Implant scaler tip having disk-shaped protrusion and implant cleaning tool including same

Abstract

Disclosed are: an implant scaler tip which is mounted on a dental ultrasonic scaler and can crush and remove various foreign substances, such as calculus and plaque, that adhere to the surface of an implant; and an implant cleaning tool including same. To this end, provided is an implant scaler tip comprising: a body part assembled to an ultrasonic medical scaler; a tip part that is connected to the body part and has a tip formed to remove foreign substances attached to the implant; and a protrusion part that is provided at the tip part and has a disk-shaped protrusion formed to remove foreign substances attached to the implant. According to the present invention, the disk-shaped protrusion can be used to easily remove calculus formed at implant sites that are difficult for conventional scaler tips to reach.

Description

An implant scaler tip equipped with a disc-shaped projection and an implant cleaning tool including the same

[0001] The present invention relates to an implant scaler tip capable of cleaning an implant using a dental ultrasonic scaler and an implant cleaning tool including the same. More specifically, the invention relates to an implant scaler tip capable of crushing and removing various foreign substances, such as tartar and plaque, that adhere to the surface of an implant when mounted on a dental ultrasonic scaler, and an implant cleaning tool including the same.

[0002]

[0003] Medical implants can be made of various materials, such as composite materials or biodegradable materials, depending on their intended use.

[0004] Among these, silicone implants are used to replace soft tissue parts, stainless steel implants are used when high mechanical strength is required, such as for fracture repair or joint replacement, and polyethylene implants can be used to replace joints.

[0005] In addition, dental implants are made of metallic materials such as steel, titanium, zirconium, tantalum, niobium, hafnium, and their alloys. In particular, titanium or titanium alloys are widely used in the fabrication of implants because titanium is suitable for in vivo use, possesses excellent corrosion resistance in body fluids, and is lightweight and strong.

[0006] The aforementioned dental implants are used to restore teeth to patients who have lost one or more teeth. However, these implants can cause comprehensive periodontal disease, including peri-implantitis, in which bacteria such as tartar and plaque adhere to the surrounding gum tissue and cause inflammation.

[0007] The aforementioned periodontal disease is estimated to affect about 70 to 90% of the world's population and is the main cause of tooth loss in people over 35 years of age.

[0008] The aforementioned periodontal disease is caused by bacterial deposits accumulating on the tooth surface along the gum margin, resulting in the destruction of the supporting tissues that hold the teeth in place. This destruction of supporting tissues leads to a deeper space between the tooth root and the gum tissue (periodontal defect).

[0009] Since such periodontal disease not only causes bone loss connected to the teeth but ultimately leads to implant loss, dental treatment such as removing bacterial deposits and tartar is required.

[0010] Specifically, for the treatment of periodontal disease, dental and implant scaling can be performed to remove bacterial deposits and tartar from inside and outside the gums.

[0011] In addition, the surface of the implant and surrounding tissues sometimes require regular cleaning after the implant is placed in the body. Since this cleaning can halt the progression of disease by removing microorganisms and contaminants from the implant surface, it must be performed regularly by a dentist.

[0012] Most of the cleaning tools commonly used today to clean metallic implants are designed to clean teeth, and an implant cleaning device (Korean Registered Patent No. 10-1157406) as shown in Fig. 1 was invented for the safe cleaning of the tooth root surface.

[0013] The removal brush of such an implant cleaning device is provided with a chuck portion (11) at one end that is fixedly mounted to the chuck of a handpiece, and a brush portion (15) at the other end that removes foreign substances such as tartar, inflammatory tissue, and bacteria generated around teeth or dental implants while rotating by the driving force of the handpiece.

[0014] Additionally, the brush portion (15) is composed of a brush head (16) that extends outward along a central axis from the end of the other end portion and a plurality of brush bristles (17) formed around the brush head (16).

[0015] In addition, the removal brush is attached to the handpiece and inserted to an appropriate depth between the dental implant and the gum. At this time, the gum is swollen due to foreign substances such as tartar, inflamed tissue, and bacteria, and the alveolar bone is partially damaged and absorbed.

[0016] Therefore, the removal brush inserted to an appropriate depth rotates at high or low speed in the direction of the arrow, removing foreign substances embedded in or attached to the implant, gums, and alveolar bone.

[0017] However, the aforementioned implant cleaning device had the problem that removing foreign matter was not only inconvenient but also time-consuming, as the operator had to carefully move the removal brush along the surface of the implant to remove the foreign matter.

[0018] Recently, in order to resolve the aforementioned problems, an implant cleaning device as shown in FIGS. 2 and FIGS. 3 (Korean Registered Patent No. 10-1477496) was invented.

[0019] The aforementioned implant cleaning device uses a mechanical cleaning method and is composed of a shank (24) provided on the upper surface of the main body (22) and mounted on a handpiece, each elastic support leg (26) provided on the lower surface of the main body (22) and surrounding the surface of the implant (A), and a cleaning tip (28) provided at the end of each elastic support leg (26) facing inward and in contact with the surface of the implant (A).

[0020] The above implant cleaning device has a problem in that each elastic support leg (26) is formed to surround the surface of the implant (A), so there is frequent friction with the gums when cleaning the implant, causing injury to the gums.

[0021] In addition, the implant cleaning device had a problem in that each elastic support leg (26) was deformed when rotating or rotated while in close contact with the implant and shifted in the direction of rotation, so the cleaning tip (28) could not make accurate contact with the surface of the implant (10), resulting in uneven cleaning and only damaging the gums.

[0022]

[0023] Accordingly, the first objective of the present invention is to provide a scaler tip for an implant that can effectively remove calculus, which has a relatively higher adhesion strength compared to plaque, and can remove calculus formed on the artificial root or the interface between the artificial crown and the artificial root of the implant without damaging surrounding human tissue.

[0024] In addition, the second objective of the present invention is to provide an implant cleaning tool capable of effectively removing plaque, which has a relatively lower adhesion strength compared to tartar, and capable of removing plaque deposited on the surface of an implant fixture, the implant connection site, or a fine prosthetic site that is difficult to access with instruments, without damaging surrounding human tissues.

[0025]

[0026] To achieve the first objective of the present invention described above, one embodiment of the present invention provides an implant scaler tip comprising: a body portion assembled to an ultrasonic medical scaler; a tip portion connected to the body portion and having a tip formed thereon for removing foreign substances attached to an implant; and a projection portion provided on the tip portion and having a disc-shaped projection formed thereon for removing foreign substances attached to an implant.

[0027] In addition, to achieve the second objective of the present invention, one embodiment of the present invention provides an implant cleaning tool comprising: a body portion assembled to an ultrasonic medical scaler; a tip portion connected to the body portion and having a tip formed thereon for removing foreign matter attached to an implant; a projection portion provided on the tip portion and having a disc-shaped projection formed thereon for removing foreign matter attached to an implant; an adapter portion formed thereon with a recessed groove that is extrapolated to the end of the implant scaler tip and can be assembled to the projection portion; and a brush portion connected to the end of the adapter portion for removing foreign matter formed around the implant.

[0028]

[0029] According to the present invention, tartar formed in an implant area that is difficult to access with a conventional scaler tip can be easily removed using a disc-shaped protrusion.

[0030] In addition, the present invention can effectively remove contaminants formed on the artificial root of an implant by using a disc-shaped projection having a screw thread structure similar to the surface of the artificial root of an implant.

[0031] In addition, the present invention can remove plaque deposited on the surface of a dental implant fixture, the implant connection site, or the prosthetic site, where the oral cavity space is narrow and pain-sensitive soft tissue is nearby, or where it is difficult to access with instruments.

[0032]

[0033] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing one embodiment of a cleaning device for conventional implants.

[0034] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing another embodiment of a cleaning device for conventional implants.

[0035] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram showing a cleaning method for an implant using the implant cleaning device of Figure 2.

[0036] FIG. 4 is a perspective view illustrating a scaler tip for an implant according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

[0037] FIG. 5 is a perspective view illustrating a scaler tip for an implant according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

[0038] FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating a scaler tip for an implant according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

[0039] FIG. 7 is a perspective view illustrating an implant cleaning tool according to the present invention.

[0040]

[0041] Hereinafter, an implant scaler tip equipped with a disc-shaped projection according to preferred embodiments of the present invention (hereinafter abbreviated as 'implant scaler tip') will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings.

[0042]

[0043] FIG. 4 is a perspective view illustrating a scaler tip for an implant according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

[0044] Referring to FIG. 4, the implant scaler tip according to the present invention comprises a body portion (110) assembled to an ultrasonic medical scaler (10), a tip portion (120) extending from the body portion (110) and forming a tip, and a disc-shaped projection portion (130) formed on the tip portion (120).

[0045] Here, the ultrasonic medical scaler (10) includes a handpiece (12) comprising a body and a head having a through hole formed at the tip, and an ultrasonic vibrator embedded in the head that generates ultrasonic vibrations, and the scaler tip is coupled to the ultrasonic vibrator through the through hole of the head and performs the function of scaling teeth by ultrasonic vibrations.

[0046] The handpiece (12) is formed to be small enough to be held in one hand and can be formed in various ways to provide an excellent grip, and preferably can be formed in a cylindrical shape. This handpiece (12) consists of a body and a head that are detachably connected by a connecting means.

[0047] A circuit board and the like are embedded inside the body, and a connection terminal electrically connected to the circuit board is provided at the rear end of the body to transmit an electrical signal input from the outside to an ultrasonic transducer. Additionally, a coupling groove is formed in the inner diameter of the front end of the body and is implemented as a coupling means together with the coupling ring of the head described later.

[0048] A through hole is formed in the center of the tip of the head, through which the rear end of the scaler tip passes, and a coupling ring is formed on the outer diameter of the rear end of the head and is detachably coupled to the coupling groove of the body. In addition, one or more, preferably four, coupling ribs are formed extending in the axial direction on the inner diameter of the tip of the head, and the number of such coupling ribs can be varied.

[0049] And a finishing ring is joined between the body and the head to finish the gap, and this finishing ring is joined to the rear outer diameter of the head and supported at the front end of the body, and the outer surfaces of the body, head, and finishing ring are formed to form a smooth surface.

[0050] The above-mentioned ultrasonic transducer is embedded in the head and converts an electrical signal input through a circuit board into mechanical vibration to generate ultrasonic vibration, and the ultrasonic vibration generated at this time is approximately 3,500 times per second.

[0051] The above-described ultrasonic transducer comprises a pair of piezoelectric elements that generate minute vibrations by an electrical signal input through a circuit board, a mass block coupled to the upper and lower parts of the pair of piezoelectric elements respectively to amplify the minute vibrations generated by the piezoelectric elements and cool the heat, and a booster coupled to the upper mass block to further amplify the amplified ultrasonic vibrations.

[0052] This medical scaler (10) receives an operation control signal through operation on a dental unit chair. At this time, the electrical signal input from the outside through operation on the dental unit chair is transmitted to the piezoelectric element of the ultrasonic transducer via a circuit board to generate micro-vibrations, and the micro-vibrations of the piezoelectric element are amplified as they pass through a mass block and a booster, and the ultrasonic vibrations of the booster are amplified once more through the scaler tip and transmitted to the teeth, thereby performing scaling of the teeth.

[0053]

[0054] Below, each component of the implant scaler tip will be described in more detail with reference to the drawings.

[0055] Referring to FIG. 4, the scaler tip for an implant according to the present invention includes a body portion (110).

[0056] The above body part (110) is assembled to the handpiece (12) to transmit ultrasonic vibrations generated from the ultrasonic vibrator to the tip part (120), and a tap hole is formed at the tip so that it can be screw-coupled to the ultrasonic vibrator.

[0057] Additionally, the body part (110) may be assembled in a straight line to the handpiece (12) of the medical scaler (10) as shown in FIG. 4 and may be made of a hard plastic or metal material. At this time, the metal material may be titanium, aluminum, copper, stainless steel, or an alloy thereof, but is not limited thereto.

[0058] In addition, the body portion (110) may be formed to have a cross-sectional area that is reduced at the rear end compared to the front end in the direction of the handpiece (12).

[0059] If necessary, the body portion (110) may be provided with a water supply pipe inside that moves cooling water supplied from the handpiece (12) of the medical scaler (10) along the longitudinal direction.

[0060] The above body portion (110) may be provided with a cooling water outlet that discharges cooling water transported along a water supply pipe at the tip towards the tip portion (120) and the protrusion portion (130). For example, the body portion (110) may be provided with a first cooling water outlet that discharges cooling water towards the tip portion (120) and a second cooling water outlet that discharges cooling water towards the protrusion portion (130).

[0061] Cooling water discharged through these main water pipes and cooling water outlets to the tip (120) and the protrusion (130) reduces damage to the gum soft tissue caused by heat and physical stimulation and improves the efficiency of removing foreign substances by the tip (120) and the protrusion (130).

[0062]

[0063] Referring to FIG. 4, the scaler tip for an implant according to the present invention includes a tip portion (120).

[0064] The above-mentioned tip portion (120) is connected to the above-mentioned body portion (110), and a tip is formed to remove foreign substances attached to the implant. At this time, the tip may be formed in various shapes considering the condition of the tooth.

[0065] The above-mentioned tip (120) has a bent structure that contacts the surface of the implant to remove foreign substances attached to the implant. At this time, the bending angle may be formed in the range of 10 to 90 degrees (°), but is not limited thereto.

[0066] The above-mentioned tip (120) may be made of a hard plastic or metal material, and it is preferable that it be made of the same material as the body (110) to increase manufacturing efficiency. At this time, the metal material may be titanium, aluminum, copper, stainless steel, or an alloy thereof, but is not limited thereto.

[0067] In one embodiment, the tip portion (120) according to the present invention may be formed to have an integral structure with the body portion (110).

[0068] In another embodiment, the tip portion (120) according to the present invention may be formed so as to be detachably attached to the body portion (110). To this end, a first spiral portion is formed along the inner surface of the rear end of the body portion (110) facing the tip portion (120) to assemble the tip portion (120), and a second spiral portion corresponding to the first spiral portion is formed along the outer surface of the front end of the tip portion (120) facing the body portion (110) to assemble with the first spiral portion.

[0069]

[0070] FIG. 5 is a perspective view illustrating an implant scaler tip according to a second embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 6 is a perspective view illustrating an implant scaler tip according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

[0071] Referring to FIGS. 4 to 6, the scaler tip for an implant according to the present invention includes a projection (130).

[0072] The above-mentioned protrusion (130) is provided on the above-mentioned tip (120), and a disc-shaped protrusion is formed to remove foreign substances attached to the implant.

[0073] These protrusions (130) easily access the boundary line between the artificial crown and abutment of the implant, the artificial root, etc., which are difficult to access with the tip (120), and remove foreign substances such as tartar attached to the boundary line between the artificial crown and abutment, the artificial root, etc.

[0074] As a first embodiment, the projection (130) according to the present invention may include a first projection (132) provided at a position spaced 1 mm to 3 mm from the end of the tip (120) to remove foreign matter attached to the boundary line between the artificial crown and the abutment of the implant as shown in FIG. 4.

[0075] This first projection (132) accesses the boundary line between the artificial crown and the abutment of the implant instead of the tip (120), which is difficult to access, and removes foreign substances such as tartar attached to that area.

[0076] As a second embodiment, the projection (130) according to the present invention may include a first projection (132) provided at a position spaced 1 mm to 3 mm from the end of the tip portion (120) as shown in FIG. 5, and a second projection (134) provided at a position spaced 10 mm to 15 mm from the end of the tip portion (120).

[0077] This second projection (134) assists the first projection (132), which provides a bonding force so that it can be stably coupled with the adapter part (200) described later, thereby performing the role of adding bonding force with the adapter part (200).

[0078] Additionally, the second projection (134) provides a function that allows a dentist to estimate the depth of inflammation without using a periodontal probe to measure the depth of inflammation.

[0079] In a specific embodiment, the first projection (132) according to the present invention may be formed to have a diameter of 0.5 mm to 1.5 mm so that it can be inserted between the tooth and the gum to measure the depth of inflammation. At this time, the second projection (134) may also be formed to have a diameter of 0.5 mm to 1.5 mm, but is not limited thereto.

[0080] Additionally, the first protrusion (132) and the second protrusion (134) may be formed to have a thickness of 0.3 mm to 1.0 mm.

[0081] If necessary, the projection (130) may have a scale formed between the first projection (132) and the second projection (134) so ​​that a dentist can measure the exact depth of inflammation.

[0082] In a third embodiment, the projection (130) according to the present invention may be composed of a spiral projection provided along the longitudinal direction at the end of the tip (120) to remove foreign substances attached to the artificial tooth root of the implant as shown in FIG. 6. At this time, it is preferable that the height of the screw thread of the spiral projection be configured to match the depth of the screw groove of the artificial tooth root so as to smoothly remove foreign substances attached to the artificial tooth root.

[0083] These spiral protrusions are formed with a structure corresponding to the threads of the artificial tooth root so that they can be inserted into the gaps between the threads of the artificial tooth root, and instead of the tip (120) which is difficult to access the artificial tooth root of the implant, they access the artificial tooth root and remove foreign substances such as tartar attached to the area.

[0084]

[0085] FIG. 7 is a perspective view illustrating an implant cleaning tool according to the present invention.

[0086] Referring to FIG. 7, the implant cleaning tool according to the present invention may include the aforementioned scaler tip for an implant, an adapter part (200) extrapolated to the end of the scaler tip for an implant, and a brush part (300) connected to the end of the adapter part (200) to remove foreign substances formed around the implant.

[0087]

[0088] Referring to FIG. 7, the implant cleaning tool according to the present invention includes an adapter part (200).

[0089] The adapter part (200) is formed with a recessed groove (210) that can be assembled with a protrusion (130) so as to be stably coupled with a scaler tip, and can be formed as a conical structure with a hollow formed so as to be fitted and coupled to the scaler tip, and an open bottom surface communicating with the hollow.

[0090] The adapter part (200) is formed with a structure in which a recessed groove (210) corresponds to a protrusion part (130). For example, if the protrusion part (130) is composed of a single first protrusion (132), the recessed groove (210) is composed of a single recessed groove (210) into which the first protrusion (132) can be inserted; if the protrusion part (130) is composed of a first protrusion (132) and a second protrusion (134), the recessed groove (210) is composed of a first recessed groove (210) and a second recessed groove (210) into which the first protrusion (132) and the second protrusion (134) can be inserted; and if the protrusion part (130) is composed of a spiral protrusion, the recessed groove (210) is composed of a spiral recessed groove.

[0091] The above adapter part (200) is configured in a shape corresponding to the scaler tip and slides into the tip part using flexibility.

[0092] The adapter part (200) above may be composed of silicone, rubber, or soft plastic such as latex or polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) so as to be coupled to a scaler tip as shown in FIG. 7. In this case, ethylene copolymer or polyurethane resin, etc. may be used as the soft plastic.

[0093] If necessary, the adapter part (200) may be formed to have a straight structure, or may be formed to have a length that covers the bent portion so as to be fitted and coupled to an implant scaler tip having a bent structure to maintain sufficient coupling force.

[0094] Additionally, the adapter portion (200) may be provided with a cooling water discharge hole at the end adjacent to the brush portion (300) for discharging cooling water supplied from the scaler tip. The cooling water discharged to the implant through this cooling water discharge hole reduces damage to soft tissue caused by heat and physical stimulation and improves the efficiency of removing foreign substances by the brush portion (300).

[0095]

[0096] Referring to FIG. 7, the implant cleaning tool according to the present invention includes a brush part (300).

[0097] The above-mentioned brush part (300) is connected to the end of the adapter part (200) and is used in a non-surgical procedure to remove plaque, etc. by vibrating in accordance with the ultrasonic vibration of the medical scaler (10).

[0098] The above-mentioned brush section (300) is configured to include a brush head (310) installed at the end of the adapter section (200), and a plurality of brush bristles (320) formed around the upper periphery of the brush head (310). At this time, the brush head (310) is positioned inside the adapter section (200) such that its lower portion contacts the tip section to receive ultrasonic vibrations from the scaler tip, and its upper portion is positioned outside the adapter section (200).

[0099] The above brush (310) may be composed of a metal capable of transmitting ultrasonic vibrations and being bendable according to the user's intention. For example, the brush (310) may be composed of at least one metal among titanium (Ti), stainless steel, aluminum (Al), copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), iron (Fe), nickel (Ni), chromium (Cr), silver (Ag), gold (Pt), and alloys thereof.

[0100] The above brush (320) may be composed of a material including any one of nylon, polyethylene, polypropylene, polyethylene terephthalate, polybutylene terephthalate, polytrimethylene terephthalate, and polyurethane.

[0101] Meanwhile, the sole (300) according to the present invention may be configured as any one of an inverted cone type, a cone type, or a thread type.

[0102] The above inverted cone type is shaped like an inverted cone that widens toward the end, and the above cone type is shaped like a cone that tapers toward the end.

[0103] The above thread type is a custom shape resembling the shape of an implant, and has a shape in which the length of the bristles (320) is long and short and then repeated.

[0104] The aforementioned inverted cone type and thread type have the advantage of excellent accessibility to the implant surface while minimizing damage to surrounding tissues. Additionally, the cone type has the advantage of being easier to access than the cone and thread types due to its tapered tip.

[0105]

[0106] Although the present invention has been described above with reference to preferred embodiments, those skilled in the art will understand that various modifications and changes can be made to the invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the following claims.

Claims

1. A body part assembled to an ultrasonic medical scaler; A tip portion connected to the above-mentioned body portion and formed with a tip for removing foreign substances attached to the implant; and An implant scaler tip comprising a projection portion having a disc-shaped projection formed thereon for removing foreign substances attached to the implant, provided at the aforementioned tip portion.

2. In claim 1, the projection An implant scaler tip characterized by including a first projection positioned at a distance of 1 mm to 3 mm from the tip of the tip portion to remove foreign matter attached to the boundary line between the artificial crown and the abutment of the implant.

3. In claim 2, the projection An implant scaler tip characterized by further including a second projection provided at a position spaced 10 mm to 15 mm from the tip of the above-mentioned tip.

4. In claim 3, the projection An implant scaler tip characterized by having a scale formed between the first and second protrusions to measure the depth of inflammation.

5. In claim 2, the first projection An implant scaler tip characterized by having a diameter of 0.5 mm to 1.5 mm and a thickness of 0.3 mm to 1.0 mm, so that it can be inserted between the tooth and the gum to measure the depth of inflammation.

6. In claim 1, the projection An implant scaler tip characterized by being composed of a spiral projection provided along the longitudinal direction at the tip of the aforementioned tip to remove foreign substances attached to the artificial root of the implant.

7. An implant scaler tip comprising a body portion assembled to an ultrasonic medical scaler, a tip portion connected to the body portion and having a tip formed thereon for removing foreign matter attached to an implant, and a projection portion provided on the tip portion and having a disc-shaped projection formed thereon for removing foreign matter attached to an implant; An adapter part having a recessed groove formed therein that is extrapolated to the end of the scaler tip for the implant and can be assembled with the projection; and An implant cleaning tool comprising a brush connected to the end of the adapter portion to remove foreign substances formed around the implant.

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