Medical positioner

Abstract

A medical positioner (10) comprises a suction pad part (12) formed from an elastically deformable material and having a hollow shape. The suction pad part (12) has: a rim part (18) that comes into contact with the surface (P2) of an organ (P1); and a skirt part (20) that extends in a tapered shape from the rim part (18) toward a connection part (14). The skirt part (20) is configured such that, in a state in which the rim part (18) of the suction pad part (12) is in contact with the surface (P2) of the organ (P1) and air in a cavity part (22) is not sucked, a portion of the skirt part (20) that is adjacent to the rim part (18) is in contact with the surface (P2) of the organ (P1).

Description

Medical Positioner

[0001] The present invention relates to a medical positioner.

[0002] Japanese Patent No. 4406716 discloses a medical positioner that holds a living organ in a desired position. This medical positioner has a hollow suction pad. With the tips of the legs of the suction pad in contact with the surface of the organ, air in the internal space of the suction pad is sucked through a vacuum channel, and the surface of the organ facing the inside of the legs is sucked and held.

[0003] Patent No. 4406716

[0004] In the medical positioner of Japanese Patent No. 4406716, only the tips of the legs are in contact with the surface of the organ when the organ is being held in place. As a result, the suction pressure generated within the internal space significantly deforms the organ in areas adjacent to the legs, and holding marks are likely to remain on the surface of the organ where the legs come into contact.

[0005] The present invention aims to solve the above-mentioned problems.

[0006] (1) An aspect of the present invention is a medical positioner for holding an organ of a living body in a desired posture, comprising: a suction pad portion formed hollow from an elastically deformable material; and a connection portion provided in a part of the suction pad portion and having a suction flow path connected to a suction source that sucks air from within the suction pad portion. The suction pad portion has an edge portion that contacts the surface of the organ, a skirt portion that extends tapered from the edge portion toward the connection portion, and a space portion that is provided inside the skirt portion and communicates with the suction flow path. The skirt portion is configured so that when the edge portion of the suction pad portion contacts the surface of the organ and the air in the space portion is not sucked in, the portion of the skirt portion adjacent to the edge at the tip of the suction pad portion contacts the surface of the organ.

[0007] With this medical positioner, when the suction pad is not suctioning, with the edge of the suction pad in contact with the surface of the organ and the air in the space not being sucked in, a part of the skirt portion adjacent to the edge is in contact with the surface of the organ, so that when the suction pad elastically deforms by sucking in the air in the space, deformation of the organ surface in the part adjacent to the edge is suppressed. This allows the suction pad to be held in closer contact with the organ and also suppresses the formation of holding marks on the organ surface during suction.

[0008] (2) In the medical positioner described in (1) above, the skirt portion may have a base portion adjacent to the connection portion, and a plurality of legs extending from the base portion to the edge portion and protruding radially in a direction away from the axis of the suction pad portion when viewed in a plan view from the axial direction of the suction pad portion.

[0009] With this configuration, by providing a plurality of legs, the suction pad portion can be more effectively held in close contact with the surface of the organ.

[0010] (3) In the medical positioner described in (2) above, in a cross section perpendicular to the axis of the suction pad portion, each of the plurality of leg portions may have an arc-shaped cross section that is convex outward.

[0011] With this configuration, when an organ is suctioned, the skirt portion can be effectively deformed to adhere closely to the surface of the organ.

[0012] (4) In the medical positioner described in (2) above, the medical positioner may be provided with a connecting portion connecting adjacent legs among the plurality of legs to each other, and an inclined portion provided on the leg and inclined with respect to the axis of the suction pad portion and extending toward the edge to the tip of the suction pad portion, and in a cross section along the axis of the suction pad portion, the inclined portion and the connecting portion may form a triangular portion tapering toward the tip of the suction pad portion.

[0013] With this configuration, the suction pad portion is tapered toward the tip, thereby suppressing deformation of the surface of the organ when suction is applied.

[0014] (5) In the medical positioner described in (4) above, the skirt portion is provided between the inclined portion and the edge portion, and has a skirt tip portion whose angle with respect to the axis of the suction pad portion is smaller than the angle of the inclined portion with respect to the axis, and the length of the skirt tip portion in the axial direction may be 1 / 4 or less of the total length of the skirt portion in the axial direction.

[0015] With this configuration, the length of the skirt tip of the skirt portion is short, so that deformation of the organ during suction can be effectively suppressed.

[0016] (6) In the medical positioner described in (4) above, the inclined portion may extend to the edge portion.

[0017] With this configuration, the inclined portion is inclined all the way to the edge, so that no depression is formed inside the tip of the skirt portion in the cross section along the axis of the suction pad portion, which effectively prevents deformation of the organ during suction.

[0018] According to the present invention, when the edge of the suction pad of the medical positioner is in contact with the surface of an organ and the air in the space is not being sucked out of the suction pad, a part of the skirt portion adjacent to the edge is in contact with the surface of the organ, so that when the suction pad elastically deforms due to the air being sucked out of the space, deformation of the organ surface in the part adjacent to the edge is suppressed. This allows the suction pad to be held in closer contact with the organ and also suppresses the formation of holding marks on the surface of the organ during suction.

[0019] FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing a state in which a medical device equipped with a medical positioner according to an embodiment of the present invention is attached to a thoracic retractor. FIG. 2 is an external perspective view of the medical positioner of FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the medical positioner of FIG. 2. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line IV-IV of FIG. 3. FIG. 5A is an explanatory diagram showing the medical positioner of FIG. 1 in a non-suction state. FIG. 5B is an explanatory diagram showing the medical positioner of FIG. 5A in a suction state. FIG. 6 is an external perspective view of a medical positioner according to a modified example. FIG. 7 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of the medical positioner of FIG. 6. FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view taken along line VIII-VIII of FIG. 7. FIG. 9A is an explanatory diagram showing the medical positioner of FIG. 6 in a non-suction state. FIG. 9B is an explanatory diagram showing the medical positioner of FIG. 9A in a suction state. FIG. 10 is an external perspective view of a medical positioner having three legs.

[0020] As shown in FIG. 1 , the medical positioner 10 according to this embodiment is for holding an organ P1 (e.g., the heart) of a human body (hereinafter referred to as living body P) in a desired position. The medical positioner 10 is configured to be detachable from a medical device 200. The medical device 200 is attached to a thoracotomy instrument 300 for use. Specifically, the medical device 200 is attached to a rack portion 304 of the thoracotomy instrument 300 during thoracotomy (e.g., coronary artery bypass surgery). However, the medical device 200 may also be attached to either one of two support arms 306 forming the thoracotomy instrument 300. A blade 308 for hooking the sternum is detachable from the support arm 306.

[0021] The medical device 200 includes an arm mechanism 202 and a clamp portion 204 for attaching the arm mechanism 202 to a thoracotomy instrument 300. The arm mechanism 202 has a bendable arm body 206 and a handle portion 208 for holding the arm body 206 in a predetermined bent state.

[0022] 2, the medical positioner 10 includes a suction pad section 12 and a connection section 14 provided at the end of the suction pad section 12. A positioner main body 16 is connected to the connection section 14, which is then connected to a suction source 210 (see FIG. 1) via the positioner main body 16.

[0023] The suction pad portion 12 is formed of an elastic material such as silicone rubber. Note that the constituent material of the suction pad portion 12 may be a rubber other than silicone rubber. In other words, the suction pad portion 12 is formed of an elastically deformable material.

[0024] As shown in Fig. 3, the suction pad section 12 is hollow. The suction pad section 12 includes an edge section 18 provided at one end, a skirt section 20, and a space section 22. The edge section 18 is provided at the tip, which is one end of the suction pad section 12. The edge section 18 is formed in an annular shape and contacts the surface P2 of an organ P1 of a living body P (see Fig. 5A). In a cross section along the axial direction of the suction pad section 12, 80% or more of the total length of the skirt section 20 along the axial direction is linear.

[0025] The skirt portion 20 extends in a tapered manner from the edge portion 18 to the connecting portion 14. A space portion 22 is provided inside the skirt portion 20. The space portion 22 communicates with a suction source 210 (see FIG. 1) through a suction flow path 24 of the connecting portion 14. Air in the space portion 22 can be suctioned by the suction source 210. As shown in FIG. 5A , the skirt portion 20 is configured so that at least a portion of the skirt portion 20 adjacent to the edge portion 18 comes into contact with the surface P2 of the organ P1 when the edge portion 18 of the suction pad portion 12 is in contact with the surface P2 of the organ P1 and the air in the space portion 22 is not being suctioned.

[0026] As shown in FIG. 3 , the skirt portion 20 includes a base 121 and a plurality of legs 122. The base 121 is formed in a generally cylindrical shape adjacent to the connecting portion 14. The plurality of legs 122 extend from the base 121 to the edge portion 18. As shown in FIG. 4 , in a plan view seen from the axial direction of the suction pad portion 12, the plurality of legs 122 protrude radially in a direction away from the axis of the suction pad portion 12. The plurality of legs 122 are equally spaced apart in the circumferential direction around the axis of the suction pad portion 12. Below, a case where the skirt portion 20 of the suction pad portion 12 includes four legs 122 will be described. The number of legs 122 is not limited to four. The number of legs 122 may be five or more, or may be three.

[0027] In a cross section perpendicular to the axis of the suction pad portion 12, the cross section of each of the plurality of legs 122 is a trapezoidal shape that is convex outward.

[0028] As shown in FIG. 2 , the skirt portion 20 of the suction pad portion 12 further includes a connecting portion 26 and an inclined portion 28. The connecting portion 26 connects adjacent ones of the multiple leg portions 122 to each other in the circumferential direction centered on the axis of the suction pad portion 12. As shown in FIG. 3 , the inclined portion 28 is provided on the leg portion 122 that constitutes the skirt portion 20. The inclined portion 28 is inclined with respect to the axis of the suction pad portion 12 and extends toward the edge portion 18 to the tip of the suction pad portion 12. As shown in FIG. 3 , in a cross section taken along the axis of the suction pad portion 12, the inclined portion 28 and the connecting portion 26 form a triangular portion 30 that tapers toward the tip of the suction pad portion 12.

[0029] The skirt portion 20 further has a skirt tip portion 201 at its tip end. The skirt tip portion 201 is provided between the inclined portion 28 and the edge portion 18. The angle θ1 of the skirt tip portion 201 relative to the axis of the suction pad portion 12 is smaller than the angle θ2 of the inclined portion 28 relative to the axis of the suction pad portion 12. The length L2 of the skirt tip portion 201 in the axial direction of the suction pad portion 12 is ¼ or less of the total length L1 of the skirt portion 20 in the axial direction of the suction pad portion 12. The total length L1 of the skirt portion 20 is the length from the boundary between the suction pad portion 12 and the connection portion 14 to the edge portion 18. The length L2 of the skirt tip portion 201 in the axial direction of the suction pad portion 12 is preferably ⅙ or less of the total length L1 of the skirt portion 20. More preferably, the length L2 of the skirt tip portion 201 is ⅛ or less of the total length L1 of the skirt portion 20.

[0030] The inner surface of the suction pad section 12 faces the space section 22. A sheet of gauze 32 is attached to the inner surface of the suction pad section 12. The gauze 32 is provided so as to cover the inner surface of the suction pad section 12. As shown in Fig. 5B , when the suction pad section 12 suctions the organ P1, the gauze 32 comes into contact with the surface P2 of the organ P1. The gauze 32 prevents the surface P2 of the organ P1 from slipping against the suction pad section 12.

[0031] As shown in Fig. 3, the connection part 14 is provided at the other end of the suction pad part 12. The connection part 14 has a suction flow path 24 that penetrates in the axial direction. The suction flow path 24 communicates with the space part 22. The positioner main body 16 is connected to the connection part 14. The suction flow path 24 of the connection part 14 is connected to a suction source 210 via the positioner main body 16.

[0032] 1, the positioner body 16 is formed with a flow path (not shown) for guiding air in the space 22 of the suction pad portion 12 to the suction source 210. The positioner body 16 has a tube 34 connecting the connection portion 14 and the suction source 210.

[0033] Next, a method of using the medical positioner 10 will be described.

[0034] First, as shown in FIG. 1 , a medical professional (user) attaches an arm connector (not shown) of the medical positioner 10 to the tip of the arm body 206 of the medical device 200, which is attached to the rack 304 (or support arm 306) of the thoracotomy instrument 300. Then, as shown in FIG. 5A , the medical professional brings the edge 18 of the suction pad 12 into contact with the surface P2 of an organ P1, such as the heart. When the tip of the suction pad 12 is pressed against the surface P2 of the organ P1, the skirt 20, including the edge 18 and the skirt tip 201, elastically deforms so as to expand along the surface P2 of the organ P1 in a direction away from the axis of the suction pad 12. Specifically, the multiple legs 122 of the skirt 20 expand radially outward at the boundary between the base 121 and the legs 122. The edge 18 of the suction pad portion 12 contacts the surface P2 of the organ P1 in a circular pattern, and a portion of the skirt portion 20 adjacent to the edge 18 contacts the surface P2 of the organ P1. At this time, the suction pad portion 12 is in surface contact with the surface P2 of the organ P1 over a predetermined area. In the space 22, the gap between the skirt portion 20 and the surface P2 of the organ P1 gradually increases from the contact area between the skirt portion 20 and the surface P2 of the organ P1 toward the connection portion 14.

[0035] With one end of the suction pad 12 in contact with the surface P2 of the organ P1, suction by the suction source 210 is initiated. This causes air in the space 22 of the suction pad 12 to be guided to the suction source 210 via the suction flow path 24 and the tube 34. As a result, as shown in FIG. 5B , the air in the space 22 is sucked, sucking the surface P2 of the organ P1 toward the suction pad 12, and the portion of the skirt 20 closer to the connecting portion 14 comes into contact with the surface P2. In other words, the organ P1 is suctioned to the suction pad 12 with a larger contact area between the skirt 20 and the surface P2 of the organ P1 than when not suctioned. Because the suction pad 12 is attached to the organ P1, the medical professional can move the arm 206 to hold the organ P1 in a desired position.

[0036] This embodiment has the following advantages.

[0037] 5A, the medical positioner 10 includes a suction pad section 12 formed into a hollow shape from an elastically deformable material, and the suction pad section 12 has an edge section 18 that contacts the surface P2 of the organ P1, and a skirt section 20 that extends tapered from the edge section 18 toward the connection section 14. When the edge section 18 of the suction pad section 12 contacts the surface P2 of the organ P1 and air is not being sucked from the space section 22, the portion of the skirt section 20 adjacent to the edge section 18 at the tip of the suction pad section 12 contacts the surface P2 of the organ P1.

[0038] 5B, when the suction pad section 12 elastically deforms by sucking air from the space 22, deformation of the surface P2 of the organ P1 in the area adjacent to the edge 18 is suppressed. Therefore, the suction pad section 12 can be brought into closer contact with the organ P1 to hold it, and the generation of holding marks on the surface P2 of the organ P1 during suction can be suppressed.

[0039] As shown in Figure 2, the skirt portion 20 has a base 121 adjacent to the connection portion 14, and a plurality of legs 122 extending from the base 121 to the edge portion 18 and protruding radially in a direction away from the axis of the suction pad portion 12 when viewed in a plan view from the axial direction of the suction pad portion 12 (see Figure 4).

[0040] Thus, by providing the skirt portion 20 with a plurality of legs 122, the suction pad portion 12 can be more effectively held in close contact with the surface P2 of the organ P1.

[0041] 4, in a cross section perpendicular to the axis of the suction pad unit 12, the cross section of each of the multiple legs 122 is an outwardly convex arc shape, so that when the suction pad unit 12 suctions the surface P2 of the organ P1, the skirt unit 20 can be effectively deformed to come into close contact with the surface P2 of the organ P1.

[0042] 3, the skirt portion 20 includes connecting portions 26 that connect adjacent ones of the plurality of leg portions 122 to each other, and inclined portions 28 that are provided on the legs 122 and inclined with respect to the axis of the suction pad portion 12, extending toward the edge portion 18 to the tip of the suction pad portion 12. In a cross section taken along the axis of the suction pad portion 12, the inclined portions 28 and the connecting portions 26 form a triangular portion 30 that tapers toward the tip of the suction pad portion 12. As a result, the suction pad portion 12 is formed in a tapered shape toward the tip, which suppresses deformation of the surface P2 of the organ P1 during suction.

[0043] The skirt portion 20 has a skirt tip portion 201 provided between the inclined portion 28 and the edge portion 18, and the angle θ1 of the skirt tip portion 201 relative to the axis of the suction pad portion 12 is smaller than the angle θ2 of the inclined portion 28 relative to the axis. The length L2 of the skirt tip portion 201 is ¼ or less of the total length L1 of the skirt portion 20 in the axial direction of the suction pad portion 12. As a result, the length L2 of the skirt tip portion 201 of the skirt portion 20 is short, which effectively suppresses deformation of the organ P1 during suction.

[0044] The medical positioner 10A according to a modified example shown in Fig. 6 includes a suction pad portion 12A. As shown in Fig. 7, the suction pad portion 12A includes an inclined portion 28A formed on the skirt portion 20A of the leg portion 122A. The inclined portion 28A is inclined with respect to the axis of the suction pad portion 12A and extends toward the edge portion 18 to the tip of the suction pad portion 12A. The inclined portion 28A extends to the edge portion 18 of the suction pad portion 12A. As shown in Fig. 8, in a cross section perpendicular to the axis of the suction pad portion 12A, the cross section of each of the multiple legs 122A is an arc-shaped portion that is convex outward. In a cross section perpendicular to the axis of the suction pad portion 12A, the cross sections of each of the multiple legs 122A have the same shape.

[0045] 9A , the edge 18 of the suction pad 12A is brought into contact with the surface P2 of an organ P1, such as the heart. When the suction pad 12A is pressed against the surface P2 of the organ P1, the edge 18 and the skirt 20A are elastically deformed to expand along the surface P2 of the organ P1 in a direction away from the axis of the suction pad 12A. Specifically, the skirts 20A of the multiple legs 122A expand radially outward at the boundary between the base 121 and the legs 122A.

[0046] As shown in Figure 9B, suction by the suction source 210 (see Figure 1) is initiated with one end of the suction pad unit 12A in contact with the surface P2 of the organ P1. Air in the space 22 of the suction pad unit 12A is then guided to the suction source 210 via the suction flow path 24 and the tube 34. The surface P2 of the organ P1 is sucked toward the suction pad unit 12A, and the portion of the skirt unit 20A near the connecting portion 14 comes into contact with the surface P2. At this time, in a cross section along the axis of the suction pad unit 12A, the edge 18 of the suction pad unit 12A and a portion of the skirt unit 20A come into contact with the surface P2 of the organ P1, and no depression is formed inside the tip of the skirt unit 20A.

[0047] The modified example has the following effects.

[0048] As shown in Fig. 7, the inclined portion 28A of the suction pad portion 12A extends to the edge portion 18. With this configuration, since the inclined portion 28A of the suction pad portion 12A is inclined to the edge portion 18, as shown in Fig. 9B, when the medical positioner 10A sucks and suctions the surface P2 of the organ P1, no depression is formed inside the tip of the skirt portion 20A in a cross section along the axis of the suction pad portion 12A. Therefore, deformation of the organ P1 during suction can be effectively suppressed.

[0049] The medical positioner 10A according to the modified example is not limited to having a suction pad portion 12A with four legs 122A. As shown in Fig. 10, the suction pad portion 12B may be configured to have three legs 122B, as in a medical positioner 10B.

[0050] The present invention is not limited to the above disclosure, and various configurations can be adopted without departing from the gist of the present invention.

Claims

1. A medical positioner for holding a living body organ in a desired posture, comprising: a suction pad portion formed in a hollow shape from an elastically deformable material; and a connection portion provided in a part of the suction pad portion and having a suction flow path connected to a suction source for sucking air in the suction pad portion. The suction pad portion has an edge portion in contact with the surface of the organ, a skirt portion extending in a tapered shape from the edge portion toward the connection portion, and a space portion provided inside the skirt portion and communicating with the suction flow path. The skirt portion is configured such that, in a state where the edge portion of the suction pad portion is in contact with the surface of the organ and the air in the space portion is not sucked, a portion of the skirt portion adjacent to the edge portion at the tip of the suction pad portion is in contact with the surface of the organ.

2. The medical positioner according to claim 1, wherein the skirt portion has a base portion adjacent to the connection portion, and a plurality of leg portions extending from the base portion to the edge portion and radially protruding in a direction away from the axis of the suction pad portion in a plan view as viewed from the axial direction of the suction pad portion.

3. The medical positioner according to claim 2, wherein, in a cross section perpendicular to the axis of the suction pad portion, the cross section of each of the plurality of leg portions is a convex arc shape facing outward.

4. The medical positioner according to claim 2, further comprising: a connecting portion connecting adjacent ones of the plurality of leg portions to each other; and an inclined portion provided on the leg portion and extending obliquely with respect to the axis of the suction pad portion toward the edge portion to the tip of the suction pad portion. In a cross section along the axis of the suction pad portion, the inclined portion and the connecting portion form a triangular portion that tapers toward the tip of the suction pad portion.

5. The medical positioner according to claim 4, wherein the skirt portion has a skirt tip portion provided between the inclined portion and the edge portion and having an angle with respect to the axis of the suction pad portion smaller than the angle of the inclined portion with respect to the axis, and the length of the skirt tip portion in the axial direction is 1 / 4 or less of the total length of the skirt portion in the axial direction.

6. In the medical positioner according to claim 4, the inclined portion extends to the edge portion, the medical positioner.

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