Ultrasonic treatment device that allows treatment status to be notified, method for operating the same, and program

Abstract

To provide an ultrasonic treatment device that allows the progress status of a patient's treatment to be easily grasped.SOLUTION: An ultrasonic treatment device 100 irradiates ultrasonic waves to a treatment area 91 of a patient through transducers 41, 42 that convert electrical signals into ultrasonic waves, and includes treatment status notification means 14 that allows the real-time treatment status to be notified, on the basis of treatment protocol information 23 which is related to the ultrasonic irradiation conditions and includes the irradiation time per irradiation, the total number of irradiation per day, and the irradiation interruption time between each irradiation.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an ultrasonic treatment device that notifies a treatment status, and an operating method and program for said device. [Background technology]

[0002] Ultrasonic therapy devices are used to treat various symptoms such as neuralgia and bone fractures, relieve pain, and promote healing. In recent years, therapy devices that output low-intensity pulsed ultrasound (LIPUS) have attracted attention, and treatments for various parts, symptoms, and diseases have been attempted. For example, the following Patent Document 1 discloses an ultrasonic therapy device intended for the treatment of dementia. In such an ultrasonic therapy device, after an ultrasonic transducer is placed on the patient's treatment part, irradiation of ultrasonic waves is started by, for example, pressing a treatment start button, and irradiation of ultrasonic waves is stopped after a predetermined time has elapsed. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] International Publication No. 2018 / 181991 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] When treating a specific disease, ultrasound is applied to the patient's treatment area according to a predetermined treatment protocol. For example, in the treatment protocol for dementia, ultrasound is applied for 20 minutes three times a day, and one course is three times a week, with three or six courses of application every two to three months. Different diseases require different treatment protocols.

[0005] Consider a case where a patient visits a treatment facility and undergoes a day's worth of treatment. Ultrasound irradiation is about 20 minutes per session, and for example, ultrasound irradiation is performed three times in total with two 5-minute breaks in between, so the total treatment time per day exceeds one hour. Conventional ultrasound treatment devices simply stop emitting ultrasound after a specified time has elapsed, and since the treatment protocols differ depending on the disease being treated, it is difficult for busy doctors to accurately grasp and manage the progress of treatment for each patient. There is a demand for technology that allows doctors to easily grasp the progress of treatment for each patient in treatment sites such as treatment rooms at treatment facilities where patients are treated using ultrasound treatment devices.

[0006] An object of the present invention is to provide an ultrasonic treatment device that allows a patient's treatment progress to be easily grasped. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The present invention for solving the above problems includes, for example, the following aspects. (Section 1) An ultrasonic treatment device that irradiates ultrasonic waves to a treatment site of a patient through a transducer that converts an electrical signal into ultrasonic waves, An ultrasonic treatment device comprising a treatment status notification means for notifying a real-time treatment status based on treatment protocol information, which is information regarding the ultrasonic irradiation conditions, including the irradiation time per irradiation, the total number of irradiations per day, and the irradiation interruption time between each irradiation. (Section 2) The ultrasonic treatment device described in item 1, wherein the treatment status includes at least one selected from the group consisting of total treatment time per day and time related to treatment progress, total number of irradiations per day and number of irradiations performed, and irradiation time per irradiation and time related to irradiation progress. (Section 3) Further comprising a display screen; 3. The ultrasonic treatment device according to item 1 or 2, wherein the treatment status notifying means displays the treatment status on the display screen. (Section 4) The ultrasonic treatment device described in item 3, wherein the treatment status notification means displays at least one of the time related to the treatment progress per day, the time related to the irradiation progress per irradiation, and the time related to the interruption progress per irradiation interruption using a bar graph. (Section 5) 4. The ultrasonic treatment device according to item 3, wherein the treatment status notifying means displays the progress of the treatment status in a time chart. (Section 6) It also has a speaker, 3. The ultrasonic treatment device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the treatment status notification means outputs the treatment status by voice through the speaker. (Section 7) 7. The ultrasonic treatment device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, further comprising an operation procedure notifying means for notifying an operator of a next operation procedure to be performed based on the treatment protocol information. (Section 8) Further comprising a display screen; 8. The ultrasonic treatment device according to item 7, wherein the operation procedure notification means displays the operation procedure on the display screen. (Section 9) It also has a speaker, 8. The ultrasonic treatment device according to item 7, wherein the operation procedure notification means outputs the operation procedure by voice through the speaker. (Section 10) A method for operating an ultrasonic treatment device that irradiates ultrasonic waves to a treatment site of a patient through a transducer that converts an electrical signal into ultrasonic waves, comprising: A method for operating an ultrasonic treatment device, comprising a treatment status notification step of notifying real-time treatment status based on treatment protocol information, which is information regarding the ultrasonic irradiation conditions, including the irradiation time per irradiation, the total number of irradiations per day, and the irradiation interruption time between each irradiation. (Section 11) A program for causing a computer to function as each of the means of the ultrasonic treatment device according to any one of items 1 to 9. Effect of the Invention

[0008] According to the present invention, an ultrasonic treatment device can be provided that allows the progress of a patient's treatment to be easily grasped. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram illustrating an external view of an ultrasonic treatment device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] 1 is a block diagram for explaining functions of an ultrasonic treatment device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 3] 4 is an example of the waveform and transmission conditions of ultrasonic waves irradiated by the device. [Figure 4] 1 is an example of a treatment protocol using ultrasound irradiation. [Diagram 5] 13 is an example of a screen display according to one embodiment prior to starting a daily treatment. [Figure 6] 13 is an example of a screen display according to an embodiment when treatment is started and ultrasound is being emitted. [Figure 7] 13 is an example of a screen display according to one embodiment during pauses in irradiation between each irradiation. [Figure 8] 13 is an example of a screen display according to one embodiment after the irradiation interruption time has elapsed and before daily treatment is resumed. [Figure 9] 13 is an example of a screen display according to another embodiment prior to starting a daily treatment. [Figure 10] 13 is an example of a screen display according to another embodiment during a pause in irradiation between each irradiation. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0010] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following description and drawings, the same reference numerals denote the same or similar components, and therefore, redundant description of the same or similar components will be omitted.

[0011] [Device configuration] Fig. 1 is a diagram showing the outline of the appearance of an ultrasonic treatment device according to an embodiment of the present invention, Fig. 2 is a block diagram for explaining the function of the ultrasonic treatment device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0012] An ultrasonic treatment device 100 (hereinafter also simply referred to as device 100) according to one embodiment is an ultrasonic treatment device that irradiates ultrasonic waves to a patient's treatment area 91 through ultrasonic transducers (hereinafter also simply referred to as transducers) 41, 42 that convert electrical signals into ultrasonic waves, and is equipped with a treatment status notification unit 14 that notifies the real-time treatment status based on treatment protocol information 23, which is information regarding the ultrasonic irradiation conditions and includes the irradiation time per irradiation, the total number of irradiations per day, and the irradiation interruption time between each irradiation.

[0013] In this embodiment, the ultrasound output by the device 100 is low-intensity pulsed ultrasound (LIPUS). The device 100 enhances the expression of endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) by irradiating the patient's heart and brain with low-intensity pulsed ultrasound, and has been shown to be effective for angina pectoris, heart failure with preserved ejection function (HFpEF), pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), and Alzheimer's dementia. Considering the effect of enhancing the expression of eNOS and VEGF, the device 100 is also expected to be effective in treating other diseases caused by microcirculatory failure, such as Lewy body dementia, cerebrovascular dementia, cerebral infarction, Parkinson's disease, HFrEF, ASO, CKD, and ED.

[0014] The device 100 according to one embodiment includes a data processing unit 10, an auxiliary storage device 20, a transmitter 31, an input unit 32, a display unit 33, a speaker 34, and a communication interface unit (communication I / F unit) 39. The data processing unit 10 is configured as software, while the auxiliary storage device 20, the transmitter 31, the input unit 32, the display unit 33, the speaker 34, and the communication I / F unit 39 are configured as hardware. Although not shown, the device 100 further includes, as hardware configuration, a processor such as a CPU that performs data processing, and a memory that the processor uses as a working area for data processing.

[0015] The data processing unit 10 is a functional block realized by a processor executing a control program 29 (hereinafter also simply referred to as program 29) described later. In this embodiment, the data processing unit 10 is provided as a software functional block. In this embodiment, the data processing unit 10 includes a treatment information acquisition unit 11, a transmission condition setting unit 12, a treatment protocol management unit 13, a treatment status notification unit 14, an operation procedure notification unit 15, and an input information display unit 16. In other embodiments, the input information display unit 16 can have any configuration.

[0016] The treatment information acquisition unit 11 acquires treatment information 21 from the operator via the input unit 32. The treatment information 21 includes, for example, information on the treatment site of the patient (e.g., brain), information on the disease to be treated (e.g., dementia), and patient information. The patient information includes, for example, a patient name 211, a date of birth 212, a patient ID 213, and a gender 214.

[0017] The transmission condition setting unit 12 sets the transmission condition information 22 based on the treatment information 21. The transmission condition information 22 is information on the transmission conditions of ultrasound, and includes the transmission frequency, the transmission repetition time (PRF=1 / transmission repetition time), the number of waves per transmission, and the signal amplitude.

[0018] FIG. 3 shows an example of the waveform and transmission conditions of the ultrasound emitted by the device. When ultrasound is irradiated to the brain as an example of treatment, for example, ultrasound is irradiated to the pathological part of the brain with a frequency of 500 kHz, a wave number of 32 waves, a transmission repetition time of 1.28 ms (transmitting waves alternately from both sides using multiple transducers), and a sound pressure in the range of 0.5-0.05 MPa. When ultrasound is irradiated to the heart as another example of treatment, for example, the frequency can be set to 1.875 MHz. In this way, different transmission conditions can be set for different irradiation targets.

[0019] The treatment protocol management unit 13 sets treatment protocol information 23 based on the treatment information 21 and manages the progress of the treatment. The treatment protocol information 23 is information on the ultrasound irradiation conditions, and includes an irradiation time per irradiation 231, a total number of irradiations per day 232, and an irradiation interruption time between each irradiation 233. The treatment protocol information 23 is information that is set for each patient for each disease to be treated.

[0020] FIG. 4 is an example of a treatment protocol using ultrasonic irradiation. In the illustrated treatment protocol for treating dementia with the brain as the irradiation target, for example, ultrasonic irradiation is performed for 20 minutes per session, three times per day with a 5-minute interval between each session, and this irradiation per day is performed three times a week as one course, and irradiation is performed for 3 to 9 courses every 2 to 3 months. In FIG. 4, six courses are performed at three-month intervals in the upper part, and nine courses are performed at two-month intervals in the lower part. Improvement of dementia is observed by ultrasonic irradiation according to the illustrated treatment protocol. In the treatment protocol for treating the heart including angina pectoris and ischemic tissue, the irradiation time and number of times per day, the number of days per course, and the total number of courses are specified as in the illustrated dementia case. The difference between treating the heart and treating the brain is that the improvement effect of the pathology is observed even with a smaller total number of courses, and the improvement effect of the pathology may be observed even with, for example, three courses.

[0021] 2 and 5, 6, and 7 again. The treatment status notifying unit 14 notifies the real-time treatment status based on the treatment protocol information 23. In this embodiment, the treatment status includes a total treatment time 241a per day and a time related to the treatment progress 241b, a total number of irradiations 242a per day and a number of irradiations performed 242b, an irradiation time 243a per irradiation and a time related to the irradiation progress 243b, and an irradiation interruption time 244a per irradiation interruption and a time related to the interruption progress 244b. The treatment time is the time required for treatment, which is the sum of the irradiation time and the irradiation interruption time.

[0022] The time 241b relating to the progress of treatment means the elapsed time of treatment in the case of a count-up format, and means the remaining time of treatment in the case of a count-down format. Similarly, the time 243b relating to the progress of irradiation means the elapsed time of irradiation in the case of a count-up format, and means the remaining time of irradiation in the case of a count-down format. Similarly, the time 244b relating to the progress of interruption of irradiation means the elapsed time of interruption in the case of a count-up format, and means the remaining time of interruption in the case of a count-down format. In this embodiment, the times 241b, 243b, and 244b relating to the progress are displayed in the count-down format when displayed as numerical values ​​on the display unit 33, and are displayed in the count-up format when displayed by bar graphs 51a to 51d described later.

[0023] There are various modes for notifying the treatment status. The treatment status notifying unit 14 can display the treatment status on the display unit 33. In this embodiment, the treatment status notifying unit 14 can display at least one of the time 241b relating to the treatment progress per day, the time 243b relating to the irradiation progress per irradiation, and the time 244b relating to the interruption progress per irradiation interruption, using bar graphs 51a to 51d. In another embodiment, the treatment status notifying unit 14 can display the progress of the treatment status using a time chart 53. The treatment status notifying unit 14 can also output the treatment status by voice through the speaker 34.

[0024] In this embodiment, the treatment status notification unit 14 notifies the real-time treatment status and displays treatment protocol information 23, such as the irradiation time per irradiation 231, the total number of irradiations per day 232, and the irradiation interruption time between each irradiation 233, on the display unit 33.

[0025] The operation procedure notification unit 15 notifies the operator of the next operation procedure to be performed based on the treatment protocol information 23. Information on the operation procedure notified by the operation procedure notification unit 15 is stored in advance in operation procedure information 25 as, for example, text data or audio data. In this embodiment, the operation procedure information 25 includes guidance messages 251 to 254. There are various modes for notifying the operation procedure. The operation procedure notification unit 15 can display the operation procedure on the display unit 33. The operation procedure notification unit 15 can also output the operation procedure by audio through the speaker 34.

[0026] The input information display unit 16 displays information input to the device 100. In this embodiment, the input information display unit 16 displays the patient information 211 to 214 included in the treatment information 21 on the display unit 33.

[0027] The auxiliary storage device 20 is a non-volatile storage device that stores an operating system (OS), various control programs, and data generated by the programs, and is configured, for example, by a flash memory, an eMMC (embedded multi media card), an SSD (solid state drive), etc. In this embodiment, the auxiliary storage device 20 stores treatment information 21, transmission condition information 22, treatment protocol information 23, operation procedure information 25, and a program 29.

[0028] The program 29 is a computer program for implementing each of the units 11 to 16 in the data processing unit 10, which are functional blocks implemented by software and will be described later. The program 29 may be installed in the device 100 via a network 99, such as the Internet, connected by a communication I / F unit 39. Alternatively, the program 29 may be installed in the device 100 by having the device 100 read a computer-readable, non-transitory, tangible recording medium, such as a memory card, on which the program 29 is recorded.

[0029] The transmitter 31 generates a transmission signal based on the transmission condition information 22 from the transmission condition setting unit 12 and the treatment protocol information 23 from the treatment protocol management unit 13, and outputs the signal to the transducers 41, 42. The transmission signal is an electric signal for the transducers 41, 42 to irradiate ultrasonic waves, and the transducers 41, 42 convert the input transmission signal into ultrasonic waves and output the ultrasonic waves to a treatment site 91 (e.g., the brain) of the patient. When the device 100 is not in use, the transducers 41, 42 can be disposed on both ends of a rod-shaped handle 44 provided on the device 100, as shown in FIG. 1. The transmitter 31 can be configured, for example, by an electric circuit such as a high-frequency oscillator. The transducers 41, 42 can be configured, for example, by a piezoelectric element.

[0030] The input unit 32 is a device that accepts input from an operator, and the display unit 33 is a device that displays information to the operator. The input unit 32 can be configured, for example, with an input switch, a pointing device, a keyboard, etc., and the display unit 33 can be configured, for example, with a liquid crystal display, an organic EL display, etc. In this embodiment, the input unit 32 and the display unit 33 are configured as an integrated touch panel. The speaker 34 is a device that outputs sound to the operator, and can be configured arbitrarily in other embodiments.

[0031] The communication I / F unit 39 is a device that transmits and receives data to and from an external device (not shown, for example, a cloud server) via a wireless or wired network 99. The communication I / F unit 39 can transmit and receive data via various wireless connections such as Bluetooth (registered trademark), Wi-Fi (registered trademark), and ZigBee (registered trademark), or via wired connections such as Ethernet (registered trademark). In other embodiments, the communication I / F unit 39 can have any configuration.

[0032] [Device operation] 5 to 8 are examples of screen displays of an ultrasonic treatment device according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0033] The operating method of the ultrasonic treatment device 100 according to one embodiment is a method of operating an ultrasonic treatment device that irradiates ultrasonic waves to a treatment site 91 of a patient through ultrasonic transducers 41 and 42 that convert an electric signal into ultrasonic waves, and includes a treatment status notifying step of a real-time treatment status based on treatment protocol information 23, which is information on ultrasonic irradiation conditions and includes an irradiation time per irradiation, a total number of irradiations per day, and an irradiation interruption time between each irradiation. The operating method of the device 100 may further include an operation procedure notifying step of an operation procedure to be performed next by an operator based on the treatment protocol information 23. Below, with reference to Figs. 5 to 8, an embodiment in which the device 100 notifies the treatment status and operation procedure by displaying them on a screen will be described using a case in which a patient visits a treatment facility and receives a day's worth of treatment as an example.

[0034] In this embodiment, as shown in Figs. 5 to 8, various information is displayed in advance on the display unit 33 while the device 100 is used to irradiate a treatment site of a patient with ultrasound. The input information display unit 16 displays patient information 211 to 214, such as a patient name 211, a date of birth 212, a patient ID 213, and a gender 214, on the display unit 33. The treatment status notification unit 14 displays treatment protocol information 23, such as an irradiation time 231 per irradiation, a total number of irradiations per day 232, and an irradiation interruption time 233 between each irradiation, on the display unit 33. The treatment ID 261 is a serial number of the treatment performed by the device 100. The treatment ID 261 is assigned each time a treatment is performed by the device 100.

[0035] The treatment status notifying unit 14 notifies the real-time treatment status as exemplified in Fig. 5 to Fig. 8 based on the treatment protocol information 23. The operation procedure notifying unit 15 notifies the operator of the next operation procedure to be performed as exemplified in Fig. 5 to Fig. 8 based on the treatment protocol information 23.

[0036] Fig. 5 is an example of a screen display before starting treatment per day. On the display unit 33, as real-time treatment status, total treatment time per day 241a, total number of irradiations per day 242a, number of irradiations performed 242b, and time per irradiation 243b are displayed. On the display unit 33, time per day regarding treatment progress is further displayed by a bar graph 51a as real-time treatment status.

[0037] The screen display in Fig. 5 shows the state before the start of treatment per day. Therefore, the time 243b relating to the irradiation progress is displayed with a value initialized to the same value as the irradiation time per irradiation 231. The overall length of the bar graph 51a indicates the total treatment time per day, and the time relating to the treatment progress indicates the zero position on the bar graph 51a (the left end of the bar graph 51a).

[0038] A guidance message (hereinafter, also simply referred to as guidance) 251 showing the next operation procedure that the operator should take is displayed on the display unit 33. The guidance 251 includes a message that indicates that treatment will start when a treatment start button 52a displayed on the screen of the touch panel is pressed. When the button 52a is pressed via the input unit 32 as a touch panel, the device 100 irradiates ultrasonic waves to start treatment.

[0039] FIG. 6 is an example of a screen display during the start of treatment and the irradiation of ultrasonic waves. In the illustrated example, seven minutes have passed since the start of treatment. When the device 100 irradiates ultrasonic waves and starts treatment, the display unit 33 displays, in real time, a time 241b relating to the treatment progress per day and a time 243b relating to the irradiation progress in a countdown format as a real-time treatment status. The display unit 33 further displays, as a real-time treatment status, an irradiation time 243a per irradiation and a time 243b relating to the irradiation progress in a bar graph 51b. The overall length of the bar graph 51b indicates the irradiation time 243a per irradiation, and the time 243b relating to the irradiation progress is displayed in a count-up format from the left end of the bar graph 51b.

[0040] The display unit 33 displays guidance 252 indicating the next possible operation procedure for the operator. The guidance 252 includes a message that the treatment can be stopped by pressing the treatment stop button 52b. Pressing the button 52b is optional. In this embodiment, the device 100 stops the ultrasonic irradiation when the irradiation time 231 per irradiation specified in the treatment protocol information 23 has elapsed or when the button 52b is pressed.

[0041] FIG. 7 is an example of a screen display during interruption of irradiation between each irradiation. In the illustrated example, the first 20-minute ultrasonic irradiation after the start of treatment has been completed, and 3 minutes of the first 5-minute break have elapsed. While the device 100 interrupts ultrasonic irradiation at the timing of each irradiation, the display unit 33 displays the time 241b related to the treatment progress per day and the time 243b related to the irradiation progress in real time in a countdown format as the real-time treatment status. The screen display in FIG. 7 shows a state in which ultrasonic irradiation is interrupted. Therefore, the time 243b related to the irradiation progress displays the value zero. The display unit 33 further displays the irradiation interruption time 244a per irradiation interruption and the time 244b related to the interruption progress in a bar graph 51c as the real-time treatment status. The length of the entire bar graph 51c indicates the irradiation interruption time 244a per irradiation interruption, and the time 244b related to the irradiation interruption progress is displayed in a count-up format from the left end of the bar graph 51c.

[0042] The display unit 33 displays guidance 253 indicating the next operation procedure that the operator should perform. The guidance 253 includes a message indicating that the operator is currently resting and should wait until the time to start the next ultrasonic irradiation. While the device 100 suspends ultrasonic irradiation at the timing between each irradiation, the treatment start button 52c is displayed, for example, inverted and cannot be pressed, and does not accept any operation by the operator. In this embodiment, when the irradiation suspension time 233 between each irradiation specified in the treatment protocol information 23 has elapsed, the device 100 cancels the inverted display of the treatment start button 52c, makes it possible to accept an operation by the operator, and prepares to start the next ultrasonic irradiation.

[0043] 8 is an example of a screen display before the resumption of daily treatment after the irradiation interruption time has elapsed. In the illustrated example, the first 5-minute break has been completed. Display unit 33 displays guidance 254 indicating the next operation procedure that the operator should perform. Guidance 254 includes a message that indicates that treatment will be resumed when treatment start button 52d is pressed. When treatment start button 52d is pressed via input unit 32 serving as a touch panel, device 100 resumes treatment by irradiating ultrasound again.

[0044] When the device 100 irradiates ultrasound again to resume treatment, the display unit 33 displays the time 241b relating to the treatment progress per day and the time 243b relating to the irradiation progress in real time in a countdown format as the real-time treatment status. The display unit 33 further displays the total treatment time 241a per day and the time 241b relating to the treatment progress in a bar graph 51d as the real-time treatment status. The overall length of the bar graph 51d indicates the total treatment time 241a per day, and the time 241b relating to the treatment progress is displayed in a count-up format from the left end of the bar graph 51d.

[0045] The screen display in Fig. 8 shows the state before the treatment per day is resumed after the irradiation interruption time has elapsed. Therefore, the time 243b relating to the irradiation progress is reset to the same value as the irradiation time 231 per irradiation. The time 241b relating to the treatment progress is the cumulative time relating to the treatment progress per day. The number of irradiations performed per day 242b is also counted up.

[0046] Thereafter, device 100 repeats the screen display operations shown in Figures 6 to 8, and when device 100 irradiates ultrasound the total number of irradiations per day 232 specified in treatment protocol information 23, treatment for one day using device 100 is completed.

[0047] As described above, according to one embodiment of the present invention, an ultrasonic treatment device that allows the progress of a patient's treatment to be easily grasped can be provided.

[0048] The ultrasonic treatment device 100 according to one embodiment includes a treatment status notification unit 14, which notifies the real-time treatment status based on treatment protocol information 23, which is information on ultrasonic irradiation conditions and includes the irradiation time per irradiation, the total number of irradiations per day, and the irradiation interruption time between each irradiation. The treatment status is displayed on a display unit 33 included in the device 100, for example, or output as audio through a speaker 34 included in the device 100. This allows an operator such as a doctor to easily grasp the treatment status of the treatment site 91 of the patient, and makes it possible to accurately perform long-term treatment in which the total treatment time per day exceeds one hour.

[0049] [Other formats] Although the present invention has been described above with reference to specific embodiments, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments.

[0050] 9 and 10 are examples of screen displays of an ultrasonic treatment device according to another embodiment of the present invention. In the above embodiment, the treatment status notification unit 14 displays the treatment status with bar graphs 51a to 51d, but the manner of displaying the treatment status is not limited to this. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 9 and FIG. 10, the treatment status notification unit 14 may display the progress of the treatment status with a time chart 53. On the time chart 53, a milestone 54 indicating an event from the start to the end of treatment per day and a mark 55 indicating a current event are displayed. The treatment status notification unit 14 displays the milestone 54 and the mark 55 on the time chart 53 based on the treatment protocol information 23.

[0051] Fig. 9 is an example of a screen display before the start of a daily treatment. Instead of the embodiment of Fig. 5 in which the real-time treatment status is displayed by a bar graph 51a, in the embodiment illustrated in Fig. 9, the real-time treatment status is displayed by a time chart 53. Fig. 9 is a screen display before the start of a daily treatment. Therefore, a mark 55 indicating a current event is displayed so as to point to the milestone indicating the first ultrasonic irradiation.

[0052] FIG. 10 is an example of a screen display during interruption of irradiation between each irradiation. Instead of the embodiment of FIG. 7 in which the real-time treatment status is displayed by a bar graph 51c, in the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 10, the real-time treatment status is displayed by a time chart 53. FIG. 10 shows a screen display during a break time during which the first ultrasonic irradiation is completed and the second ultrasonic irradiation is waited to start. Therefore, the mark 55 indicating the current event is displayed so as to indicate the interval between the milestone 54 indicating the first break and the milestone 54 indicating the second ultrasonic irradiation. The treatment status displayed by the treatment status notification unit 14 is real-time, and the position on the time chart 53 indicated by the mark 55 also progresses in real time as the break time elapses.

[0053] In the above embodiment, the ultrasonic therapy device 100 outputs low-intensity pulsed ultrasound (LIPUS), but the ultrasonic waves output by the device 100 are not limited to this low-intensity pulsed ultrasound. The treatment site 91 of the patient is not limited to the brain shown as an example, and the disease to be treated is not limited to dementia shown as an example. As long as the ultrasonic therapy device 100 treats a patient, it can output ultrasonic waves of any frequency, wave number, amplitude, waveform, etc. to any treatment site for any disease.

[0054] In the above embodiment, the treatment status notifying unit 14 notifies the operator of the treatment status through the display unit 33 or the speaker 34 provided in the device 100, but the display unit 33 and the speaker 34 used when notifying the treatment status are not limited to those provided in the device 100. The treatment status notifying unit 14 may notify the treatment status to a display screen or a speaker of a centralized management system connected via a network 99 and disposed in, for example, a nurse's station. This allows medical personnel such as doctors, physical therapists, and nurses to easily grasp the progress of the patient's treatment even in a place away from the treatment room of the treatment facility.

[0055] In the above embodiment, the treatment information 21 is acquired from the operator via the input unit 32, but the manner of acquiring the treatment information 21 is not limited to this. The treatment information 21 may be input and recorded in advance in an external device (e.g., a cloud server) and then imported into the device 100 via the communication I / F unit 39 and the network 99.

[0056] In the above embodiment, the ultrasonic treatment device 100 is realized as an integrated device, but the device 100 does not need to be an integrated device, and the processor, memory, auxiliary storage device 20, etc. may be located in different places and connected to each other via a network. The input unit 32, the display unit 33, and the speaker 34 do not necessarily need to be located in one place, and may be located in different places and connected to each other via a network so that they can communicate with each other.

[0057] In the above embodiment, each of the functional blocks 11-16 constituting the data processing unit 10 is realized by software, but each of these functional blocks 11-16 may be realized partly or entirely as hardware. The processing of each of the functional blocks 11-16 constituting the data processing unit 10 does not need to be processed by a single processor, and may be distributed and processed by multiple processors. Some or all of the functions of the data processing unit 10 and the data items in the auxiliary storage device 20 may be clouded in an external device (e.g., a cloud server) connected via the communication I / F unit 39 and the network 99. [Explanation of symbols]

[0058] 10 Data Processing Section 11 Treatment Information Acquisition Department 12 Transmission condition setting section 13 Treatment Protocol Management Department 14 Treatment Status Notification Department 15 Operation procedure notification section 16 Input information display section 20 Auxiliary storage 21 Treatment information 22 Transmission condition information 23 Treatment Protocol Information 25 Operating Instructions Information 29 Programs 31 Transmitter 32 Input section 33 Display section 34 Speaker 39 Communication interface section (communication I / F section) 41,42 Ultrasonic transducer 44 Rod-shaped handle 51a~51d Bar graph 52a, 52c, 52d Treatment start button 52b Treatment stop button 53 Time Chart 54 Milestone 55 Current event mark 91 Treatment area 99 Network 100 Ultrasonic therapy device

Claims

1. An ultrasonic treatment device that irradiates ultrasonic waves to a treatment site of a patient through a transducer that converts an electrical signal into ultrasonic waves, An ultrasonic treatment device comprising a treatment status notification means for notifying a real-time treatment status based on treatment protocol information, which is information regarding the ultrasonic irradiation conditions, including the irradiation time per irradiation, the total number of irradiations per day, and the irradiation interruption time between each irradiation.

2. The ultrasonic treatment device of claim 1, wherein the treatment status includes at least one selected from the group consisting of total treatment time per day and time related to treatment progress, total number of irradiations per day and number of irradiations performed, and irradiation time per irradiation and time related to irradiation progress.

3. Further comprising a display screen; The ultrasonic treatment device according to claim 1 , wherein the treatment status notifying means displays the treatment status on the display screen.

4. The ultrasonic treatment device according to claim 3, wherein the treatment status notification means displays at least one of the time related to the treatment progress per day, the time related to the irradiation progress per irradiation, and the time related to the interruption progress per irradiation interruption using a bar graph.

5. The ultrasonic treatment device according to claim 3 , wherein the treatment status notifying means displays the progress of the treatment status in a time chart.

6. It also has a speaker, The ultrasonic treatment device according to claim 1 , wherein the treatment status notifying means outputs the treatment status by voice through the speaker.

7. The ultrasonic treatment device according to claim 1 , further comprising an operation procedure notifying means for notifying an operator of a next operation procedure to be performed based on the treatment protocol information.

8. Further comprising a display screen; The ultrasonic treatment device according to claim 7 , wherein the operation procedure notifying means displays the operation procedure on the display screen.

9. It also has a speaker, The ultrasonic treatment device according to claim 7 , wherein the operation procedure notifying means outputs the operation procedure by voice through the speaker.

10. A method for operating an ultrasonic treatment device that irradiates ultrasonic waves to a treatment site of a patient through a transducer that converts an electrical signal into ultrasonic waves, comprising: A method for operating an ultrasonic treatment device, comprising a treatment status notification step of notifying a real-time treatment status based on treatment protocol information, which is information regarding the ultrasonic irradiation conditions, including the irradiation time per irradiation, the total number of irradiations per day, and the irradiation interruption time between each irradiation.

11. A program for causing a computer to function as each of the means of the ultrasonic treatment device according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

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