KR20200012515A - Apparatus for assisting endoscope - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to an auxiliary device for endoscopy. According to the present invention, provided is an auxiliary device for endoscopy, in an auxiliary apparatus mounted on an endoscope probe, which comprises a support body which has an annular cross section and is formed of a flexible material so that one end portion of the support body comes in close contact with an affected area while the other end portion is coupled to one end portion of the endoscope probe. The endoscope probe irradiates the affected area with light received from the outside, collects reflected light through a lens, and transmits the same to the outside. The auxiliary device for endoscopy can come in close contact with the periphery of the affected area while being mounted on the end portion of the endoscope probe to reduce optical loss during endoscopy, can concentrate light on the affected area to increase endoscope measurement performance and the accuracy of diagnosis, and can maintain a constant distance between the endoscope probe and the affected area to minimize damage to the affected area.

Description

Endoscopic assist device {Apparatus for assisting endoscope}

The present invention relates to an endoscope assisting device, and more particularly, to an endoscope assisting device capable of increasing endoscopy efficiency and diagnostic accuracy by assisting an endoscope probe.

Recently, with the development of the medical environment, the use of endoscope probes for examining or observing fine objects such as capillaries and cells is increasing. In general, the endoscope probe is used in direct contact with the affected area (skin or tissue) or at a distance from the affected area.

However, when the endoscope probe is in direct contact with the affected part, damage to the affected part may occur, and when the endoscope is spaced a certain distance from the affected part, the light irradiated from the endoscope probe may not be concentrated on the affected part but scattered or lost to the outside, resulting in distortion of the image. Degradation of quality can lead to poor endoscopy performance and diagnostic accuracy.

Therefore, there is a need for a separate endoscope auxiliary means for increasing the inspection efficiency by minimizing light loss while protecting the affected area by maintaining a constant gap between the endoscope probe and the affected part.

The background technology of the present invention is disclosed in Korean Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 2007-0036954 (published on April 04, 2007).

An object of the present invention is to provide an endoscope auxiliary device that can increase the endoscopy efficiency and diagnostic accuracy by assisting the endoscope probe.

The present invention relates to an auxiliary device mounted to an endoscope probe, the support device having an annular cross-section, the support body is formed of a flexible material such that the other end is in close contact with the annulus while one end is coupled to one end of the endoscope probe; The endoscope probe provides an endoscope assisting device for irradiating light from the outside to the affected part and collecting the reflected light through a lens and transmitting the reflected light to the outside.

In addition, the support body may be coupled so that one end circumference surrounds one end of the endoscope probe.

In addition, the endoscope probe includes a probe tube and a guide tube inserted into the probe tube and having the lens, and the light is passed through the annular space formed between the inner diameter of the probe tube and the outer diameter of the guide tube. Provided as an annulus, the support body, the cross section of the annular is coupled to the form facing the annular space to close the annular space, can be formed of a light transmissive material to enable light transmission to the annular have.

In addition, the support body may be formed of a silicon or urethane material having light transmittance.

In addition, the support body may be configured such that the cross-sectional thickness is gradually thinner toward the affected portion.

In addition, the support body may be configured to gradually increase in diameter toward the affected part.

In addition, the endoscope assisting device may further include a blackout body formed in the inner diameter of the support body and configured to direct the reflected light to the lens without being re-introduced into the annular space.

In addition, the blackout body has a non-transparent material, and may be formed by being mounted on the inner diameter of the support body or painted or coated on the inner diameter surface.

In addition, the black film body may be formed of a plastic, urethane or silicone material having a non-transmissive.

In addition, the support main body may form a sawtooth-shaped protrusion along the end circumference of the other end portion.

In addition, the endoscope assisting device, a first auxiliary tube coupled to the support body to perform the drug to the affected area through the first through-hole formed in the support body, and a second formed in the support body The apparatus may further include a second auxiliary tube coupled to the support body to perform suction on the affected part through a through hole.

In addition, the support body includes a first body coupled to one end of the endoscope probe, and a second body coupled to the second body detachably and the end is in close contact with the affected part, according to the diagnostic purpose In order to adjust the distance between the affected part and the endoscope probe, it may be possible to adjust the coupling position of the second body in the front-rear direction with respect to the first body.

According to the endoscope assisting apparatus according to the present invention, it is possible to be in close contact with the affected area in a state of being mounted on the end of the endoscope probe, it is possible to reduce the light loss during endoscopy and focus the light to the affected endoscopy measurement performance and accuracy of diagnosis In addition to the increase, the distance between the endoscope probe and the lesion is kept constant, thereby providing an advantage of minimizing damage to the lesion.

1 is a view showing a state in which the endoscope auxiliary device according to an embodiment of the present invention is mounted on the endoscope probe.
2 is a perspective view of FIG. 1.
3 is a left side view of the endoscope assisting device shown in FIG. 1.
4 is a cross-sectional view of the endoscope probe shown in FIG. 1.
5 is a view of a state in which the endoscope auxiliary device of Figure 1 is in close contact with the affected part.
FIG. 6 is a view illustrating a sawtooth protrusion formed at an end of the endoscope assisting device shown in FIG. 1.
FIG. 7 is a view illustrating a structure in which an illumination and suction tube is coupled to the endoscope auxiliary device of FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings so that those skilled in the art may easily implement the present disclosure.

1 is a view showing the endoscope auxiliary device according to an embodiment of the present invention mounted on the endoscope probe, Figure 2 is a perspective view of Figure 1, Figure 3 is a left side view of the endoscope auxiliary device shown in FIG. .

1 to 3, the endoscope assisting apparatus 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention may be mounted to one end of the endoscope probe 10, and includes a support body 110 and a blackout body 120. do.

The support body 110 has an annular cross section with a hollow inside, and has a structure in which the other end is in close contact with the annular part while one end is coupled to one end of the endoscope probe 10.

Here, the affected part may mean a nose, ear, body tissue inside the neck, cells, etc. for endoscopy. For example, an microscopic image, which is an image of a microvascular region of the cochlea, may be acquired during an endoscopy of the cochlea, which is an internal body tissue.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the support body 110 may be formed of a flexible material such as soft silicone, urethane, or the like so as not to affect or damage the affected part (body tissue) at the same time to enhance adhesion to the affected part surface. Can be. Accordingly, the other end of the support body 110 may be opened when contacting the affected part and may be restored to its original state when released.

The support body 110 is coupled so that one end circumference surrounds one end of the endoscope probe 10. The support body 110 may be fitted to the outside of the endoscope probe 10, and can be easily inserted by hand, as well as easily removable due to the flexible material properties.

The endoscope auxiliary apparatus 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention is used by being mounted on an endoscope probe device using a SDF (Sidestream Dark Field) method. The endoscope probe 10 of the SDF method irradiates the light introduced from the outside into the affected part and collects the reflected light through the lens 13 and transmits the reflected light to an external camera.

4 illustrates a cross-sectional view of the endoscope probe shown in FIG. 1.

As shown in FIG. 4, the endoscope probe 10 of the SDF system includes a probe tube 11 and a guide tube 12 inserted into the probe tube 11 and having a lens 13. The probe tube body 11 forms an illumination optical system, and the guide tube body 12 forms an imaging optical system.

Here, light is introduced through the annular space (illumination optical system) formed between the inner diameter of the probe tube body 11 and the outer diameter of the guide tube body and provided to the affected part. The light reflected from the affected part is collected again through the lens 13 and then moved along the inner space of the guide tube 12 serving as the light guide and provided to the outside (camera).

Here, as shown in FIG. 1, the supporting body 110 has a structure in which an annular cross-sectional portion is coupled to face the annular space of the endoscope probe 10 to physically block and close the annular space.

However, the support body 110 may be formed of a light transmissive material so as to transmit (transmit) light to the affected part. For example, the support body 110 may be formed of a material such as silicone, urethane, etc. having both light transmitting properties and flexible properties. That is, the support body 110 may serve as a light guide plate and concentrate the light source into an observation area (area of interest such as blood vessel).

That is, the light source (light) generated in the illumination optical system is transmitted through the support body 110 of the light guide plate material and then irradiated to the surface of the tissue, the inside of the organ, and the like, and thus the capillaries and the cells of the organ or the surface can be observed. Become.

The blackout body 120 is an opaque material and is formed in the inner diameter of the support body 110. The blackout body 120 guides the reflected light to the lens 13 without being re-introduced into the annular space of the endoscope probe 10.

The blackout body 120 may be made of a separate panel to be mounted or coupled to the inner diameter of the support body, or may be formed by painting or coating the inner diameter surface. The blackout body 120 may be formed of a non-transparent plastic, urethane or silicon material.

If there is no black film body 120, a part of the light reflected from the affected part may pass through the support body 110 to be re-introduced into the annular space (lighting system), in which case the inspection efficiency and the quality of the image are deteriorated. And distort the affected image.

However, in the case of using the black body 120, the path of light is concentrated only on the lens 13, and most of the light is transferred to the imaging optical system, thereby increasing the endoscopy efficiency. The blackout body 120 may be formed at a portion of the inner diameter as shown in FIG. 1, but may extend to the end portion where the affected part is contacted.

As such, in the embodiment of the present invention, light scattering and loss of light are minimized by aggregation of light toward cells or tissues, and the quality of an image collected through the imaging optical system can be improved.

5 is a view of a state in which the endoscope auxiliary device of Figure 1 is in close contact with the affected part.

In FIG. 5, A represents affected tissue and B illustrates blood vessels in the affected region. As shown in FIG. 5, the auxiliary device 100 flexibly supports the endoscope probe 10 and the affected part to prevent damage to the affected part during endoscopy, and at the same time, enhances adhesion to the affected part in the endoscope probe 10. The irradiated light can be concentrated on the affected area without being lost to the outside and improve the endoscopy efficiency.

Of course, when the endoscope probe 10 is directly applied to the affected part without the auxiliary device 100, capillaries may disappear due to interference of light (saturation), pressure of the scope and blood vessels, and may not be observed or examination of cells may be difficult. have. For example, when the end portion of the endoscope probe 10 directly touches the affected part, there is also a risk of damage to the affected part, but a pressure may be applied to the blood vessel to disappear the blood vessel, which may result in an unobservable situation. This is similar to the phenomenon that when the skin is pressed with a finger, the skin becomes white and the blood lines disappear.

According to the embodiment of the present invention, the distance between the endoscope probe 10 and the affected part L may be maintained (spaced) by using the auxiliary device 100, thereby minimizing damage to the affected part during the examination, and of course, observation. As the direct pressure is not applied to blood vessels, cells, etc., the screening efficiency is improved.

In the embodiment of the present invention, the support body 110 may be configured such that the cross-sectional thickness becomes thinner toward the affected area as shown. In addition, although not shown, in order to achieve the same effect, the support body 110 may be configured such that the diameter (at least one of the inner diameter and the outer diameter) gradually increases toward the affected part. Of course, the former and latter configurations may be combined together.

FIG. 6 is a view illustrating a sawtooth protrusion formed at the end of the endoscope assisting device shown in FIG. 1.

As shown in FIG. 6, the support body 110 may form a toothed protrusion 111 along the periphery of the distal end of the support body. The toothed protrusion 111 may be flexibly unfolded upon contact with the affected part. Can enhance the adhesion.

FIG. 7 is a view illustrating a structure in which an illumination and suction tube is coupled to the endoscope auxiliary device of FIG. 1.

As shown in FIG. 7, the first auxiliary tube 130 and the second auxiliary tube 140 may be coupled to the outside of the support body 110. The first auxiliary tube 130 performs the injection (injection) of the drug to the affected area through the first through hole 115 formed in the support body 110, the second auxiliary tube 140 is the second through hole Suction the affected part through 116.

That is, the first auxiliary body 130 is used as a path for the illicitation (injection) of the drug to the affected part, and the second auxiliary body 140 is used as a path for performing suction from the affected part. In the case of suction, mucus and foreign substances that interfere with the imaging path may be discharged to the outside, and in the case of elimination, the drug may be injected into the affected area to treat the lesion.

In addition, the auxiliary device 100 may be manufactured in various lengths according to a diagnosis purpose (eg, a type of affected part such as a tonsil, an ear, or a tympanic membrane). This is because the separation distance required between the affected part and the endoscope probe may be different depending on the diagnostic purpose. Of course, one auxiliary device 100 may be implemented in a form in which the length can be manipulated to be applicable to various applications.

According to the endoscope auxiliary apparatus according to the present invention as described above, in the state attached to the end of the endoscope probe can be flexibly adhered to the periphery of the affected area to reduce the light loss during endoscopy and focus the light to the affected endoscope measurement performance and diagnosis In addition to improving the accuracy of the endoscope damage between the endoscope and the probe can be kept constant.

Although the present invention has been described with reference to the embodiments illustrated in the drawings, this is merely exemplary, and it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various modifications and equivalent other embodiments are possible. Therefore, the true technical protection scope of the present invention will be defined by the technical spirit of the appended claims.

10: endoscope probe 11: probe tube
12: guide tube 13: lens
100: endoscope auxiliary device 110: support body
111: protrusion 115: first through hole
116: second through hole 120: black body
130: first auxiliary body 140: second auxiliary body

Claims (11)

An auxiliary device mounted to an endoscope probe,
It has an annular cross-section, and includes a support body formed of a flexible material such that the other end is in close contact with the affected part in a state where one end is coupled to one end of the endoscope probe,
The endoscope probe,
An endoscope auxiliary apparatus for irradiating the light from the outside to the affected area, and collects the reflected light through the lens to transmit to the outside. The method according to claim 1,
The support body,
An endoscope assisting device coupled to one end circumference surrounding one end of the endoscope probe. The method according to claim 1,
The endoscope probe,
A probe tube and a guide tube inserted into the probe tube and having the lens, and providing the light to the affected part through an annular space formed between an inner diameter of the probe tube and an outer diameter of the guide tube,
The support body,
The annular cross-section is coupled to the form facing the annular space to close the annular space, the endoscope auxiliary device is formed of a light transmitting material to enable light transmission to the affected part. The method according to claim 3,
The support body,
Endoscope auxiliary device formed of flexible silicone or urethane material with light transmittance. The method according to claim 1 or 3,
The support body,
An endoscope assisting device configured to become thinner in cross-section thickness toward the affected part. The method according to claim 1 or 3,
The support body,
An endoscope assisting device configured to gradually increase in diameter toward the affected part. The method according to claim 3,
And a blackout body formed in the inner diameter of the support body and configured to direct the reflected light to the lens without being re-introduced into the annular space. The method according to claim 7,
The black rock body,
An auxiliary device for an endoscope having a non-transparent material, which is mounted on the inner diameter of the support body or painted or coated on the inner diameter surface. The method according to claim 7,
The black rock body,
Endoscope assistive device formed of a non-permeable plastic, urethane or silicone material. The method according to claim 1 or 3,
The support body,
An endoscope auxiliary device formed with a sawtooth-shaped projection along the periphery of the distal end of the other end. The method according to claim 1 or 3,
A first auxiliary tube coupled to the support body to perform drug illation of the affected part through a first through hole formed in the support body; And
And a second auxiliary tube coupled to the support body to perform suction on the affected part through a second through hole formed in the support body.

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