Sheath assembly, endoscope system and method of use thereof

Abstract

The present application belongs to the field of medical device technology, and specifically relates to a sheath assembly, an endoscope system and a method of using the same. The sheath assembly includes a sheath and a driving mechanism, and the section of the sheath close to its distal opening is provided with an expandable portion, and the expandable portion can switch between an expanded state and a contracted state; when the expandable portion is in an expanded state, at least part of the expandable portion radially protrudes outward from the other parts of the sheath, and the flow area of ​​the first inner cavity of the expandable portion is greater than the flow area of ​​the second inner cavity of the other parts of the sheath; when the expandable portion is in a contracted state, at least part of the expandable portion is flush with or radially protrudes inward from the other parts of the sheath, and the flow area of ​​the first inner cavity is less than or equal to the flow area of ​​the second inner cavity; the driving mechanism can switch the expandable portion from the contracted state to the expanded state. The present application can solve the problem of easy jamming when using the current sheath to aspirate stones and wait for the aspirate.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application belongs to the field of medical device technology, and specifically relates to a sheath assembly, an endoscope system and a method of using the same. Background Art

[0002] Guide sheaths are commonly used in urological endoscopic examinations or surgeries. They can establish a surgical channel in the urinary system to assist the endoscope and surgical instruments in passing through the urethra, ureter and other cavities, thereby improving the effectiveness and safety of examinations and treatments.

[0003] When using a guide sheath to remove kidney stones, the guide sheath can be inserted into the kidney using a guide wire, and then the insertion portion of the endoscope can be inserted into the sheath to observe and break the stones. When the stone is on the side of the sheath, the insertion portion can be used to drive the distal end of the sheath to bend, so that the sheath is directed toward the stone and the stone is sucked into the gap between the insertion portion and the sheath, thereby expelling the stone. However, in practice, when the insertion portion is used to drive the distal end of the sheath to bend to suck the lateral stone, the problem of unsmooth stone removal is prone to occur. Summary of the invention

[0004] The purpose of the present application is to provide a sheath assembly, an endoscope system and a method of using the same, which can solve the problem of stagnation that easily occurs when using the current sheath to aspirate stones and waiting for the aspirated material.

[0005] In order to solve the above technical problems, this application is implemented as follows:

[0006] In a first aspect, the present application provides a sheath assembly, which is applied to a guide sheath, and includes a sheath and a drive mechanism, wherein a tube section of the sheath close to its distal opening is provided with an expandable portion, and the expandable portion can be switched between an expanded state and a contracted state;

[0007] When the expandable portion is in an expanded state, at least a portion of the expandable portion radially protrudes outward from other portions of the sheath, and the flow area of ​​the first inner cavity of the expandable portion is greater than the flow area of ​​the second inner cavity of other portions of the sheath; when the expandable portion is in a contracted state, at least a portion of the expandable portion is flush with or radially protrudes inward from other portions of the sheath, and the flow area of ​​the first inner cavity is less than or equal to the flow area of ​​the second inner cavity;

[0008] The drive mechanism can switch the expandable portion from a contracted state to an expanded state.

[0009] In a second aspect, the present application provides an endoscope system, including an endoscope and a guide sheath, wherein the guide sheath includes the above-mentioned sheath tube assembly, and the sheath tube can be sleeved outside the insertion portion of the endoscope, and the insertion portion includes an active bending section.

[0010] In a third aspect, the present application provides a method for using an endoscope system, which is applied to the above-mentioned endoscope system, comprising:

[0011] controlling the expandable portion to be in a contracted state;

[0012] Inserting the insertion portion into the sheath;

[0013] Controlling the expandable portion to switch to an expanded state;

[0014] The active bending section is used to drive at least part of the tube section of the sheath tube close to the distal opening thereof to bend, so that the distal end of the sheath tube faces the object to be aspirated;

[0015] Use the sheath to aspirate and expel the aspirated material;

[0016] When the sheath tube is stuck in discharging the object to be sucked, the insertion part is pulled to make the curved active bending section gradually move away from the distal end surface of the sheath tube until the sheath tube can smoothly discharge the object to be sucked and the pulling of the insertion part is stopped.

[0017] The beneficial technical effects of this application are as follows:

[0018] In the present application, the expandable portion can switch between a contracted state and an expanded state. Before the sheath is inserted into the human body, the expandable portion can be switched to the contracted state. At this time, at least part of the expandable portion is flush with or radially convex to other parts of the sheath, that is, all parts of the expandable portion do not radially convex to other parts of the sheath, thereby facilitating the insertion of the sheath into the human body.

[0019] When the sheath is inserted into the human body and it is necessary to aspirate the stones to be aspirated, the driving mechanism can be used to switch the expandable part from the contracted state to the expanded state, and then the insertion part of the endoscope can be inserted into the sheath. The active bending section of the insertion part can drive at least part of the sheath tube section close to its own distal opening to bend. Because the active bending section is bending, different parts of the active bending section will press against the specific position of the sheath tube, so that the maximum distance between each part of the bent active bending section in the direction of its own extension and the inner wall of the tube section of the sheath tube bent by the active bending section is constantly changing. After the expandable part of the present application is in the expanded state, the size of the first inner cavity of the expandable part is larger than the size of the second inner cavity of other parts of the sheath tube. In this way, the expandable part can be used to increase the minimum value of each maximum distance, so that the minimum value of each maximum distance is greater than the size of the target object in the object to be aspirated. In this way, the target object can smoothly pass through the gap between the bent active bending section and the inner wall of the tube section of the sheath tube bent by the active bending section, thereby solving the problem of unsmooth discharge of the object to be aspirated. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0020] Figure 1A schematic diagram of the cooperation between the curved sheath tube and the curved active curved section disclosed in the prior art, and a schematic cross-sectional diagram along line a to line g;

[0021] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of the bending process of the insertion portion disclosed in the embodiment of the present application;

[0022] Figure 3 A schematic structural diagram of a sheath tube assembly when the restraining tube is located at a first position is disclosed in an embodiment of the present application;

[0023] Figure 4 For this application Figure 3 The enlarged schematic diagram of point A in the middle;

[0024] Figure 5 An exploded schematic diagram of a sheath tube assembly is disclosed in an embodiment of the present application when the restraining tube is located in a first position;

[0025] Figure 6 For this application Figure 5 The enlarged schematic diagram of point B in the middle;

[0026] Figure 7 A schematic structural diagram of a sheath tube assembly when the restraining tube is located at a second position is disclosed in an embodiment of the present application;

[0027] Figure 8 For this application Figure 7 The enlarged schematic diagram of the center C;

[0028] Fig. 9 An exploded schematic diagram of the sheath tube assembly is disclosed in an embodiment of the present application when the restraining tube is located in the second position;

[0029] Fig.10 The structure of the guide sheath disclosed in the embodiment of the present application is shown in FIG. Figure 1 ;

[0030] Fig.11 For this application Fig.10 The enlarged schematic diagram of point D in the middle;

[0031] Fig.12 The structure of the guide sheath disclosed in the embodiment of the present application is shown in FIG. Figure 2 ;

[0032] Fig.13 This is a schematic diagram of the process of the sheath tube assembly disclosed in an embodiment of the present application cooperating with the active bending section to extract the material to be aspirated.

[0033] Description of reference numerals:

[0034] 100, sheath; 110, expandable part; 111, deformable body; 112, elastic support; 120, first tube section; 130, second tube section; 210, restraining tube; 211, operating part; 212, anti-rotation part; 213, limiting part; 300, operating handle; 310, guide part; 311, anti-rotation fitting part; 320, limiting fitting part; 400, insertion part; 410, active bending section. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0035] The following will be combined with the drawings in the embodiments of the present application to clearly and completely describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application. Obviously, the described embodiments are part of the embodiments of the present application, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments in the present application, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work are within the scope of protection of this application.

[0036] The terms "first", "second", etc. in the specification and claims of the present application are used to distinguish similar objects, and are not used to describe a specific order or sequence. It should be understood that the data used in this way can be interchangeable under appropriate circumstances, so that the embodiments of the present application can be implemented in an order other than those illustrated or described here, and the objects distinguished by "first", "second", etc. are generally of one type, and the number of objects is not limited. For example, the first object can be one or more. In addition, "and / or" in the specification and claims represents at least one of the connected objects, and the character " / " generally indicates that the objects associated with each other are in an "or" relationship.

[0037] The sheath assembly, endoscope system and method of use provided in the embodiments of the present application are described in detail below through specific embodiments and their application scenarios in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

[0038] In each embodiment of the present application, "proximal end" and "distal end" refer to the position of the endoscope and its components relative to the user in the use environment, wherein the end closer to the user is designated as the "proximal end" and the end farther from the user is designated as the "distal end".

[0039] like Figure 1As shown, during the operation in which the insertion portion 400 and the sheath tube 100 are used together to remove stones and wait for the suction material, there is a suction gap between the endoscope insertion portion 400 and the inner wall of the sheath tube 100, so that the stones are discharged from the suction gap; of course, in order to facilitate the doctor to obtain the location of the stones, especially in the operation of kidney stone removal, the endoscope needs to be inserted into the renal calyx through the natural cavity or percutaneous kidney to remove stones in various areas of the renal calyx. Therefore, in order to avoid causing great trauma to the patient's kidneys, most endoscopes have a controllable bending function. Therefore, in order to adapt to the bending of the active bending section 410 of the endoscope insertion portion 400, the distal end of the sheath tube 100 adapted thereto in the prior art also has the ability of passive bending, that is, the active bending section 410 of the endoscope can drive the distal end of the sheath tube 100 to bend during the bending process.

[0040] The inventors discovered that, in actual surgical procedures, when the active bending section 410 drives the sheath tube 100 to be in a bent state, different parts of the active bending section 410 will press against specific positions of the sheath tube 100. Therefore, in the extension direction of the active bending section 410, the maximum distances between the various parts of the curved active bending section 410 in its own extension direction and the inner wall of the curved sheath tube 100 are unevenly distributed. In other words, the maximum distances between the various parts of the curved active bending section 410 in its own extension direction and the inner wall of the curved sheath tube 100 are constantly changing. Therefore, in the process of aspirating stones, stones whose size is equal to or slightly larger than the minimum value of the maximum distances may be blocked between the curved sheath tube 100 and the curved active bending section 410, resulting in poor stone removal.

[0041] Here, the maximum distance between each part of the curved active bending section 410 in its own extension direction and the inner wall of the curved sheath tube 100 is explained. Figure 1 In views a to g, since the tube diameter of the active bending segment 410 is smaller than the tube diameter of the sheath tube 100, there must be a gap between the curved active bending segment 410 and the curved sheath tube 100, and the gap is arranged around the curved active bending segment 410. Therefore, the distances between various circumferential regions of a part of the curved active bending segment 410 in its own extension direction and the inner wall of the sheath tube 100 are not equal, and the maximum value of the distances between various circumferential regions of this part of the curved active bending segment 410 and the sheath tube 100 is: the maximum distance between this part of the curved active bending segment 410 and the curved sheath tube 100.

[0042] like Figures 3 to 13As shown, an embodiment of the present application discloses a sheath assembly, which is applied to a guide sheath, including a sheath 100 and a driving mechanism, wherein the tube section of the sheath 100 close to its own distal opening is provided with an expandable portion 110, and the expandable portion 110 can switch between an expanded state and a contracted state. Specifically, at least part of the tube section of the sheath 100 close to its own distal opening has the ability to bend passively, that is, the active bending section 410 can drive at least part of the tube section of the sheath 100 close to its own distal opening to bend, that is, the active bending section 410 can drive all parts of the tube section of the sheath 100 close to its own distal opening to bend, or the active bending section 410 can also only drive part of the tube section of the sheath 100 close to its own distal opening to bend.

[0043] When the expandable portion 110 is in an expanded state, at least a portion of the expandable portion 110 radially protrudes outward from other portions of the sheath 100, that is, along the direction extending from the inside of the expandable portion 110 to the outside, at least a portion of the expandable portion 110 protrudes out from other portions of the sheath 100, and the flow area of ​​the first lumen of the expandable portion 110 is greater than the flow area of ​​the second lumen of other portions of the sheath 100. Specifically, the other portions of the sheath 100 refer to the portions of the sheath 100 located outside the expandable portion 110, and the other portions of the sheath 100 may be equal-diameter pipe sections.

[0044] Optionally, when the expandable portion 110 is in an expanded state, all regions of the expandable portion 110 along its own circumference expand outwardly, and all parts of the expandable portion 110 along its own circumference protrude radially outward from other parts of the sheath tube 100; or, when the expandable portion 110 is in an expanded state, a partial region of the expandable portion 110 along its own circumference expands outwardly, a part of the expandable portion 110 along its own circumference protrudes radially outward from other parts of the sheath tube 100, and another partial region of the expandable portion 110 along its own circumference may be flush with other parts of the sheath tube 100.

[0045] When the expandable portion 110 is in a contracted state, at least a portion of the expandable portion 110 is flush with or radially protrudes inwardly from other portions of the sheath tube 100, that is, along the direction extending from the outside to the inside of the expandable portion 110, at least a portion of the expandable portion 110 protrudes out of other portions of the sheath tube 100, and the flow area of ​​the first inner cavity is less than or equal to the flow area of ​​the second inner cavity. Specifically, when the expandable portion 110 is in a contracted state, all portions of the expandable portion 110 may be flush with or radially protrude inwardly from other portions of the sheath tube 100, or a portion of the expandable portion 110 may be flush with other portions of the sheath tube 100, and another portion may be radially protruding inwardly from other portions of the sheath tube 100.

[0046] The driving mechanism can switch the expandable portion 110 from the contracted state to the expanded state.

[0047] In the present application, the expandable portion 110 can switch between a contracted state and an expanded state. Before the sheath 100 is inserted into the human body, the expandable portion 110 can be switched to the contracted state. At this time, at least a portion of the expandable portion 110 is flush with or radially convex to other portions of the sheath 100, that is, all portions of the expandable portion 110 do not radially convex to other portions of the sheath 100, thereby facilitating the insertion of the sheath 100 into the human body.

[0048] When the sheath tube 100 is inserted into the human body and the stone to be sucked needs to be sucked, the driving mechanism can be used to switch the expandable portion 110 from the contracted state to the expanded state, and then the insertion portion 400 of the endoscope can be inserted into the sheath tube 100. The active bending section 410 of the insertion portion 400 can drive at least part of the tube section of the sheath tube 100 close to its own distal opening to bend. When the active bending section 410 is bent, different parts of the active bending section 410 will press against specific positions of the sheath tube 100, so that the parts of the bent active bending section 410 in the direction of its own extension are respectively aligned with the actively bent sheath tube 100. The maximum distance between the inner walls of the bent tube section of segment 410 is constantly changing, and after the expandable portion 110 of the present application is in an expanded state, the size of the first inner cavity of the expandable portion 110 is larger than the size of the second inner cavity of other parts of the sheath tube 100. In this way, the expandable portion 110 can be used to increase the minimum value of each maximum distance, so that the minimum value of each maximum distance is larger than the size of the target object in the object to be sucked. In this way, the target object can smoothly pass through the gap between the bent active bending segment 410 and the inner wall of the tube section of the sheath tube 100 bent by the active bending segment 410, thereby solving the problem of unsmooth discharge of the object to be sucked.

[0049] It should be noted that the target object refers to an object to be aspirated, such as a stone, whose size is equal to or slightly larger than the minimum value of the maximum distance between each part of the active bending section 410 of the prior art in its own extension direction and the sheath tube 100. Here, the size of the target object is equal to or slightly larger than half of the difference in tube diameter between the sheath tube 100 and the active bending section 410 of the prior art.

[0050] The embodiments of using the expandable portion 110 of the present application to make the minimum value of each maximum distance larger than the size of the target object in the object to be sucked include the following two:

[0051] 1. After the insertion portion 400 of the endoscope is inserted into the sheath tube 100 and the active bending section 410 drives the sheath tube 100 to bend, the expandable portion 110 in the expanded state corresponds to the minimum value of each maximum distance of the sheath tube 100 in the prior art, that is, after the active bending section 410 is inserted into the sheath tube 100 and drives the sheath tube 100 to bend, the minimum value of each maximum distance is greater than the size of the target object, so that the target object can smoothly pass through the gap between the bent active bending section 410 and the inner wall of the tube section of the sheath tube 100 bent by the active bending section 410, thereby solving the problem of unsmooth discharge of stones while waiting for suction.

[0052] 2. Please refer to Fig.13 After the insertion portion 400 of the endoscope is inserted into the sheath 100 and the active bending section 410 drives the sheath 100 to bend, the expandable portion 110 in the expanded state does not correspond to the minimum value of each maximum distance of the sheath 100 in the prior art. For example, the expandable portion 110 is located proximal to the minimum value of each maximum distance of the sheath 100. At this time, it is only necessary to pull the active bending section 410 to move the active bending section 410 toward the direction close to the operating handle 300 until a part of the bent active bending section 410 enters the expandable portion 110, so that the minimum value of each maximum distance is greater than the size of the target object by using the expandable portion 110, thereby introducing the target object stuck between the bent sheath 100 and the bent active bending section 410 into the expandable portion 110, so as to solve the problem of the target object being stuck between the bent sheath 100 and the bent active bending section 410.

[0053] Please note that Fig.13 In the first figure, there is also a narrow space between the insertion part 400 and the tube section of the sheath tube 100 located near the expandable part 110. However, since the insertion part 400 does not cause the tube section of the sheath tube 100 located near the expandable part 110 to bend, the tube section of the sheath tube 100 located near the expandable part 110 and the portion of the insertion part 400 located in the tube section both remain in a relatively straight state, and the portion of the insertion part 400 located in the tube section has better mobility in the sheath tube 100. When the target enters the above-mentioned narrow space, the target can push the insertion part 400 to increase the narrow space, thereby preventing the target from getting stuck.

[0054] In some embodiments, the expandable portion 110 includes a deformable body 111 and a deformation memory metal stent, the deformable body 111 has a first inner cavity, the deformation memory metal stent is connected to the deformable body 111, and the driving mechanism includes a conductive wire, which is electrically connected to the deformation memory metal stent. When the deformation memory metal stent is not energized through the conductive wire, the deformation memory metal stent is in a contracted state, so that the expandable portion 110 is in a contracted state; when the deformation memory metal stent is energized through the conductive wire, the deformation memory metal stent is in an expanded state, so that the expandable portion 110 is in an expanded state.

[0055] In other embodiments, the expandable portion 110 includes an elastic deformer, and the driving mechanism includes a traction member, the distal end of the traction member is connected to the distal end of the elastic deformer, and the elastic deformer is in a contracted state in a natural state; when the proximal end of the traction member is pulled, the traction member drives the distal end of the elastic deformer to move toward the proximal end, so that the elastic deformer undergoes elastic deformation and the elastic deformer is in an expanded state. The traction member here can be a traction rope, a transmission rod with a certain elastic deformation ability and capable of transmitting thrust, such as a slender rod of plastic or metal, a steel wire, etc.

[0056] In some other embodiments, the expandable portion 110 includes a flexible deformable body, and the driving mechanism includes a transmission rod, which is connected to the distal end of the flexible deformable body, and the transmission rod can move between a third position and a fourth position to place the flexible deformable body in an expanded state or a contracted state. For example, the direction extending from the third position to the fourth position may be the direction extending from the proximal end to the distal end of the sheath 100. At this time, when the transmission rod is located at the third position, the distal end of the flexible deformable body is closer to the proximal end of the flexible deformable body, and the transmission rod is in an expanded state; in the process of the transmission rod moving from the third position to the fourth position, the transmission rod drives the distal end of the flexible deformable body away from the proximal end of the flexible deformable body, thereby switching the flexible deformable body from the expanded state to the contracted state. Of course, the direction extending from the fourth position to the third position may also be the direction extending from the proximal end to the distal end of the sheath 100.

[0057] See also Figures 7 to 9 In an optional embodiment, the expandable portion 110 is an elastic deformer, and the expandable portion 110 is in an expanded state in a natural state, that is, when the expandable portion 110 is not constrained by an external object, it is in an expanded state.

[0058] Optionally, the elastic deformable body may be made of an elastic material, such as rubber, silicone, etc., and has a first inner cavity; or, the elastic deformable body includes a deformable body 111 and an elastic support 112, the deformable body 111 has a first inner cavity, and the elastic support 112 is connected to the deformable body 111.

[0059] The driving mechanism includes a constraint tube 210, which is slidably mounted outside the sheath tube 100. By controlling the constraint tube 210 to slide along the sheath tube 100, the position of the constraint tube 210 on the sheath tube 100 can be changed, so that the constraint tube 210 can be mounted outside the expandable part 110, or the constraint tube 210 and the expandable part 110 are staggered. The staggered setting here refers to the staggered setting of the constraint tube 210 and the expandable part 110 in the radial direction of the constraint tube 210.

[0060] When the constraint tube 210 is sleeved outside the expandable part 110, the expandable part 110 undergoes elastic contraction to be in a contracted state; when the constraint tube 210 and the expandable part 110 are misaligned, the expandable part 110 restores its elastic deformation to be in an expanded state.

[0061] In this embodiment, the expandable part 110 is in an expanded state in a natural state. In the process that the constraint tube 210 is gradually sleeved outside the expandable part 110, the inner wall of the constraint tube 210 can exert radial pressure on the expandable part 110, so that the expandable part 110 is forced to shrink. After the constraint tube 210 is sleeved outside the expandable part 110, due to the limited space inside the constraint tube 210, it can limit the expandable part 110 from expanding outward, so that the expandable part 110 can be kept in a contracted state. When it is necessary to switch the expandable part 110 from the contracted state to the expanded state, the constraint tube 210 is controlled to move to a position misaligned with the expandable part 110, so that the inner wall of the constraint tube 210 no longer constrains the expandable part 110, and the expandable part 110 is restored to the expanded state under the action of its own elasticity. It can be seen that in this embodiment, by driving the constraint tube 210 to move to a position misaligned with the expandable part 110, the expandable part 110 can be switched to the expanded state under the action of its own elasticity, and the structure is simple and the operation is convenient.

[0062] See also Figure 2 After long-term research, the inventors found that during the bending process of the active bending section 410 of the endoscope, the bending curvatures of various position areas are not consistent. As the bending process occurs, the active bending section 410 presents: the bending curvature decreases from large to small from the proximal end to the distal end, until the traction rope is about to move to the extreme position, the curvature of the distal end of the active bending section 410 will gradually increase until the curvature of the entire active bending section 410 is basically consistent, that is, when the active bending section 410 is controlled to bend, the proximal end of the active bending section 410 will bend first, and during this process the distal end of the active bending section 410 will maintain a relatively straight state, and as the bending process proceeds, the bending curvature of the proximal end of the active bending section 410 gradually reaches a maximum, and then its distal end gradually bends and reaches a maximum bending curvature.

[0063] Therefore, when the active bending section 410 drives the sheath tube 100 to bend, the bending process of the sheath tube 100 is basically the same as the bending process of the active bending section 410. When the proximal end of the active bending section 410 begins to bend, it will apply an initial bending moment to the proximal end of the tube section of the sheath tube 100 close to its own distal opening. As the bending of the proximal end of the tube section of the sheath tube 100 close to its own distal opening increases, this moment will gradually be transmitted to the distal end of the tube section of the sheath tube 100 close to its own distal opening. Since the distal end of the tube section of the sheath tube 100 close to its own distal opening is the last part to bend, it will remain relatively straight at the beginning until the proximal end of the tube section of the sheath tube 100 close to its own distal opening bends to a certain extent and then begins to bend. Since the tube section of the sheath tube 100 close to its own distal opening itself has a certain rigidity, the initial bending of the proximal end of the tube section of the sheath tube 100 close to its own distal opening will limit the bending ability of the distal end of the tube section of the sheath tube 100 close to its own distal opening to a certain extent, because it will form a reverse torque on the distal end of the tube section of the sheath tube 100 close to its own distal opening, and this torque needs to be overcome to achieve the bending of the distal end of the tube section of the sheath tube 100 close to its own distal opening, which ultimately results in the bending angle of the sheath tube 100 failing to meet the design requirements.

[0064] See also Figure 3 , Figure 4 , Figure 7 and Fig. 9 In an optional embodiment, the sheath tube 100 includes a first tube segment 120 disposed at the distal side of the expandable portion 110, and the first tube segment 120 can bend following the active bending segment 410 of the endoscope. Optionally, the expandable portion 110 may bend following the active bending segment 140 or may not bend following the active bending segment 140, and the present application is not limited thereto.

[0065] The constraint tube 210 can slide to the first position. When the constraint tube 210 is in the first position, the distal end of the constraint tube 210 is arranged corresponding to the distal end of the first tube segment 120, that is, the distal end of the constraint tube 210 and the distal end of the first tube segment 120 are arranged opposite to each other in the radial direction, and the distal end of the constraint tube 210 and the distal end surface of the sheath tube 100 are separated in the axial direction of the sheath tube 100, that is, the distal end of the constraint tube 210 and the distal end surface of the sheath tube 100 have a preset spacing greater than 0 in the axial direction of the sheath tube 100 to limit the proximal bending of the active bending section 410.

[0066] In the present application, when the constraint tube 210 is located in the first position, the distal end of the constraint tube 210 is arranged corresponding to the distal end of the first tube segment 120, and the distal end of the constraint tube 210 is separated from the distal end surface of the sheath tube 100 in the axial direction of the sheath tube 100, and the outside of the proximal end of the first tube segment 120 is sleeved by the constraint tube 210. The proximal end of the first tube segment 120 and the part of the constraint tube 210 located outside thereof form a whole with greater rigidity, while the distal end of the first tube segment 120 is not sleeved by the constraint tube 210, so the rigidity of the distal end of the first tube segment 120 is smaller, and therefore the active bending segment 410 is not easy to drive the above-mentioned overall bending, but is relatively easy to drive the distal end of the first tube segment 120 to bend, that is, when the active bending segment 410 bends, its distal end will bend first, thereby driving the distal end of the first tube segment 120 to bend, and during this process, the proximal end of the active bending segment 410 and the proximal end of the first tube segment 120 will not bend. After the distal end of the active bending section 410 drives the distal end of the first tube section 120 to bend, the restraining tube 210 can be controlled to move in a direction close to the proximal end of the sheath tube 100, so that the restraining tube 210 is located on the proximal side of the first tube section 120. At this time, the restraining tube 210 no longer restrains the proximal end of the active bending section 410, thereby driving the proximal end of the first tube section 120 to bend. It should be noted that before controlling the restraining tube 210 to move, the traction rope that controls the bending of the active bending section 410 can be placed in the most taut state, so that the distal end of the active bending section 410 can be bent to the maximum extent, thereby better driving the distal end of the first tube section 120 to bend.

[0067] From the above analysis, it can be known that when the guide sheath of the present application is used in conjunction with an endoscope, the distal end of the active bending section 410 can be bent first and the proximal end can be bent later. The distal end of the active bending section 410 bends first, which will form an initial torque at the distal end of the active bending section 410. The initial torque will be transmitted to the proximal end, trying to bend the proximal end of the active bending section 410. However, the constraint tube 210 will limit the bending of the proximal end of the active bending section 410. When the proximal end of the first tube section 120 does not bend, it will not apply a reverse torque to the distal end of the first tube section 120. Therefore, compared with the prior art, the bending amplitude of the distal end of the first tube section 120 of the present application driven by the active bending section 410 will be greater. And after the restraining tube 210 moves to no longer restrain the proximal end of the active bending section 410, the proximal end of the first tube section 120 will bend under the action of the torque of the distal end of the first tube section 120, thereby further increasing the bending amplitude of the sheath tube 100 as a whole, so that the bending angle of the sheath tube 100 meets the design requirements. It can be seen that the use of the restraining tube 210 of the present application can not only make the expandable part 110 switch from the contracted state to the expanded state, but also make the bending angle of the sheath tube 100 meet the design requirements, thereby achieving the purpose of dual use of one object.

[0068] In some embodiments, the length of the constraint tube 210 is relatively small. When the constraint tube 210 is sleeved outside the expandable portion 110, the distal end of the constraint tube 210 cannot correspond to the distal end of the first tube segment 120. At this time, when the constraint tube 210 is switched to the first position, the constraint tube 210 cannot put the expandable portion 110 in a contracted state. Since the expandable portion 110 needs to be in a contracted state before the sheath assembly is inserted into the human body, the constraint tube 210 needs to be sleeved outside the expandable portion 110. At this time, the distal end of the constraint tube 210 cannot correspond to the distal end of the first tube segment 120. Therefore, after the constraint tube 210 is inserted into the human body and the insertion portion 400 is inserted into the sheath 100, in order to make the bending angle of the sheath 100 meet the design requirements, the constraint tube 210 needs to be slid toward the distal end of the sheath 100 to slide to the first position, which is relatively cumbersome.

[0069] In an optional embodiment, when the constraint tube 210 is located in the first position, the constraint tube 210 is sleeved outside the expandable portion 110. In this embodiment, the constraint tube 210 has a relatively large length, so when the constraint tube 210 is located in the first position, the constraint tube 210 can not only make the expandable portion 110 in a contracted state, but also limit the proximal bending of the active bending section 410. Therefore, before inserting the sheath assembly of this embodiment into the human body, the constraint tube 210 is slid to the first position to meet the above two functions. After the constraint tube 210 is inserted into the human body and the insertion portion 400 is inserted into the sheath 100, the bending angle of the sheath 100 can meet the design requirements without sliding the sheath 100, which can simplify the operation process of the sheath assembly.

[0070] See also Figure 3 To facilitate the operation of the restraint tube 210 , in an optional embodiment, the proximal end of the restraint tube 210 extends to the proximal end of the sheath tube 100 , and the proximal end of the restraint tube 210 forms an operating portion 211 .

[0071] In this embodiment, the proximal end of the constraint tube 210 extends to the proximal ice forming operation part 211 of the sheath tube 100, so that the constraint tube 210 can be driven to slide by holding the operation part 211, so that the constraint tube 210 is located at the corresponding position; and the constraint tube 210 of this embodiment will be set outside the second tube section 130 located on the proximal side of the expandable part 110 of the sheath tube 100, so when the second tube section 130 is driven to bend, it is necessary to drive the second tube section 130 and the constraint tube 210 to bend at the same time, which can prevent the second tube section 130 of the sheath tube 100 from bending, thereby preventing a narrow space from being formed on the proximal side of the expandable part 110, thereby preventing the target from being stuck on the proximal side of the expandable part 110. Of course, the proximal end of the constraint tube 210 may not extend to the proximal end of the sheath tube 100. In this case, a transmission rod can be connected to the constraint tube 210, and the transmission rod can transmit pulling force and thrust, and the constraint tube 210 is driven to slide by pushing and pulling the transmission rod.

[0072] See also Fig.11 and Fig.12 In order to prevent the constraint tube 210 from rotating relative to the sheath tube 100 during the sliding process, in an optional embodiment, a stop portion 212 is formed on the constraint tube 210, and the stop portion 212 can cooperate with the sheath tube 100 and at least one of the operating handles 300 of the guide sheath to limit the rotation, that is, the stop portion 212 cooperates with at least one of the sheath tube 100 and the operating handle 300 at the circumferential upper limit of the constraint tube 210 to limit the rotation of the constraint tube 210 relative to the sheath tube 100.

[0073] In this embodiment, a rotation stopper 212 is formed on the constraint tube 210, and the constraint tube 210 can prevent itself from rotating relative to the sheath tube 100 through the rotation stopper 212, so that the expandable part 110 can be prevented from twisting during the rotation of the constraint tube 210, thereby reducing its expansion and contraction performance. Of course, the constraint tube 210 may not be provided with the rotation stopper 212, and this application is not limited to this.

[0074] Optionally, the stop portion 212 can be a stop protrusion or a stop recess, and at least one of the sheath 100 and the operating handle 300 can be provided with a stop fitting portion 311, and the stop fitting portion 311 can be a stop protrusion or a stop recess. The stop portion 212 cooperates with the stop fitting portion 311 at the circumferential upper limit of the constraint tube 210 to limit the rotation of the constraint tube 210 relative to the sheath 100.

[0075] In some embodiments, the constraint tube 210 can slide to a second position. When the constraint tube 210 is in the second position, the constraint tube 210 is offset from the expandable portion 110 and can be located distal to the expandable portion 110. That is, the constraint tube 210 is sleeved on the first tube section 120 of the sheath tube 100 located distal to the expandable portion 110.

[0076] See also Figure 7 and Figure 8 In an optional embodiment, the sheath 100 includes a second tube segment 130 disposed proximal to the expandable portion 110, and the constraint tube 210 can slide to a second position. When the constraint tube 210 is located in the second position, the constraint tube 210 is offset from the expandable portion 110 and is located proximal to the expandable portion 110.

[0077] In this embodiment, when the constraint tube 210 and the expandable portion 110 are misaligned, the expandable portion 110 is located on the proximal side of the expandable portion 110, that is, the constraint tube 210 is sleeved on the second tube segment 130 of the sheath tube 100 located on the proximal side of the expandable portion 110. In this way, when driving the portion of the second tube segment 130 located in the constraint tube 210 to bend, it is necessary to drive the portion of the second tube segment 130 located in the constraint tube 210 and the constraint tube 210 to bend at the same time, which can prevent the portion of the second tube segment 130 located in the constraint tube 210 from bending, thereby preventing a narrow space from being formed on the proximal side of the expandable portion 110, thereby preventing the target object from being stuck on the proximal side of the expandable portion 110.

[0078] In a further embodiment, when the restraining tube 210 is located at the second position, the distal end surface of the second tube segment 130 is located inside the restraining tube 210, which can reduce the distance that the restraining tube 210 moves toward the proximal end of the sheath tube 100 and reduce the difficulty of operation.

[0079] See also Figure 3 , Fig.11 and Fig.12 In an optional embodiment, a limiting portion 213 is formed on the constraint tube 210. When the constraint tube 210 is located at the second position, the limiting portion 213 contacts at the upper limit in the first direction with at least one of the sheath tube 100 and the operating handle 300 of the guide sheath. The first direction is the direction extending from the distal end to the proximal end of the sheath tube 100. Optionally, at least one of the sheath tube 100 and the operating handle 300 may be provided with a limiting matching portion 320. The limiting portion 213 and the limiting matching portion 320 may contact at the upper limit in the first direction. Here, the limiting portion 213 may be a limiting convex portion, and the limiting matching portion 320 may be a step surface, a stop convex portion, an end wall of a slide groove, etc.

[0080] In this embodiment, during the movement of the constraint tube 210 in the first direction, the limiting portion 213 will come into limiting contact with the limiting matching portion 320, so that the constraint tube 210 is located in the second position. In this way, there is no need to manually determine whether the constraint tube 210 has moved to the second position, thereby determining whether the expandable portion 110 has switched to the expanded state, which can simplify the operating procedures of the sheath assembly.

[0081] An embodiment of the present application also discloses an endoscope system, including an endoscope and a guide sheath, the guide sheath including the sheath assembly described in any of the above embodiments, so that the endoscope system has the beneficial effects of the above sheath assembly, which will not be repeated here. The sheath 100 can be sleeved on the outside of the insertion part 400 of the endoscope, and the insertion part 400 includes an active bending section 410.

[0082] Optionally, the guide sheath also includes an operating handle 300, the distal end of which is connected to the proximal end of the sheath tube 100; further, a guide portion 310 is formed at the distal end of the operating handle 300, and the operating portion 211 described above is sleeved on the outside of the guide portion 310 and can slide relative to the guide portion 310, and the anti-rotation fitting portion 311 and the limit fitting portion 320 described above can both be arranged on the guide portion 310.

[0083] The endoscope referred to in the embodiments of the present application may be a bronchoscope, a pyeloscope, an esophagoscope, a gastroscope, a colonoscope, an otoscope, a rhinoscope, a stomatoscope, a laryngoscope, a colposcope, a laparoscope, an arthroscope, etc. The embodiments of the present application do not impose any specific restrictions on the type of endoscope.

[0084] The embodiment of the present application further discloses a method for using an endoscope system, which is applied to the above-mentioned endoscope system, including:

[0085] S100 , controlling the expandable portion 110 to be in a contracted state.

[0086] S200 , inserting the insertion portion 400 into the sheath tube 100 .

[0087] S300 , controlling the expandable portion 110 to switch to an expanded state.

[0088] S400, using the active bending section 410 to drive at least part of the tube section of the sheath tube 100 close to its own distal end opening to bend, so that the distal end of the sheath tube 100 faces the object to be aspirated.

[0089] S500 , using the sheath tube 100 to aspirate and discharge the substance to be aspirated.

[0090] S600, when the sheath tube 100 is stuck in discharging the object to be sucked, the insertion part 400 is pulled to make the curved active bending section 410 gradually move away from the distal end surface of the sheath tube 100, and the pulling of the insertion part 400 is stopped until the sheath tube 100 can smoothly discharge the object to be sucked.

[0091] Specifically, whether it is stuck can be determined by observing the flow rate of the suctioned material discharged from the sheath 100 with the human eye; or a flow meter can be set on the sheath 100, and whether it is stuck can be determined by comparing the flow rate measured by the flow meter with the preset flow rate; or, the discharge pipeline connected to the sheath 100 can be touched by hand to determine whether it is stuck by touch.

[0092] In the present application, the expandable portion 110 can switch between a contracted state and an expanded state. Before the sheath 100 is inserted into the human body, the expandable portion 110 can be switched to the contracted state. At this time, at least a portion of the expandable portion 110 is flush with or radially convex to other portions of the sheath 100, that is, all portions of the expandable portion 110 do not radially convex to other portions of the sheath 100, thereby facilitating the insertion of the sheath 100 into the human body.

[0093] When the sheath 100 is inserted into the human body and it is necessary to aspirate the stones to be aspirated, the driving mechanism can be used to switch the expandable portion 110 from the contracted state to the expanded state, and then the insertion portion 400 of the endoscope can be inserted into the sheath 100. The active bending section 410 of the insertion section 400 can drive at least part of the sheath 100 close to its own distal opening to bend. Since the expandable portion 110 of the present application is in the expanded state, the size of the first inner cavity of the expandable portion 110 is larger than the size of the second inner cavity of other parts of the sheath 100. In this way, the target object can smoothly pass through the gap between the bent active bending section 410 and the inner wall of the sheath 100 segment bent by the active bending section 410, thereby solving the problem of unsmooth discharge of the object to be aspirated.

[0094] The above embodiments of the present application focus on the differences between the various embodiments. As long as the different optimization features between the various embodiments are not contradictory, they can be combined to form a better embodiment. Considering the simplicity of the text, they will not be repeated here. The embodiments of the present application are described above in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, but the present application is not limited to the above-mentioned specific implementation methods. The above-mentioned specific implementation methods are merely illustrative and not restrictive. Under the enlightenment of the present application, ordinary technicians in this field can also make many forms without departing from the scope of protection of the purpose of the present application and the claims, all of which are within the protection of the present application.

Claims

1. A sheath tube assembly, applied to a guide sheath, characterized in that: The invention comprises a sheath tube (100) and a driving mechanism, wherein the sheath tube (100) can be movably sleeved on the outside of an active bending section (410) of an endoscope, and the active bending section (410) can drive at least a portion of the tube section of the sheath tube (100) close to its own distal opening to bend, and the maximum distance between each portion of the bent active bending section (410) in the direction of its own extension and the inner wall of the tube section of the sheath tube (100) bent by the active bending section (410) continuously changes, and the tube section of the sheath tube (100) close to its own distal opening is provided with an expandable portion (110), and the expandable portion (110) can switch between an expanded state and a contracted state; When the expandable portion (110) is in the expanded state, at least a portion of the expandable portion (110) radially protrudes outward from other portions of the sheath tube (100), and a flow area of ​​a first inner cavity of the expandable portion (110) is larger than a flow area of ​​a second inner cavity of other portions of the sheath tube (100), so that a minimum value among the maximum distances is larger than a size of a target object in an object to be aspirated; when the expandable portion (110) is in the contracted state, at least a portion of the expandable portion (110) is flush with or radially protrudes inward from other portions of the sheath tube (100), and a flow area of ​​the first inner cavity is smaller than or equal to a flow area of ​​the second inner cavity; The driving mechanism is capable of switching the expandable portion (110) from the contracted state to the expanded state.

2. The sheath tube assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that: The expandable portion (110) is an elastically deformable body, and the expandable portion (110) is in the expanded state in a natural state; The driving mechanism comprises a restraining tube (210), wherein the restraining tube (210) is slidably sleeved outside the sheath tube (100), so that the restraining tube (210) can be sleeved outside the expandable part (110), or the restraining tube (210) and the expandable part (110) are staggered. When the constraint tube (210) is sleeved outside the expandable portion (110), the expandable portion (110) undergoes elastic contraction to be in the contracted state; when the constraint tube (210) and the expandable portion (110) are misaligned, the expandable portion (110) recovers its elastic deformation to be in the expanded state.

3. The sheath tube assembly according to claim 2, characterized in that: The sheath tube (100) comprises a first tube section (120) disposed at the distal side of the expandable portion (110), wherein the first tube section (120) is capable of bending following the active bending section (410) of the endoscope; The restraining tube (210) is capable of sliding to a first position. When the restraining tube (210) is located at the first position, the distal end of the restraining tube (210) is arranged to correspond to the distal end of the first tube segment (120), and the distal end of the restraining tube (210) and the distal end surface of the sheath tube (100) are spaced apart in the axial direction of the sheath tube (100) to limit the proximal bending of the active bending segment (410).

4. The sheath tube assembly according to claim 3, characterized in that: When the restraining tube (210) is located at the first position, the restraining tube (210) is sleeved outside the expandable portion (110).

5. The sheath tube assembly according to claim 2, characterized in that: The proximal end of the restraining tube (210) extends to the proximal end of the sheath tube (100), and the proximal end of the restraining tube (210) forms an operating portion (211).

6. The sheath tube assembly according to claim 5, characterized in that: A rotation-stopping portion (212) is formed on the restraining tube (210), and the rotation-stopping portion (212) can cooperate with at least one of the sheath tube (100) and the operating handle (300) of the guide sheath to rotationally limit the restraining tube (210) relative to the sheath tube (100).

7. The sheath assembly according to any one of claims 2 to 6, characterized in that: The sheath tube (100) includes a second tube section (130) disposed proximal to the expandable portion (110), and the restraining tube (210) is capable of sliding to a second position. When the restraining tube (210) is located at the second position, the restraining tube (210) is offset from the expandable portion (110) and is located proximal to the expandable portion (110).

8. The sheath tube assembly according to claim 7, characterized in that: A limiting portion (213) is formed on the restraining tube (210). When the restraining tube (210) is located at the second position, the limiting portion (213) is in limiting contact with at least one of the sheath tube (100) and the operating handle (300) of the guide sheath in a first direction, wherein the first direction is a direction extending from the distal end to the proximal end of the sheath tube (100).

9. An endoscope system, characterized in that: It comprises an endoscope and a guide sheath, wherein the guide sheath comprises a sheath tube assembly as described in any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the sheath tube (100) can be sleeved outside an insertion portion (400) of the endoscope, and the insertion portion (400) comprises an active bending section (410).

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