RU2167630C2 - Device for measuring periodontal pouch depth - Google Patents

Abstract

FIELD: medical engineering. SUBSTANCE: device has casing, probe needle, curved tubular guide member, drive unit and displacement indication unit. Drive unit for carrying out reciprocal movement of the probe needle is manufactured as piston mounted in the casing. The piston has conic end and a spring which one end is attached to it. The other spring end is fixed inside the casing on the tubular guide member passing inside the casing. The probe needle comes through the tubular guide member and spring. Needle end is rigidly fixed in conic piston part which end is engageable with the displacement indication unit. The displacement indication unit is designed as flat scale member with millimeter division marks on both sides. The scale member is placed in transparent part of the casing and is engageable with pressure member. The pressure member is mounted on casing end face. The transparent part of the casing is rotatable. EFFECT: high accuracy of measurements. 2 cl, 1 dwg

Description

 The invention relates to medical equipment and can be used to diagnose periodontal diseases in dentistry.

 A periodontal pocket is formed due to a violation of the integrity of the tooth-gingival joint under the influence of submersible epithelial growth, destruction of the ligamentous apparatus, alveolar bone and cement of the root of the tooth. The presence of periodontal pockets, their depth in periodontal pathology largely determines the clinical picture of the disease, the tactics of the doctor in the treatment of a particular nosological form, as well as the prognosis.

 The condition of the periodontal pocket is judged on the basis of depth, the presence of exudate and ulceration.

 The depth of the periodontal pocket is measured with a calibrated trowel or blunt probe with millimeter divisions applied to them. For the same purposes, special tools are also used.

 A known periodontal probe (application N 0384723 EPO, A 61 C 19/04, publication of 90.08.29). A sensor, a rod, a tip, and an elongated flexible fibrous element extending longitudinally through the tip and at least one rod element, which are arranged in series and connected to each other. A fibrous element having a distal and proximal ends is mounted in the tip and the rod so that its distal end protrudes beyond the end of the tip. The fiber element is fixed in such a way that it can smoothly move in a predetermined longitudinal direction inside the tip and the rod. The tip and the rod are rigidly connected to each other, their total length is 0.108 m. The sensor is connected to the proximal end of the fiber element to record the relative movement of the fiber element and the tip. The rod can be disconnected from the sensor if it is necessary to replace the rod itself, the tip or the fibrous element.

 The disadvantage of this design is the inability to use it to measure the depth of periodontal pockets.

 A known periodontal probe (U.S. Patent No. 4,708,647, A 61 C 3/00, publication of 87.11.24) containing a transparent portion inserted into a pocket. The probe ends with a tip that reaches the bottom of the pocket. A longitudinal channel passes into the probe, into which a thread is introduced, shifted back and forth inside it. The movement of the thread is carried out by a device that ensures the retraction of the thread back until it is visible in the region of the gingival margin. The probe is equipped with a device for measuring the distance between the tip and the free end of the thread.

 The disadvantage of this product is the inconvenience of measurement due to the fact that not a thin probe probe, but a thicker tip is inserted into the periodontal pocket, which is not always possible.

 The closest in technical solution is a device for measuring the depth of periodontal pockets (application N 2662599, France, A 61 C 19/04, publication of 91.12.06), which consists of a housing, one of whose ends forms the working part of the sounding, this part has a sensing needle and is connected to a displacement sensor, which can output a signal at its output that reflects the measurement taken. The sensing working part has a tubular guide for the sensing needle and a power transmission device for driving the needle in motion in the tubular guide.

 The disadvantage of this device is the traumatic sharp tip of the sensing needle and a device for transmitting force from the displacement sensor to the sensing needle, due to which there may be an inaccuracy of measurement.

 The objective of the invention is the creation of a device that allows you to accurately and quickly measure the depth of periodontal pockets.

 The objective is achieved in that the drive for reciprocating the probe needle is made in the form of a piston located in the housing of the device, the end of which is conical with a spring fixed to it by one end, the other end of which is fixed inside the housing, at the end of the tubular guide that extends into the housing and the sensing needle entering through the tubular guide and inside the spring is rigidly fixed with its end on the conical part of the piston, while the end of the piston is made with the possibility of interaction ystviya with pointer movement, which is a flat scale and bears on both sides millimeter divisions, and contacting with a pressure device mounted in the end of the unit case, a transparent part of the housing with the scale are rotatable.

The compliance of the proposed technical solution to the criterion of novelty is confirmed by the presence of the following features that are absent in the prototype:
1. The execution of the actuator in the form of a piston provides the sensing needle with the reciprocating movement necessary for easy and painless passage of the needle into the depth and its unhindered lead back inside the device.

 2. The interaction of the piston with a displacement indicator in the form of a scale and the presence of a transparent part of the housing in which the scale is located ensures the accuracy of measuring the depth of the periodontal pocket.

 3. The presence of a transparent part of the case rotating with the scale ensures the convenience of observing measurements from any angle of view.

 4. The installation of the sensing needle, its fastening directly on the piston (ie, the absence of intermediate parts) ensures the simplicity and reliability of operation of the device.

 5. The sensing needle has an atraumatic blunt tip.

 The invention is illustrated by the drawing, which shows a device for measuring the depth of the periodontal pocket. A device for measuring the depth of the periodontal pocket consists of a housing (1), which consists of two parts transparent (2) and opaque (3). In the opaque part of the body is a piston (4), which performs a reciprocating motion. A sensing needle (5), which has an atraumatic, blunt tip (6), is rigidly fixed to the front end of the piston. A spring (7) is put on the sensing needle, which serves to return the piston and the sensing needle to its original position. The sensing needle moves freely inside a curved tubular guide (8), and having a diameter of 3 mm. A metal tip (9) is put on the end of the tubular guide, the diameter of the outlet (10) of which is 0.5 mm, while the diameter of the probe needle is 0.46 mm. The sizes are selected with the goal of least trauma and pain when probing the periodontal pocket. The end of the sensing needle is flush with the outlet of the metal tip of the tubular guide. Inside the transparent part of the body is a movement indicator (11), which has a two-sided gradation, that is, the markings are plotted on both sides of a flat scale (12). The movement indicator has millimeter divisions (13). The end of the movement indicator is in close contact with the pressing device (14) installed in the end of the device body. The edge (15) of the transparent part (2) of the housing (1) serves as a reference point.

 The device works as follows: after installing the device with a metal tip (8) of the tubular guide (7) close to the gingival margin, the doctor actuates the pressing device (14), which, in turn, activates the scale (12), the piston (4) sensing needle (5) by compressing the spring (7). After the sounding needle (5) has completely inserted into the periodontal pocket, it is clear which division (13) of the scale (12) coincides with the edge (15) of the transparent part of the housing (2), which means that the sounding needle has plunged into such a depth periodontal pocket. For convenient observation of the measurement, the transparent part (2) of the housing (1) together with the scale (12) can be rotated. After the measurement is completed, the spring (7) returns the sensing needle (5), the piston (4) and the scale (12) to the initial position, after which the device can be removed from the gums without injuring it with the sensing needle.

 Thus, this device allows you to quickly and accurately measure periodontal pockets of all groups of teeth on both the lower and upper jaw.

Claims (2)

 1. A device for measuring the depth of periodontal pockets, comprising a housing, a sounding needle, a curved tubular guide, a drive and a movement indicator, characterized in that the drive for reciprocating motion of the sounding needle is made in the form of a piston located in the housing, the end of which is conical , with a spring fixed to it at one end, the other end of which is fixed inside the housing, at the end of the tubular guide that extends into the housing, while the probe is the passage passing through the tubular guide and inside the spring is rigidly fixed with the end to the conical part of the piston, and the piston is made with the possibility of interaction with a movement indicator, which is a flat scale with millimeter divisions applied on both sides, located in the transparent part of the device body and in contact with the pressure device installed at the end of the device.  2. The device according to claim 1, characterized in that the transparent part of the housing with a scale is made to rotate.