Medical tubing position confirmation system

Abstract

To provide a medical tubing position confirmation system that confirms a position of medical tubing for transluminally supplying nutrients into the body by placing an end in the stomach.SOLUTION: A medical tubing position confirmation system comprises: a light guide body (20) which is constituted to guide light incident from an incident end part (20I) and emit it from an outgoing end part, that is, the light guide body which is constituted to be capable of being inserted into medical tubing so that the outgoing end part (20E) can be arranged within the stomach (S); and a light source (10) that is optically connected to the incident end part of the light guide body and which emits the light including a wavelength for in vivo transmission.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a medical tube location verification system. [Background technology]

[0002] In the medical field, for patients who have difficulty taking food and drink orally, food and drink are supplied directly to the stomach by a method called nasogastric tube feeding. Specifically, a soft nasogastric tube is inserted through the patient's nasal cavity, its tip is extended to the stomach, and liquid food and nutrients are injected through the base end of the tube.

[0003] In this type of nasal tube feeding, a nasal tube coated with lubricating jelly is inserted into the nostril, and the tip of the nasal tube is slowly moved further in while the patient repeatedly swallows, guiding the tip of the nasal tube down the esophagus and into the stomach.

[0004] However, because the back of the human throat is divided into two passages, the trachea and the esophagus, it is extremely difficult to insert such a nasogastric tube, and if food or drink gets into the lungs, it can cause aspiration pneumonia, etc. Therefore, it is essential to check that the tip of the nasogastric tube has reached the stomach.

[0005] Patent Document 1 discloses a detection wire having a pair of insulated electric wires and a sensor portion formed at the tip of the pair of insulated electric wires. The detection wire is inserted into a medical tube, and when the sensor portion comes into contact with gastric juice, the resistance value between the pair of insulated electric wires changes. By detecting the change in the resistance value between the pair of insulated electric wires, it can be determined that the sensor portion has come into contact with gastric juice, and therefore that the medical tube has correctly reached the stomach.

[0006] Patent Document 2 discloses a nasogastric tube tip position confirmation device that includes a housing, a connector that communicates with the outside from the housing and is connected to the base end side of a nasogastric tube inserted into the patient's body, a sensor element disposed in the housing, an electronic circuit, and a display means. The electronic circuit outputs the air pressure change received by the sensor element as an electric signal, and the display means receives the output from the electronic circuit and displays the air pressure change in a recognizable state. This makes it possible to determine whether the nasogastric tube is inserted in the appropriate position by pressing the patient's abdomen from the outside to generate an air pressure change in the stomach and displaying on the display means that the sensor element has received the air pressure change. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0007] [Patent Document 1] JP 2016-77450 A [Patent Document 2] Patent No. 6245870 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0008] However, the method using a detection line as in Patent Document 1 requires that gastric juice be secreted at an appropriate location, so there are limitations to the conditions of patients to which it can be applied, and it also depends on the accuracy of determining the position of the medical tube. Also, the method using air pressure changes as in Patent Document 2 requires a complex configuration to control the air pressure, and the manufacturing costs are high.

[0009] SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT DISCLOSURE In view of the above, an object of the present invention is to provide a medical tube position confirmation system that can more easily confirm the position of a medical tube. [Means for solving the problem]

[0010] A medical tube position confirmation system according to one aspect of the present invention is a medical tube position confirmation system for confirming the position of a medical tube whose end is placed in the stomach to supply nutrition to the body via a tube, and is characterized by comprising: a light guide configured to guide light incident from an incident end and emit it from an exit end, the light guide being inserted into the medical tube so that the exit end is positioned inside the stomach; and a light source optically connected to the incident end of the light guide and emitting light including a wavelength that is transmitted through a living body.

[0011] According to this aspect, light emitted from a light source and including a wavelength that transmits through a living body is guided through the inside of a light guide inserted into a medical tube and is emitted from an emission end of the light guide disposed in a stomach. The light emitted from the emission end passes through the stomach and the living body. Therefore, an operator can confirm the position of the transmitted light from outside the living body to confirm the position of the medical tube. Effect of the Invention

[0012] According to the present invention, a medical tube position confirmation system can be provided that can more easily confirm the position of a medical tube. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0013] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of a medical tube position confirmation system 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] 2 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of the light 10. FIG. [Diagram 3] 1 is a diagram for explaining the wavelength of light emitted by the light 10. FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of a camera 30. [Diagram 5] 2 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of a user terminal 40. FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0014] A preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. (Note that in each drawing, the same reference numerals denote the same or similar configurations.)

[0015] (1) Overall structure Fig. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic example of a configuration of a medical tube position confirmation system 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in Fig. 1, the medical tube position confirmation system 1 includes, for example, a light 10, an optical fiber 20, a camera 30, a user terminal 40, and a database 50. The user terminal 40 is communicatively connected to each of the light 10, the camera 30, and the database 50 via a communication network.

[0016] (2) Composition of each part (2-1) Light 10 2 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of the light 10. The light 10 is an example of a light source, and emits light including a wavelength that is transmitted through a living body. The light 10 is configured, for example, by providing a light emitting unit 11, a driving circuit 12, a processing unit 13, a storage unit 14, and a communication unit 15 in a substantially cylindrical housing made of metal, resin, or the like.

[0017] The light-emitting unit 11 is, for example, composed of a light-emitting LED, and emits light including a wavelength that is transmitted through a living body. When a switch (not shown) provided on the light 10 is turned on, the light 10 receives electrical energy from a power source (not shown) via a drive circuit 12, and converts the electrical energy into light energy to emit light of a predetermined wavelength. Note that the light-emitting unit 11 is not limited to a light-emitting LED, and may be any light-emitting body that emits light including a wavelength that is transmitted through a living body.

[0018] The light 10 is optically connected to an incident end 20I of an optical fiber 20 described later, and light emitted from a light-emitting portion 11 of the light 10 is incident on the incident end 20I of the optical fiber 20.

[0019] The processing unit 13 is, for example, a CPU or the like equipped with one or more processors and their peripheral circuits, and performs overall control of the overall operation of the light 10 based on programs and the like stored in the storage unit 14.

[0020] The storage unit 14 is configured with a non-volatile memory such as an EEPROM (Electronically Erasable and Programmable Read Only Memory), and stores preset control information for the light 10, etc.

[0021] The communication unit 15 includes a communication interface circuit for connecting the light 10 to a communication network, and communicates with the communication network. The light 10 may have a simple configuration that does not include the communication unit 15.

[0022] Here, the wavelength of the light emitted by the light source 10 will be described with reference to Fig. 3. Fig. 3 shows the light absorption coefficients of oxyhemoglobin, deoxyhemoglobin, melanin, and water, which are the main components of a living body. In the graph shown in Fig. 3, the horizontal axis represents the wavelength (nm) and the vertical axis represents the absorption coefficient.

[0023] As shown in Figure 3, in the wavelength region of about 650 nm or less, absorption by blood (i.e., hemoglobin) is large, and in the wavelength region longer than about 950 nm, absorption by water is large. On the other hand, in the wavelength region of about 650 nm or more and about 950 nm or less, the absorption coefficients of hemoglobin and water are relatively low. Therefore, it can be said that light in this wavelength region (about 650 nm or more and about 950 nm or less) is more easily transmitted through living bodies than other wavelength regions.

[0024] The wavelength of the light emitted by the light-emitting unit 11 of the light 10 is not particularly limited as long as it includes a wavelength that is transmitted through the living body, but as described above, it is preferable that it includes a wavelength in the range of approximately 650 nm or more and approximately 950 nm or less.

[0025] 3, the absorptance of oxyhemoglobin is particularly low in the wavelength region of about 650 nm or more and about 800 nm or less. Therefore, preferably, the wavelength of the light emitted by the light-emitting unit 11 of the light 10 may include at least a part of the wavelength region of about 650 nm or more and about 800 nm or less.

[0026] 3, the absorptivity of reduced hemoglobin is particularly low in the wavelength range of about 800 nm or more and about 950 nm or less. Therefore, preferably, the wavelength of the light emitted by the light emitting unit 11 of the light 10 may include at least a part of the wavelength range of about 800 nm or more and about 950 nm or less.

[0027] 3, the absorptivity of water is particularly low in the wavelength range of about 650 nm or more and about 700 nm or less. Therefore, preferably, the wavelength of the light emitted by the light-emitting unit 11 of the light 10 may include at least a part of the wavelength range of about 650 nm or more and about 700 nm or less.

[0028] (2-2) Optical Fiber 20 The optical fiber 20 is an example of a light guide and has, for example, a thin fiber shape having plasticity, and can be inserted into the medical tube T as shown in Fig. 1. The optical fiber 20 has a two-layer structure consisting of a central core (not shown) made of, for example, quartz glass, plastic, or the like, and a cladding (not shown) that surrounds the central core.

[0029] 1, an incident end 20I into which light emitted by the light 10 or the like is incident is formed at one end of the optical fiber 20. The incident end 20I is disposed at a position where the optical fiber 20 can be optically connected to the light 10 when the optical fiber 20 is inserted inside the medical tube T.

[0030] 1, an emission end portion 20E for emitting light is formed at the other end of optical fiber 20. When optical fiber 20, inserted inside medical tube T, correctly reaches the stomach, emission end portion 20E is disposed inside the stomach (indicated by symbol S in FIG. 1).

[0031] The refractive index of the core of the optical fiber 20 is set higher than the refractive index of the clad of the optical fiber 20. Therefore, the light incident from the incident end 20I is totally reflected at the boundary between the core and the clad, and propagates within the core. The light propagates within the core and reaches the exit end 20E, and is emitted from the exit end 20E. The light emitted from the exit end 20E passes through the stomach and other body parts and is emitted outside the living body, and a part of it reaches the camera 30.

[0032] (2-3) Camera 30 FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of camera 30. As shown in FIG.

[0033] The camera 30 is an example of an imaging unit, and captures an image of a living body (including a part of the living body) based at least on light emitted from the emission end 20E of the fiber 20 and transmitted through the living body, to generate image data. The camera 30 includes, for example, an image sensor 31, a processing unit 32, a storage unit 33, and a communication unit 34. The camera 30 may be, for example, a camera that is particularly sensitive to infrared rays.

[0034] The imaging element 31 is composed of, for example, a CCD (Charge Coupled Device) or a CMOS (Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor), and detects light collected by a lens (not shown) under the control of the processing unit 32, and converts the light into an electrical signal.

[0035] The processing unit 32 is, for example, a CPU or the like equipped with one or more processors and their peripheral circuits, and centrally controls the overall operation of the information processing device based on programs and the like stored in the storage unit 33. The processing unit 32 generates image data based on, for example, an electrical signal generated by the imaging element 31. The processing unit 32 also transmits the generated image data to the user terminal 40 or the database 50 via the communication unit 34.

[0036] The storage unit 33 includes, for example, at least one of a magnetic tape device, a magnetic disk device, and an optical disk device, and stores computer programs and data used for processing in the processing unit. The storage unit 33 is an example of an image data storage unit that stores image data generated by the camera 30 capturing an image of a living body.

[0037] The communication unit 34 includes a communication interface circuit for connecting the camera 30 to a communication network, and communicates with the communication network.

[0038] The camera 30 may include a display unit (not shown) for displaying image data generated by the processing unit 32, etc.

[0039] (2-4) User terminal 40 5 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of the user terminal 40. The user terminal 40 may be any general-purpose information processing terminal, and includes, for example, a communication unit 41, a storage unit 42, a processing unit 43, an operation unit 44, and a display unit 45.

[0040] The communication unit 41 includes a communication interface circuit for connecting the user terminal 40 to a communication network, and performs communication with the communication network.

[0041] The storage unit 42 includes, for example, at least one of a magnetic tape device, a magnetic disk device, and an optical disk device, and stores computer programs and data used for processing in the processing unit. The storage unit 42 is an example of an image data storage unit that stores image data generated by the camera 30 capturing an image of a living body.

[0042] The processing unit 43 is, for example, a CPU or the like equipped with one or more processors and their peripheral circuits, and controls the overall operation of the information processing device based on a program or the like stored in the storage unit. The processing unit 43 may, for example, analyze image data received from the camera 30 via a communication network to determine whether the position of the medical tube T is appropriate. The processing unit 13 may also transmit, for example, the image data received from the camera 30 via the communication network to the database 50. The processing unit 13 may also transmit, for example, a control signal to the light 10 for switching the light 10 between ON and OFF.

[0043] The operation unit 44 is composed of, for example, a touch panel, key buttons, etc., and accepts input operations of characters, numbers, symbols, etc. by the user, and supplies signals corresponding to the operations to the processing unit.

[0044] The display unit 45 is configured with, for example, a liquid crystal display or an organic EL (Electro-Luminescence) display, and displays images and the like based on the display data supplied from the processing unit.

[0045] (2-5) Database 50 The database 50 is, for example, a database managed by a medical institution such as a hospital, and includes at least one of a magnetic tape device, a magnetic disk device, and an optical disk device. The database 50 receives image data from, for example, the camera 30 or the user terminal 40, and stores the image data. That is, the database 50 is an example of an image data storage unit that stores image data generated by the camera 30 capturing an image of a living body. The database 50 may be connected to, for example, any external information processing device, such as a management server used by a medical institution, via a communication network. The external information processing device may acquire the image data stored in the database 50, and process the image data according to various purposes.

[0046] (3) Usage and operation Next, the method of use and operation of the medical tube position confirmation system 1 will be described.

[0047] First, the operator confirms the end of medical tube T inside the patient's nasal cavity or the like, and inserts optical fiber 20 into medical tube T by a predetermined length, starting with emission end 20E.

[0048] Next, a switch (not shown) provided on the light 10 is turned ON, causing the light 10 to emit light. At this time, for example, an operator may cause the light 10 to emit light by operating the switch of the light 10. Alternatively, the operator may cause the light 10 to emit light by operating the user terminal 40 to send a control signal from the user terminal 40 to the light 10 for turning ON the switch of the light 10.

[0049] When the light 10 emits light, the light emitted by the light 10 enters the incident end 20I of the optical fiber 20. The light that enters the incident end 20I propagates through the inside of the optical fiber 20 by total reflection and reaches the exit end 20E. The light that reaches the exit end 20E is emitted from the exit end 20E and passes through the patient's body.

[0050] The operator checks the position of the light that has passed through the patient's living body and judges whether the position of the light corresponds to the stomach. If the position of the light corresponds to the stomach, it can be judged that the medical tube T has properly reached the stomach. If the position of the light is not at a position corresponding to the stomach, or if the presence or absence of the light cannot be confirmed, it can be judged that the medical tube T has not reached the stomach. Here, the position of the light can be confirmed either by a visual method by the operator or by a method using image data generated by the camera 30. In the method using image data generated by the camera 30, for example, the user terminal 40 receives from the camera 30 image data generated by the camera 30 based at least on the light that has passed through the stomach and other living body parts. Then, the user terminal 40 analyzes the image data to judge whether the position of the light corresponds to the stomach.

[0051] (4)Other In general, the intensity of light required for light to transmit from the inside of the stomach to the outside of the body is smaller than the intensity of light required for light to transmit from the inside of the lungs and trachea to the outside of the body. Therefore, a light source such as the light 10 may be set to emit light of an intensity equal to or greater than a first intensity required for light to transmit from the inside of the stomach to the outside of the body and smaller than a second intensity required for light to transmit from the inside of the lungs and trachea to the outside of the body. With this configuration, it is possible to determine that the medical tube T has properly reached the stomach simply by determining whether or not the light can be confirmed, without the need for an operator to visually check the light or to determine the location of the stomach in the analysis of image data.

[0052] The above-described embodiments are intended to facilitate understanding of the present invention, and are not intended to limit the present invention. The elements of the embodiments, as well as their arrangements, materials, conditions, shapes, sizes, etc., are not limited to those shown as examples and can be changed as appropriate. In addition, configurations shown in different embodiments can be partially substituted or combined with each other. [Explanation of symbols]

[0053] 1...medical tube position confirmation system, 10...light, 11...light emitting unit, 12...driving circuit, 13...processing unit, 14...storage unit, 15...communication unit, 20...optical fiber, 20I...entrance end, 20E...exit end, 30...camera, 31...image sensor, 32...processing unit, 33...storage unit, 34...communication unit, 40...user terminal, 41...communication unit, 42...storage unit, 43...processing unit, 44...operation unit, 45...display unit

Claims

1. A medical tube position confirmation system for confirming the position of a medical tube whose end is placed in a stomach to supply nutrition to a body via a tube, comprising: an emission unit configured to emit light at a tip position of the medical tube; The medical tube position confirmation system is characterized in that the emission unit can be controlled to emit light of an intensity that is equal to or greater than a first intensity required for light to transmit from inside the stomach to the outside of the body and is less than a second intensity required for light to transmit from inside the lungs and trachea to the outside of the body.

2. The medical tube position confirmation system as described in claim 1, further comprising an imaging unit that images a living body based at least on the light emitted from the emission unit and transmitted through the living body.

3. The medical tube position confirmation system according to claim 2 , further comprising an image data storage unit that stores image data generated by the imaging unit capturing an image of a living body.

4. 1. A method for operating a medical tube position confirmation system for confirming the position of a medical tube whose end is placed in a stomach to supply nutrition to a body via a tube, comprising: The medical tube position confirmation system comprises: an emission unit that emits light at a tip position of the medical tube; A processing unit, The operating method includes a step of operating the processing unit to control the emission unit to emit light at an intensity that is equal to or greater than a first intensity required for light to transmit from inside the stomach to outside the body and is less than a second intensity required for light to transmit from inside the lungs and trachea to outside the body.

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