WO2012086991A2

WO2012086991A2 - Light therapy apparatus and method for controlling same

Info

Publication number: WO2012086991A2
Application number: PCT/KR2011/009832
Authority: WO
Inventors: 황해령; 글렌 칼더헤드로버트; 하태호
Original assignee: (주)루트로닉
Priority date: 2010-12-20
Filing date: 2011-12-20
Publication date: 2012-06-28
Also published as: WO2012086991A3; KR20120069588A; KR20140072854A; KR101845073B1; KR20190046741A; KR20180037156A

Abstract

The present invention relates to a light therapy apparatus which treats a treatment body part of a patient using a plurality of light sources, and to a method for controlling the same. The light therapy apparatus comprises: at least one plate; and a plurality of first light sources and second light sources arranged in the plate to irradiate light to the treatment body part of the patient. The first light sources and the second light sources irradiate light of different wavelengths.

Description

Phototherapy apparatus and control method thereof

The present invention relates to a light therapy apparatus for treating a treatment site of a patient using a plurality of light sources and a control method thereof.

In recent years, the technique of irradiating light to the human body and treating in a manner of changing the state of the tissue by the light energy absorbed by human tissue has been widely applied.

As a treatment apparatus using such light, a product using a laser as a light source is generally widely used. Lasers in various wavelengths, including Nd: YAG laser, KTP laser, ER: YAG laser, CO2 laser, Ho: YAG laser, ruby laser, and alexandrite laser, are used. It is widely applied to.

However, the laser light treatment device is suitable for treating a treatment area of a local area, and there is a limitation in treating a treatment area of a large area. Therefore, in recent years, phototherapy apparatuses using other kinds of light sources such as LEDs have appeared, and Korean Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 2008-0092068 also discloses a phototherapy apparatus using LEDs.

However, when a light source other than a laser is used, the light energy irradiated from the light source to the treatment site is weak, and thus there is a problem that the therapeutic effect is lower than that of the conventional laser.

The present invention is to provide a light therapy device that can improve the therapeutic effect even when using a light source with a weak light output to solve the above problems.

The object of the present invention described above comprises at least one plate and a plurality of first and second light sources provided on the plate and irradiating light to a treatment site of a patient, wherein the first and second light sources It can be achieved by a phototherapy device, characterized in that for irradiating light of different wavelengths.

Here, the first light source may be irradiated with light of a wavelength lower than the skin light penetration of the second light source, specifically, the first light source is irradiated with light of the wavelength of the visible region, the second light source is a near infrared region Light of wavelength can be irradiated.

In this case, the first light source may be controlled to irradiate light with an output lower than the second light source, and specifically, the first light source may be controlled to irradiate light with an output of 10% or less than the second light source. .

The apparatus may further include a controller configured to independently control flickering of the first light source and the second light source, wherein the controller controls the first light source to light up and irradiate light before the second light source emits light. Can be.

The controller may control the first light source to emit light while the second light source emits light.

The phototherapy apparatus includes the plurality of first light sources and the second light sources so as to form at least one row on the plate, and the rows formed by the first light sources are interposed between the rows formed by the second light sources. Can be arranged.

On the other hand, the object of the present invention is a method of controlling a phototherapy device having a plurality of LED light source, the step of driving a first light source for irradiating light having a wavelength of the visible light region, after irradiating the first light source It can also be achieved by a control method of a phototherapy device comprising driving a second light source for irradiating light having a wavelength in the near infrared region.

According to the present invention, it is possible to improve the therapeutic effect by performing the preliminary treatment and the present treatment using two or more light sources having different skin penetration depths.

1 is a perspective view showing a light therapy apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention,

FIG. 2 is a plan view illustrating a bottom surface of the light irradiation part of FIG. 1;

3 is a graph showing the skin permeability according to the wavelength of light,

4 is a cross-sectional view showing a state in which one light source irradiates light;

5 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a state in which a plurality of light sources irradiate light;

6 is a flowchart illustrating a method of controlling the phototherapy device according to the present embodiment;

7 is a schematic diagram representing a preliminary treatment step in the control method of the phototherapy device according to the present embodiment,

8 is a schematic diagram representing the present treatment step of the control method of the phototherapy device according to the present embodiment.

Hereinafter, with reference to the drawings will be described in detail with respect to the phototherapy device and its control method according to an embodiment of the present invention. In the following description, the positional relationship of each component should be explained based on the drawings. In addition, the drawings may be displayed by simplifying the structure of the invention or by exaggerating if necessary for the convenience of description. However, the following description is to illustrate a simplified example to help the understanding of the invention, the present invention is not limited thereto. In addition to this, additional components may be added, changed or omitted to perform the modification.

1 is a perspective view showing a light treatment device according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the phototherapy apparatus 1 according to the present exemplary embodiment includes a main body 10, a support 20, and a light emitter 100.

The main body 10 includes a power supply unit (not shown) capable of receiving power from the outside. A control panel 30 for manipulating the driving contents of the phototherapy device 1 and a display 40 for displaying the same to a user may be installed on the outer surface of the main body 10. In addition, a control unit (not shown) for controlling the light irradiation unit 100 in accordance with an input signal input through the control panel 30 is provided inside the main body 10.

One side of the main body 10 is formed with a support 20 for supporting the light irradiation unit 100. The support unit 20 includes a cable (not shown) for supplying power to the light irradiation unit 100 from the power supply unit of the main body 10 and a signal line (not shown) for transmitting a control signal of the control unit to the light irradiation unit 100. Is installed. In addition, the support unit 20 may be configured to adjust the position of the light irradiation unit according to the treatment position of the patient. It may be configured to adjust the position by using a connecting structure such as a hinge structure, or may be changed by using a flexible material.

The light irradiation unit 100 is supported by the support unit 20 to irradiate light to the treatment area of the patient. The light irradiator 100 includes a plurality of light sources 120 for irradiating light and a plate 110 on which the plurality of light sources 120 are installed.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, the light irradiation unit 100 is configured by using five plates 110. At this time, each plate 110 is disposed to be inclined with an adjacent plate 110 by a predetermined angle to form an inclined surface. Therefore, while the plurality of plates 110 are arranged in a shape surrounding the treatment area of the patient, it is possible to evenly irradiate light. However, it is also possible to configure the light irradiation unit using one plate according to the therapeutic use.

On the other hand, the light irradiation unit 100 is configured to include at least two kinds of light sources for irradiating light of different wavelengths. Light has different reaction characteristics in the tissues of the human body depending on the wavelength. Therefore, the present invention can improve the therapeutic effect by using light of two or more kinds of wavelengths.

The light source of the light irradiation unit 100 according to the present invention may use a light source for irradiating light having a monochromatic wavelength characteristic. As an example, it is also possible to use a laser diode having a single color characteristic. In this embodiment, however, an LED module having a wide irradiation angle is used so that light can be evenly applied to a wide treatment area of a patient. Recently, LED modules have also been introduced with improved wavelength characteristics, and these LED modules have wavelength characteristics substantially close to monochromatic, so that when irradiated to the human body, the response characteristics of the corresponding wavelengths can be sufficiently induced.

Hereinafter, a light source of the light irradiation part according to the present embodiment will be described in detail with reference to FIG. 2.

FIG. 2 is a plan view illustrating the bottom of the light irradiation part of FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 2, the light irradiation part of the present embodiment includes a plurality of first light sources 121 and a plurality of second light sources 122. Here, the first light source 121 and the second light source 122 irradiate light of different wavelengths.

In this case, the first light source 121 may use light having a low skin permeability, and the second light source 122 may use light having a good skin permeability. Therefore, the selective treatment according to the depth of the skin is possible by using the phototherapy device (1).

3 is a graph showing skin permeability according to the wavelength of light. As shown in FIG. 3, light in a visible region having a wavelength of 600 nm or less has a high optical density and thus has low skin permeability, and light in a near infrared region having a wavelength of 750 nm or more has a low optical density and has a skin permeability. great.

Therefore, in the present embodiment, the first light source 121 may be configured to irradiate first light having a wavelength of 600 nm or less, and the second light source 122 may be configured to irradiate second light having a wavelength of 750 nm or more. The first light source 121 is configured to irradiate yellow light having a wavelength adjacent to 590 nm, and the second light source 122 is configured to irradiate near infrared light having a wavelength adjacent to 830 nm.

Here, light having a wavelength of 830 nm irradiated from the second light source 122 penetrates deep into the tissue of the human body, thereby causing macrophages, neutrophils, mast cells, and fibroblasts. Selectively increases the action potential of skin cells involved in wound healing, including back. In addition, when irradiated with light of 830nm wavelength, the blood flow of axial pattern flap increases, thereby significantly improving the survival of flap and genetically responsible for osteoblast activation. To improve the genetic mechanism. Thus, light at 830 nm wavelength is effective in treating various recalcitrant ulcers, treating accidental and iatrogenic wounds including burns, and osteointegration such as osseous implants. And successful effects on photorejuvenation of aging skin.

In contrast, the depth of 590 nm wavelength irradiated from the first light source 121 is substantially limited to the epidermis (epidermis), and in some cases the epidermis-dermal junction (DEJ, It may affect the dermal-epidermal junction and the top layer of the adjacent dermis. When the light of the 590nm wavelength is irradiated with a low level of light output, keratinocytes, Merkel cells, Langerhans cells, etc. located in the epidermis are activated.

When keratinocytes are activated, they can instantly synthesize cell secretions such as various types of cytokines. These cell secreting substances include substances involved in inflammatory healing, and they can penetrate into the dermis through epidermal-dermal junctions to activate fibroblasts of the dermis. This process can contribute to treating wounds and restoring aged skin.

In addition, when activated, Merkel cells play a role as a sensory organ as well as a neuroendocrine system and secrete neuropeptides and neurotransmitters to relieve pain.

As such, light having a wavelength of 590 nm is irradiated to the epidermis of the patient to induce cell secretion and neurotransmitter to be provided to the dermis, so that the cells located inside the dermis can be easily activated during the phototherapy. You can see the effect of conditioning.

Therefore, in the phototherapy device according to the present embodiment, the first light source 121 irradiates light of 590 nm wavelength first, and the second light source 122 irradiates light of 830 nm wavelength, thereby treating the first light source 121. In a state where the dermal tissue of the site is preconditioned, the second light source 122 may be irradiated to operate to perform a substantial treatment. In this case, there is an advantage of not only inducing the immediate treatment mechanism to proceed, but also improving the treatment effect.

In addition, phototherapy may be performed by simultaneously irradiating the first light source 121 and the second light source 122 to the treatment site of the patient. As described above, since the positions where the light is absorbed are different from each other when the first light source 121 and the second light source 122 are irradiated with skin, the first light source 121 and the second light source 122 are simultaneously irradiated. Even in the dermis, there is no fear that a phenomenon such as interference may occur. In this case, the first light source 121 continuously activates the cells located in the epidermis to continuously secrete various delivery materials to the dermis during the phototherapy, thereby improving the therapeutic effect.

The first light source 121 and the second light source 122 of the light irradiation unit 100 are installed on the bottom surface of the plate 110. The pattern in which the first light source 121 and the second light source 122 are installed may be variously configured. In this embodiment, for example, the first light source 121 and the second light source 122 may be arranged to form at least one column. Specifically, the first light source 121 forms two rows and the second light source 122 forms ten rows in one plate 110 (see FIG. 2). In addition, the heat formed by the first light source 121 may be disposed to be interposed between and enclosed by the rows in which the second light source 122 is formed.

4 is a cross-sectional view showing one light source irradiating light, and FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view showing a plurality of light sources irradiating light.

As described above, the first light source 121 and the second light source 122 are configured using an LED element. In this case, the light source 120 may be configured to spread within a range of a predetermined angle in the light irradiation direction so that the treatment area of the patient can be evenly irradiated. Therefore, an LED element having a light irradiation angle within a range of 10 ° to 120 ° may be used. Specifically, the irradiation angle of the light source may be adjusted in consideration of the distance d to the point where the treatment site is located and the distance between the light sources. You can decide. In addition, although not shown in the drawing, a curved reflector (not shown) made of a material having excellent reflectivity may be installed on the rear side of the light source so that light irradiated from the light source may be irradiated to the treatment area of the patient.

As such, since the light source 120 irradiates light at a predetermined irradiation angle, the intensity of light irradiated onto the treatment part may be different according to the distance between the light source 120 and the treatment part. As shown in FIG. 4, as the distance from the light source 120 increases, the irradiation area increases to approximate the square of the distance from the light source, and the intensity of the irradiated light decreases approximately in inverse proportion to the square of the distance. Therefore, the output intensity of the light source 120 may be determined in consideration of the distance between the light source and the treatment site during light treatment.

Specifically, since the first light source 121 plays a role of preconditioning the treatment site during phototherapy, the first light source 121 is irradiated with very low energy. On the contrary, since the second light source 122 is used to perform a substantial phototherapy, the second light source 122 is irradiated with energy having a higher intensity than that of the first light source 121.

Specifically, the second light source 122 may be configured such that the energy irradiated per unit area of the treatment area is approximately 10 to 100 times larger than the first light source 121. In the present embodiment, the first light source 121 irradiates light at an intensity of 1 to 10 mJ / cm 2 per second, and the second light source 122 is configured to irradiate light at an intensity of 50 to 500 mJ / cm 2 per second. More specifically, the first light source may emit light at an intensity of 2 mJ / cm 2 per second and the second light source at an intensity of 100 mJ / cm 2 per second. However, this may of course be changed and applied according to the treatment target and treatment contents as an example.

Furthermore, the difference in the irradiation intensity of the first light source 121 and the second light source 122 may also be controlled by the irradiation method of the light source. For example, the second light source 122 may be controlled to irradiate light while blinking at a predetermined period, compared to irradiating continuous light having a predetermined intensity in a lit state. At this time, the light irradiation unit 100 is preferably configured to independently control the flashing of the first light source 121 and the second light source 122.

Specifically, the first light source 121 is configured to be evenly irradiated throughout the treatment area with low intensity. Therefore, the interval between the rows formed by the first light source 121 is preferably designed to allow the light of the first light source 121 to irradiate the entire treatment area. That is, the area irradiated to the treatment site by the first light source (121a of FIG. 2) forming one row is configured to overlap at the boundary portion with the area irradiated by the first light source (121b of FIG. 2) forming the adjacent row. Can be.

In addition, since the second light source 122 is densely disposed compared to the first light source 121, as shown in FIG. 5, the second light source 122 is irradiated from the plurality of second light sources 122 at one position of the treatment site. . Accordingly, the second light source 122 may irradiate light with a relatively high intensity as compared with the first light source 121, and may further provide high energy to the treatment site, such as by irradiating light using a laser. have.

As described above, the phototherapy apparatus 1 according to the present embodiment includes a first light source 121 and a second light source 122 having different skin permeability, and the first light source 121 and the second light source ( The irradiation pattern and irradiation intensity of 122) are configured differently. Therefore, by using the characteristics of the light therapy at the time of the light treatment using the wavelength characteristics of the pre-treatment step and the main treatment step by progress, it is possible to improve the effect of the light therapy.

However, in the present embodiment, a phototherapy apparatus using two kinds of light sources has been described as an example, but this is only an example, and the phototherapy apparatus is configured using three or more kinds of light sources so that light of various wavelengths can be irradiated. It is also possible.

Hereinafter, a method of controlling the phototherapy apparatus according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 6 to 8.

6 is a flowchart illustrating a method of controlling the phototherapy device according to the present embodiment. First, the driving of the phototherapy apparatus is started with the part of the patient to be treated located under the light irradiation part.

In this case, the phototherapy apparatus performs a preliminary treatment step of preconditioning the treatment area of the patient (S10). This step may proceed by selectively driving the first light source having the wavelength of 590 nm as described above.

In this step, light is irradiated with low intensity from the first light source 121 to selectively activate only the cells of the skin epidermis. To this end, the plurality of first light sources 121 may irradiate light in a manner of blinking for a predetermined time depending on the position. Hereinafter, the light irradiation pattern of the preliminary treatment step will be described in detail with reference to FIG. 7.

Figure 7 is a schematic diagram representing a preliminary treatment step of the control method of the phototherapy device according to the present embodiment.

As described above, the light irradiation part according to the present embodiment includes five plates. In addition, two rows formed by the first light source 121 are disposed in each of two plates, and a total of ten first light sources are formed. In this step, the control unit controls to sequentially blink each column formed by the first light source 121.

As an example, as shown in FIG. 7, the controller may control to irradiate light for 1 second from the leftmost column during the present step (FIG. 7 shows a flashing pattern made up to 5 seconds. has exist). In this case, the treatment area is examined for 10 seconds while blinking from the leftmost column to the rightmost column.

As such, the first light source is sequentially controlled to blink for 60 seconds in a manner of repeating the reciprocation from left to right and again from right to left. In this step, as light having a low intensity of about 2 mJ / cm 2 is irradiated six times discontinuously from the first light source, the epidermal tissue of the treatment site may be activated to precondition for the present treatment.

When the preliminary treatment step ends (S20), the controller drives the second light source 122 to proceed with the main treatment process (S30). At this time, the second light source 122 irradiates the treatment area of the patient, which has been preconditioned, with light having a high intensity of 830 nm.

8 is a schematic diagram representing the present treatment step of the control method of the phototherapy device according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 8, in this step, the controller controls the second light source 122 to be turned on for a predetermined time, thereby continuously irradiating light to the treatment area of the patient.

This step can proceed over 9 minutes, during which the treatment site is irradiated with 54 J / cm 2 of light. Thus, the treatment proceeds as the dermal tissue at the treatment site is activated. At this time, since the treatment step is performed in the state in which the tissues of the activated epidermal layer are activated while secreting various secretory substances while performing the preliminary treatment step, the treatment mechanism can be rapidly progressed, and the therapeutic effect can also be improved.

Meanwhile, in the treatment step, not only the second light source 122 but also the first light source 121 may be controlled to be irradiated to the treatment site. As described above, since the first light source 121 and the second light source 122 irradiate light having different skin penetration depths, there is no fear that light interference or the like may occur in the dermis even if two types of light are irradiated. In addition, as the tissue of the epidermal layer is continuously activated even during the actual treatment mechanism in the dermal layer, it may advantageously work to improve the therapeutic effect.

FIG. 8 illustrates a pattern in which all of the first light sources are turned on in the treatment step. However, similarly to the preliminary treatment step, each of the heat sources may be controlled to flash sequentially.

When the treatment step is performed for 9 minutes in the above-described manner, the controller terminates the control of the phototherapy device by turning off the first light source and the second light source (S50).

In the above described the control method for the phototherapy device to perform the phototherapy of 10 minutes as an example, but the present invention is not limited thereto. Control of the phototherapy device may be performed in various ways according to a user's manipulation or mode switching through the control panel.

As described above, according to the present invention, two or more light sources having different skin permeability may be used to improve the effect of phototherapy by performing the preliminary treatment step and the present treatment step. However, the above-described embodiment is not limited to the present invention as an example for explaining the technical features of the present invention, it will be understood that it can be carried out in various modifications according to the treatment target and purpose.

Claims

At least one plate; And,

A plurality of first light sources and a second light source provided on the plate to irradiate light to the treatment site of the patient;

And the first light source and the second light source irradiate light having different wavelengths.
The method of claim 1,

The first light source is a light treatment device, characterized in that for irradiating light of a wavelength lower than the skin penetration property than the second light source.
The method of claim 2,

The first light source is irradiated with light of the wavelength of the visible light region, the second light source is a light therapy device, characterized in that for irradiating light of the wavelength of the near infrared region.
The method of claim 3,

The first light source is irradiated with light of a wavelength of 600nm or less, the second light source is characterized in that irradiating light of 750nm or more.
The method of claim 1,

And the first light source irradiates light with an output lower than that of the second light source.
The method of claim 5,

The first light source is a light treatment device, characterized in that for irradiating light with an output of 10% or less than the second light source
The method according to any one of claims 1, 2 and 5,

And a controller for independently controlling the flickering of the first light source and the second light source, wherein the controller controls the second light source to turn on the first light source to irradiate light before the second light source emits light. Light treatment device characterized in that.
The method of claim 7, wherein

And the controller controls the first light source to emit light while the second light source emits light.
The method of claim 7, wherein

And the first light source irradiates light in a repeatedly blinking pattern, and the second light source continuously emits light for a predetermined time to irradiate light.
The method of claim 7, wherein

And the number of the second light sources provided in the plate is greater than the number of the first light sources.
The method of claim 8,

The plurality of first light sources and second light sources are provided to form at least one row on the plate, respectively, and the rows formed by the first light sources are disposed to be interposed between the rows formed by the second light sources. Phototherapy device.
The method of claim 11,

The first light source and the second light source are each configured using an LED element, each LED element is characterized in that the light treatment device having an irradiation angle of 10 ~ 120 °.
The method of claim 7, wherein

And a plurality of plates provided with the plurality of first light sources and the second light sources, wherein each plate is disposed to form an inclined surface with an adjacent plate.
The method of claim 7, wherein

The plate comprising the plurality of first light sources and the second light source is configured to form a curved surface.
In the control method of a phototherapy device having a plurality of LED light source,

Driving a first light source for irradiating light having a wavelength in the visible light region;

And driving a second light source for irradiating light having a wavelength in a near infrared region after irradiating the first light source.
The method of claim 15,

And the first light source irradiates light having a wavelength lower than that of the second light source.
The method of claim 16,

The first light source is irradiated with light of a wavelength of 600nm or less, the second light source is a control method of a phototherapy device, characterized in that for irradiating light 750nm or more.
The method of claim 15,

The first light source is a control method of the phototherapy device, characterized in that for irradiating light with an output of 10% or less than the second light source.
The method of claim 15,

The driving of the first light source may be performed by irradiating light in a pattern in which the first light source is repeatedly flickering and irradiating light by continuously lighting the second light source driving the second light source for a predetermined time. Method for controlling the phototherapy device.
The method of claim 15,

And controlling the driving of the first light source while the driving of the second light source is ongoing.
In the treatment method using a light therapy device,

A preliminary treatment step of activating epidermal tissue at the treatment site by irradiating a first light source; And,

Including the present treatment step of irradiating a second light source to activate the dermal tissue of the treatment site to proceed with the treatment,

The second light source is a treatment method using a phototherapy device, characterized in that for irradiating light of a wavelength superior to the skin penetration property than the first light source.
The method of claim 21,

Wherein the first light source irradiates light absorbed by the epidermal layer or the uppermost layer of the dermis adjacent to the epidermal-epidermal junction, and the second light source irradiates light absorbed by the dermal layer. Treatment method using.
The method of claim 21,

The first light source is a treatment method using a phototherapy device, characterized in that for irradiating the light of the wavelength activating keratinocyte (Keratinocyte), Merkel cells (Langerhans cell) located in the epidermal layer .
The method of claim 21,

In the preliminary treatment step, a cell secreting material or a neurotransmitter is secreted from the tissue of the epidermal layer activated by the light of the first light source and provided to the dermal layer.