Suture, surgery support system and surgery support method

Abstract

To provide a suture allowing an operator to perform surgery with aesthetic appearance ensured, while suppressing a risk of overlooking the suture when removing it in suture surgery and difficulty of the surgery.SOLUTION: A substantially transparent suture used for suture surgery, the suture, when irradiated with black light, changes appearance of a part or an entirety of the irradiated area. A surgery support system S for supporting a suture surgery using a suture 100, the system is so configured that an irradiation part 1 constituting the surgery support system S irradiates at least a part of a skin subjected to the suture surgery using the suture 100, with black light.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a suture, a surgery assistance system, and a surgery assistance method. [Background technology]

[0002] There is known a technique for assisting a doctor in surgery (for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2023-054716 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] When incision and suturing are performed on a visible area, such as facial skin, as in double eyelid surgery, which has been on the rise in recent years, patients often request that the skin be sutured using less noticeable transparent sutures rather than the usual colored (e.g., black) sutures, from a cosmetic standpoint. However, transparent sutures are difficult for surgeons to see, so there is a risk that the sutures may remain in the skin when removed, and delicate surgery may become difficult. For this reason, many surgeons do not recommend surgery using transparent sutures.

[0005] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above circumstances, and aims to enable surgery to be performed while ensuring cosmetic results, while reducing the risk of sutures being overlooked when removing the sutures and the difficulty of the surgery. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to achieve the above object, one aspect of the present invention is A substantially transparent suture used in suturing surgery, When irradiated with light of a specific wavelength, the appearance of part or all of the irradiated area changes. It is a suture.

[0007] In order to achieve the above object, one aspect of the present invention is A surgical support system for supporting a suturing surgery using a substantially transparent suture, an irradiation unit that irradiates light of a predetermined wavelength onto at least a part of the skin that is the target of the suturing operation; When the suture is irradiated with the light, the appearance of a part or the entire irradiated area changes. This is a surgical support system.

[0008] In addition, a surgery support method corresponding to the above-mentioned surgery support system of one aspect of the present invention is also provided as a surgery support method corresponding to the surgery support system of one aspect of the present invention. Effect of the Invention

[0009] According to the present invention, surgery can be performed while ensuring cosmetic appearance, while reducing the risk of overlooking sutures when removing the sutures and the difficulty of the surgery. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] 1A-1C are comparative diagrams illustrating an example of skin including an area sutured with a suture according to an embodiment of the present invention and an area sutured with a conventional colored suture. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing the skin shown in FIG. 1 irradiated with black light. [Diagram 3] 1 is a diagram showing an example of the overall configuration of a surgery support system according to one embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 4] 4 is a functional block diagram showing an example of a functional configuration of a control device provided in the surgery support system of FIG. 3. [Diagram 5] 4 is a flowchart showing an example of a processing flow of the surgery support system of FIG. 3. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0011] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0012] <Configuration of suture 100> FIG. 1 illustrates skin 300 including an area 310 that has been cuticularly sutured with a suture 100 according to one embodiment of the present invention and an area 320 that has been cuticularly sutured with a conventional suture. Suture 100 is a substantially transparent suture made of nylon-based resin or the like that contains, in part or in whole, a fluorescent material that glows when exposed to ultraviolet light. The method for making the fluorescent material contained in part or in whole of suture 100 is not particularly limited. For example, the fluorescent material may be melted or diffused in a nylon-based resin pellet, or the outside of suture 100 may be coated with a fluorescent material to form a multi-layer structure.

[0013] The fluorescent substance contained in the suture 100 is not particularly limited, but a highly stable and highly fluorescent zinc sulfide-based fluorescent dye is preferable. Alternatively, fluorescent dyes such as nano-zinc oxide, fluorescein, indocyanine green, pyranine, stilbene, rhodamine, coumarin, DCM, pyrromethene, and umbelliferone may be contained in the suture 100. Furthermore, the surface of the fluorescent substance may be coated with a substance that is harmless to humans.

[0014] Even when used for epidermal suturing, which is easily visible from the outside, suture 100 is nearly transparent and therefore difficult to see unless viewed from a very close distance, as shown in region 310 in Figure 1. In contrast, when used for epidermal suturing, which is easily visible from the outside, conventional sutures are colored and therefore easily visible, as shown in region 320 in Figure 1.

[0015] <Appearance when illuminated with black light> FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a state in which the skin 300 shown in FIG. 1 is irradiated with black light. As described above, the suture 100 is substantially transparent, and visibility is reduced when the suture is removed, so there is a risk that the doctor will overlook it and leave the suture 100 in the skin. However, the suture 100 contains a fluorescent substance that glows when exposed to ultraviolet light, and so glows when exposed to black light.

[0016] The black light irradiated toward the suture 100 is in the ultraviolet (Ultraviolet A, UV-A) range with a wavelength of 315 to 400 nm. Therefore, when black light is irradiated from the outside toward the position where the suture 100 is sutured into the epidermis, the suture 100 in the irradiated area emits light, so that the suture 100 can be easily viewed from the outside, for example as shown in irradiated area 330 in Figure 2.

[0017] Although not shown, when sutures, including the substantially transparent suture 100 and conventional colored sutures, are used for dermal suturing, which sutures the dermis deep in the skin, they may become embedded in scar tissue that is produced when the wound heals. In this case, visibility from the outside decreases. Since the suture 100 is substantially transparent, the decrease in visibility is particularly noticeable.

[0018] However, because suture 100 is a suture containing the above-mentioned fluorescent substance, it emits light when irradiated with black light. Therefore, when black light is irradiated from the outside toward the position where suture 100 is sutured into the dermis, suture 100 in the irradiated area emits light, making suture 100 easily visible.

[0019] <Suture 100 Variations> 3A to 3C are diagrams showing specific examples of light emission modes. The suture 100 shown in Figures 1 and 2 above contains fluorescent material either partially or entirely. That is, there are cases where the suture 100 contains fluorescent material evenly throughout, and cases where the suture 100 contains fluorescent material only partially. Figure 3(A) shows an enlarged view of a specific example of a suture 100 (hereinafter referred to as "suture 100a" in Figure 3 for comparison) containing fluorescent material evenly throughout when it is irradiated with black light. In this case, when suture 100a is irradiated with black light, the entire irradiated area emits a substantially uniform light.

[0020] In contrast, when a fluorescent substance is contained in a portion of suture 100, the overall manner of light emission differs depending on the position of the portion containing the fluorescent substance (hereinafter referred to as the "fluorescent portion"). Fig. 3(B) shows an enlarged view of a specific example of a suture 100 in which fluorescent portions 110 are arranged at regular intervals in the axial direction (hereinafter referred to as "suture 100b" in Fig. 3 for comparison), when black light is irradiated onto the suture. When fluorescent portions 110 are arranged in the manner shown in Fig. 3(B), the manner of light emission resulting from a combination of fluorescent portions 110 irradiated with black light and the other portions forms a striped pattern over the entire suture 100b.

[0021] Here, when the length of the thread exposed to the person performing the suture operation during suturing is L [mm], one period of the stripe pattern (period at which the fluorescent portion 110 appears) is preferably less than L / 2 [mm]. This is expected to cause the fluorescent portion 110 to appear two or more times on the person performing the suture operation. More specifically, it is preferable that it is L / 3 [mm] or less. This makes it possible to make the fluorescent portion 110 appear two or more times on the person performing the suture operation even if the length of the exposed thread varies when the person performing the suture operation actually sutures. When two or more sutures 100b are used, it is preferable that the lengths of the fluorescent portions 110 are different between them. That is, when the sutures 100 are sold as a set, it is preferable that the lengths of the fluorescent portions 110 are different between the multiple sutures 100b. Furthermore, when selling sutures 100b having fluorescent portions 110 of approximately the same length as one another as a set, it is preferable to use a set container or reel with a mark indicating that the fluorescent portions 110 have approximately the same length as one another.

[0022] Fig. 3(C) shows an enlarged view of a specific example of a suture 100 (hereinafter, referred to as "suture 100c" in Fig. 3 for comparison) in which dot-forming fluorescent portions 110 are arranged substantially uniformly over the entire suture 100 when black light is irradiated. When fluorescent portions 110 are arranged in the manner shown in Fig. 3(C), the combination of fluorescent portions 110 that emit light in response to irradiation with black light and the other portions emits light in a manner that forms polka dots over the entire suture 100c.

[0023] As shown in Figures 3(A) to 3(C), the light emission patterns of the sutures 100b and 100c are different from that of the suture 100a, and the difference in the light emission patterns can be used as a marker. For example, by creating a rule in advance that the suture 100a is a suture that should be removed and the suture 100b is a suture that should not be removed, a doctor performing a suturing operation can know at a glance whether the sutures should be removed. This can prevent medical errors, such as misjudging a vascular anastomosis that should not be removed. Furthermore, it can facilitate the sharing of information when multiple doctors perform surgery on one patient.

[0024] <Configuration of Surgery Support System S> FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the overall configuration of a surgery support system S according to one embodiment of the present invention. The surgery support system S is a system that supports a suturing surgery using a suture 100 (see FIG. 1). The surgery support system S has an irradiation unit 1 that can irradiate multiple types of light onto at least a part of the skin that is the target of the suturing surgery by a doctor D. The surgery support system S also has an operation reception unit 2 that receives an operation to switch the light irradiated from the irradiation unit 1, and a switching unit 3 that switches the irradiated light in response to the received switching operation.

[0025] The irradiation unit 1 is composed of two light sources and can irradiate two types of light. Specifically, it is composed of a first light source 11 that irradiates black light and a second light source 12 such as an LED (Light Emitting Diode) that irradiates visible light. The first light source 11 and the second light source 12 are mounted on goggles 20 worn on the head of a doctor performing a suturing operation.

[0026] The operation reception unit 2 receives a switching operation for switching between the two types of light emitted from the irradiation unit 1. The operation reception unit 2 includes a changeover switch 21 that can receive a switching operation by the foot of a doctor performing a suturing operation. This allows the doctor to operate the changeover switch 21 with his / her foot according to the situation while performing a suturing operation using both hands. Hereinafter, among the operations of the changeover switch 21, the operation of switching from visible light to black light is referred to as a "first foot operation," and the operation of switching from black light to visible light is referred to as a "second foot operation."

[0027] Furthermore, the operation reception unit 2 receives a switching operation for switching on and off the room light 13 in the operating room where the suturing operation is performed. The operation reception unit 2 includes a changeover switch 22 that can receive a switching operation by the foot of the doctor performing the suturing operation. This allows the doctor to perform the second foot operation according to the situation while performing the suturing operation using both hands. Hereinafter, among the operations of the changeover switch 22, the operation of turning off the room light 13 that is turned on is referred to as the "third foot operation," and the operation of turning on the room light 13 that is turned off is referred to as the "fourth foot operation."

[0028] That is, when the irradiation unit 1 irradiates the black light, it is necessary to darken the operating room to suppress reflection of visible light. Therefore, when a doctor wants to irradiate the black light during a suturing operation, he or she first performs the third foot operation to turn off the room light 13, and then performs the first foot operation to cause the first light source 11 of the irradiation unit 1 to irradiate the black light.

[0029] The switching unit 3 switches between the light (black light) emitted from the first light source 11 of the irradiation unit 1 and the light (visible light) emitted from the second light source 12 in response to a first foot operation and a second foot operation on the changeover switch 21 accepted by the operation acceptance unit 2. In addition, the switching unit 3 switches between turning on and off the interior light 13 in response to a third foot operation and a fourth foot operation on the changeover switch 22 accepted by the operation acceptance unit 2.

[0030] <Processing flow of the surgery support system S> FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an example of the processing flow of the surgery support system S. In the surgery support system S, when the room light 13 in the operating room is turned on and the second light source 12 of the irradiation unit 1 is emitting visible light (step S1), and the first foot operation is performed (YES in step S2), the operation reception unit 2 receives the first foot operation (step S3). Then, the switching unit 3 switches the light irradiated from the irradiation unit 1 from visible light to black light (step S4). Specifically, in the irradiation unit 1, the state in which the second light source 12 is emitting visible light is switched to the state in which the first light source 11 is emitting black light. On the other hand, when the first foot operation is not performed (NO in step S2), the judgment process of step S2 is repeated.

[0031] Thereafter, when the third foot operation is performed (YES in step S5), the operation reception unit 2 receives the third foot operation (step S6). Then, the switching unit 3 turns off the interior light 13 (step S7). On the other hand, when the third foot operation is not performed (NO in step S5), the determination process of step S5 is repeated.

[0032] Thereafter, when a second foot operation is performed (YES in step S8), the operation reception unit 2 receives the second foot operation (step S9). Then, the switching unit 3 switches the light emitted from the irradiation unit 1 from black light to visible light (step S10). Specifically, in the irradiation unit 1, the state in which the first light source 11 emits black light is switched to the state in which the second light source 12 emits visible light. On the other hand, when the second foot operation is not performed (NO in step S8), the determination process of step S8 is repeated.

[0033] Thereafter, when a fourth foot operation is performed (YES in step S11), the operation reception unit 2 receives the second foot operation (step S12). Then, the switching unit 3 turns on the interior light 13 (step S13). On the other hand, when a fourth foot operation is not performed (NO in step S11), the determination process of step S11 is repeated.

[0034] <Advantageous Effects of the Present Embodiment> According to the configuration of the suture 100 and the configuration of the surgery support system S described above, it is possible to perform surgery that ensures cosmetic appearance while reducing the risk of overlooking the suture 100 when removing the suture during the suture surgery and the difficulty of the surgery.

[0035] <Other embodiments> Although the embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment, and modifications, improvements, etc. within the scope of achieving the object of the present invention are included in the present invention. For example, in the above-mentioned embodiment, the difference in the manner of light emission of the suture is the presence or absence of light emission, but this is not limited thereto. The difference in the manner of light emission of the suture may be the difference in the color of light emission.

[0036] In the above embodiment, the irradiation unit is mounted on the goggles 20 (see FIG. 4), but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the irradiation unit may be mounted on a headband or glasses.

[0037] In the above embodiment, when the first foot operation is performed, the irradiated light is switched from visible light to black light, and when the third foot operation is performed, the room light is turned off, but this is not limited to the above. When the first foot operation is performed, the irradiated light may be switched from visible light to black light and the room light may be turned off. Similarly, when the second foot operation is performed, the irradiated light may be switched from black light to visible light and the room light may be turned on. This simplifies various switching operations by the doctor.

[0038] Moreover, the light emission pattern shown in Fig. 3 is merely an example. That is, the light emission pattern resulting from a combination of the fluorescent portion that emits light when irradiated with black light and the other portions is not limited to the pattern in which the entire suture exhibits a striped pattern (see Fig. 3(B)) or the pattern in which the entire suture exhibits polka dots (see Fig. 3(C)). For example, the suture may have a two-layer structure in which the fluorescent portion is disposed radially inward, so that the vicinity of the axial center of the suture emits a dim light.

[0039] In addition, in the above-described embodiment, the light irradiated on the suture is a black light, but is not limited to this, and may be any light that can change the appearance of the suture.

[0040] In the above embodiment, a part or all of the suture thread irradiated with light of a predetermined wavelength emits light, but the present invention is not limited to this. A part or all of the suture thread irradiated with light of a predetermined wavelength may change from being substantially transparent to being colored.

[0041] <Other> In addition, at least a part of the series of processes of the above-mentioned surgery support system S can be executed by hardware or software. In other words, the above-mentioned functional configuration is merely an example and is not particularly limited. That is, it is sufficient that the surgery support system S has a function capable of executing the above-mentioned series of processes as a whole, and the functional configuration used to realize this function is not particularly limited to the above-mentioned example.

[0042] When the series of processes is executed by software, the programs constituting the software are installed from a predetermined network or recording medium into a computer (not shown). The computer may be a computer incorporated in dedicated hardware. The computer may also be a computer capable of executing various functions by installing various programs, such as a server, a general-purpose smartphone, or a personal computer.

[0043] The recording medium containing such a program may be configured not only as a removable medium (not shown) distributed separately from the device main body in order to provide the program to the user, etc., but also as a recording medium provided to the user, etc. in a state in which the recording medium is pre-installed in the device main body. Since the program can be distributed via a network, the recording medium may be mounted on or accessible to a computer connected to or connectable to a predetermined network.

[0044] In addition, each step showing the processing flow of the surgery support system S shown in Fig. 5 includes not only processing performed chronologically according to the order, but also processing that is not necessarily performed chronologically but is performed in parallel or individually. In this specification, the term "system" means an overall device composed of multiple devices, multiple means, etc.

[0045] In other words, the suture to which the present invention is applied can take various embodiments having the following configurations. (1) That is, the suture to which the present invention is applied (for example, the suture 100 described above) is A substantially transparent suture used in suturing surgery, When irradiated with light of a specific wavelength (for example, ultraviolet light from the above-mentioned black light), the appearance of part or the entire irradiated area changes. It is a suture.

[0046] (2) Also, the device has a fluorescent portion (e.g., fluorescent portion 110 in FIGS. 3(B) and (C)) that contains a fluorescent substance, The fluorescent portion can emit light when irradiated with the light.

[0047] (3) Furthermore, the arrangement of the fluorescent portions that emit light upon receiving the light and the other portions can form a pattern (for example, the stripes or polka dots in FIG. 3) as a whole.

[0048] (4) Furthermore, the fluorescent substance can emit light when irradiated with black light as the light.

[0049] Furthermore, a surgery support system to which the present invention is applied (for example, surgery support system S in FIG. 4) can take various embodiments having the following configurations. (5) That is, the surgery support system to which the present invention is applied is A surgical support system for supporting a suturing surgery using a substantially transparent suture, an irradiation unit that irradiates light of a predetermined wavelength onto at least a part of the skin that is the target of the suturing operation; When the suture is irradiated with the light, the appearance of a part or the entire irradiated area changes. This is a surgical support system.

[0050] (6) The irradiation unit can irradiate a plurality of types of light including light of a predetermined wavelength, An operation reception unit (for example, the operation reception unit 2 in FIG. 4) that receives an operation for switching the light to be irradiated; A switching unit (e.g., the switching unit 3 in FIG. 4) that switches the light to be irradiated in response to the received switching operation; may have the following structure:

[0051] (7) Furthermore, the operation receiving unit can receive, as the switching operation, a foot operation (for example, the above-mentioned first foot operation and second foot operation) of the person performing the suturing surgery.

[0052] Furthermore, the surgery support method to which the present invention is applied can take various forms having the following configurations. (8) That is, the surgical support method to which the present invention is applied is A surgical assistance method for assisting a suturing operation using a substantially transparent suture, comprising: Irradiating at least a portion of the skin to be sutured with light of a predetermined wavelength; When the suture is irradiated with the light, the appearance of a part or the entire irradiated area changes. A surgical assistance method. [Explanation of symbols]

[0053] 1: Irradiation unit, 2: Operation reception unit, 3: Switching unit, 11: First light source, 12: Second light source, 13: Indoor light, 20: Goggles, 21, 22: Switch, 100, 100a, 100b, 100c: Suture, 110: Fluorescent unit

Claims

1. A substantially transparent suture used in suturing surgery, When irradiated with light of a specific wavelength, the appearance of part or all of the irradiated area changes. Sutures.

2. A fluorescent portion containing a fluorescent substance, The fluorescent portion emits light when irradiated with the light. The suture of claim 1.

3. The fluorescent portion that emits light upon receiving the light and the other portions are arranged in a combination to form a pattern as a whole. The suture of claim 2.

4. The fluorescent material emits light when irradiated with black light as the light. The suture of claim 2.

5. A surgical support system for supporting a suture surgery using the suture according to claim 1, an irradiation unit that irradiates light of the predetermined wavelength onto at least a part of the skin that is the target of the suturing operation; Surgical support system.

6. the irradiation unit is capable of irradiating a plurality of types of light including the light of the predetermined wavelength, an operation receiving unit that receives an operation for switching the plurality of types of light to be irradiated; A switching unit that switches the light to be irradiated in response to the received switching operation; The surgery support system according to claim 5 .

7. The operation reception unit receives, as the switching operation, a foot operation by a person performing the suturing surgery. The surgery support system according to claim 6.

8. A surgical assistance method for assisting a suturing operation using a substantially transparent suture, comprising: Irradiating at least a portion of the skin that is to be the subject of the suturing operation with light of a predetermined wavelength; When the suture is irradiated with the light, the appearance of a part or the entire irradiated area changes. Surgical support method.

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