The method of claim 16,
Printing a plurality of temperature sensing lines on the plate-shaped cylinder member; And
Further comprising mounting a plurality of temperature sensing members to the cylinder member to be connected to the printed plurality of temperature sensing lines,
Wherein the dispensing unit mounting step causes the dispensing unit to be connected to the plurality of temperature sensing lines. 17. The method of claim 16,
Printing a plurality of tactile sensing lines on the plate-shaped cylinder member; And
Further comprising mounting a plurality of tactile sensing members on the cylinder member to be connected to the printed plurality of tactile sensing lines,
Wherein the dispensing unit mounting step causes the dispensing unit to be connected to the plurality of tactile sense lines. 16. A nerve blocker comprising a catheter according to any one of claims 1 to 15.

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