Mouth tray for ultrasound scans

Abstract

The invention relates to a mouth tray for ultrasound scans, comprising a body (1) formed from a sheet (10) of flexible, impermeable material, which defines a cavity (2) containing an ultrasound conductive gel (21), said body (1) comprising: a central portion (1a) having a first surface (11) for contact with the inside of the mouth and a second surface (12) intended for contact with an ultrasound transducer and spaced apart from the first surface (11); and a peripheral portion (1b) which surrounds a U-shaped part of the central portion (1a) and which comprises a channel (13) that is open towards the first surface (11) of the central portion (1a), said channel (13) forming an area for receiving and supporting the teeth of the patient's lower or upper arch during the ultrasound scan.

Description

[0001] DESCRIPTION

[0002] Mouth splint for ultrasound examinations.

[0003] Technical sector.

[0004] The present invention relates to a mouth splint for the practice of ultrasound, and is applicable in the technical sector dedicated to the manufacture of equipment and devices for carrying out dental tests and in particular ultrasound.

[0005] Prior art.

[0006] In the field of dentistry, some interventions require certain actions such as measuring the distance between the gum and bone or periodontal probing, which is done using an analog system consisting of a regulated instrument that is inserted between the gum and tooth, with the risks that this entails, such as having to be calibrated for the operator to always apply the same force, if the tooth has calculus, the patient's opening, dental anatomy; or with the Florida periodontal probe or similar (systems that are calibrated so that a filament enters with 25 grams of force and thus calculates the distance, obtaining the same problems, simply solving the operator calibration.

[0007] The use of these devices carries a risk of injuring the palatine artery during the obtaining of a gingival graft since, although there is an average of where this artery runs, there are aberrant anatomies and exceptions, which make its precise location difficult.

[0008] On the other hand, ultrasound scanners used in medicine, which use high-frequency waves or ultrasound to create real-time images of the body's internal tissues, are now widely known.

[0009] These ultrasound machines generally consist of a transducer, which emits high-frequency sound waves and receives the echoes that bounce off the body's tissues. This generates multiple data points or electrical signals that are processed by a computer and displayed on a screen as black and white pixel images that show the different tissue densities. These ultrasound machines also have a control panel where the operator makes various adjustments, such as the frequency of the sound waves or the brightness of the images.

[0010] The use of these ultrasound scanners to perform the aforementioned dental tests would be clearly advantageous compared to the techniques currently used; however, such use in the mouth has a number of limitations that make it difficult, to say the least.

[0011] In this regard, it should be mentioned that, with the current technique, to capture a good image with the ultrasound, it is necessary to place the probe or transducer in a position practically perpendicular to the tissue to be scanned; however, the mouth has anatomical structures that make this difficult, such as: tongue, cheeks, palatal vault, curvature of the arch, and its width.

[0012] An additional drawback is that to obtain a good image, it would be necessary to apply a gel to the patient's mouth to prevent the presence of air between the transducer and the patient; therefore, taking the complementary test makes it difficult in many patients, and the correct positioning of the transducer in the oral cavity is one of the current limitations.

[0013] The technical problem posed is to create an invention that facilitates the use of ultrasound in dental tests and that solves the problems mentioned above.

[0014] Explanation of the invention.

[0015] The oral splint for ultrasound imaging, the subject of this invention, has technical characteristics aimed at facilitating the performance of ultrasounds of the patient's mouth, and more specifically allowing comfortable positioning of the transducer or probe inside the mouth for both the operator and the patient, and eliminating the difficulty and discomfort involved in applying gel inside the mouth to ensure correct image capture by the ultrasound machine.

[0016] In summary, this oral splint facilitates the use of the ultrasound scanner to capture images of the mouth, calculate distances using images, avoiding operator or calculation errors, see the evolution of the re-vascularization of the grafts, both bone and gingival, at different times, or locate the palatine artery for graft harvesting.

[0017] The oral splint of the invention consists of a body formed by a sheet of flexible and impermeable material, suitable for dental use, which delimits a cavity containing an ultrasound-conducting gel, said body comprising a central portion with a first contact surface with the inside of the mouth and a second contact surface of the ultrasound transducer, distanced from said first surface; and a peripheral portion, in the shape of a “II”, which surrounds said central portion frontally and laterally and which has a channel open towards the first surface of the central portion; said channel forming a reception and support area for the teeth of one of the arches, upper or lower, of the patient during the practice of ultrasound.

[0018] The mouthguard's body is made of a flexible, waterproof sheet of material, allowing the ultrasound transducer or probe to be pressed against the second surface of the central portion. This causes the gel-containing cavity to deform under pressure, and the first surface of the mouthguard to adapt to the anatomical structure of the area being examined, preventing gaps between the anatomical structure and the ultrasound transducer. The conductive gel inside the mouthguard ensures the transmission of ultrasound waves emitted by the ultrasound machine and the echoes that bounce off the body's tissues, creating an image of the internal tissues.

[0019] According to the invention, the first surface of the central portion of the body has a domed or convex configuration towards the outside of the body of the oral splint, while the second surface of said central portion may have a substantially flat configuration, or a concave configuration that enters the cavity containing the ultrasound conductive gel.

[0020] It has also been envisaged that the cavity containing the ultrasound conductive gel can encompass both the central and peripheral portions of the mouth splint, or that it can be located only in the central portion, leaving the peripheral portion solid. This mouth splint allows for comfortable ultrasound imaging of areas furthest from the teeth, by positioning the transducer near the distal plane of the teeth and avoiding interference from the palate, tongue, or other internal structures of the mouth.

[0021] As indicated, the sheet forming the body of the oral splint is made of a flexible and waterproof material, preferably latex or polyurethane, although the use of other materials indicated for dental use is not ruled out, and with a thickness preferably between 0.02 and 0.3 mm.

[0022] The gel inside the mouthpiece is an ultrasound-conducting gel, of the same type as the gel applied directly to the patient's skin for ultrasound scans of other parts of the body, for example, water-based, glycerol, and propylene glycol.

[0023] Brief description of the content of the drawings.

[0024] To complement the description being made and in order to facilitate the understanding of the characteristics of the invention, a set of drawings is included with this descriptive report in which, for illustrative and non-limiting purposes, the following has been represented:

[0025] Figure 1 shows a plan view of an example of the oral splint for performing ultrasound scans, according to the invention.

[0026] Figures 2 and 3 show two vertical sections, through planes A-A' and B-B', of the oral splint of figure 1, in which the central portion of the body of the oral splint has a first surface with a domed configuration and a second surface that is substantially flat.

[0027] Figures 4 and 5 show two vertical sections, analogous to those in Figures 2 and 3, of a prototype of the oral splint in which the first and second surfaces of the central portion of the oral splint body have a domed, convex and concave configuration respectively. Figure 6 shows a section, analogous to that in Figures 2 and 4, of a prototype of the oral splint in which the cavity containing the ultrasound-conducting gel is located in the central portion of the oral splint body, and in which the peripheral portion is solid.

[0028] Detailed exposition of modes of implementation of the invention.

[0029] In the embodiment shown in figures 1 to 3, the oral splint (100) for ultrasound practice comprises a body (1) formed by a flexible and impermeable sheet (10) that delimits a cavity (2) containing an ultrasound-conducting gel (21).

[0030] The body (1) of the oral splint (100) comprises a central portion (1a) and a peripheral portion (1b) surrounding a “II” shaped part of said central portion (1a)

[0031] The central portion (1a) of the body (1) comprises a first surface (11) for contact with the inside of the patient's mouth and a second surface (12), distanced from said first surface (11), and suitable for contact and support of the ultrasound transducer (not shown).

[0032] The peripheral portion (1b) of the body (1) of the oral splint (100) comprises along its entire length a channel (13), open towards the first surface (11) of the central portion (1a); said channel (13) forming a reception and support zone for the teeth of one of the arches, upper or lower, of the patient during the practice of ultrasound.

[0033] In the embodiment examples shown in the figures, the first surface (11) of the central portion (1a) of the body (1) has a domed or convex configuration towards the outside of the oral splint (100), while the second surface of said central portion (1a) may be substantially flat as shown in the embodiment example of figures 2 and 3, or have a concave configuration that enters into the cavity (2) containing the ultrasound-conducting gel (21), as shown for example in the embodiment of figures 4 and 5.

[0034] In the examples shown in Figures 1 to 5, the cavity (2) extends across both the central portion (1a) and the peripheral portion (1b) of the body (1) of the oral splint (100). However, this cavity (2) can occupy only the central portion (1a) of the body (1) of the oral splint (100), as shown in Figure 6, regardless of whether the second surface of the central portion (1a) of the body (1) of the oral splint (100) is flat or concave. In this way, the peripheral portion (1b) is solid and prevents the risk of breakage of the cavity (2) when the user places their teeth on or bite down on this peripheral portion (1b).

[0035] In the example shown in the accompanying figures, the sheet (10) is made of latex and has a thickness between 0.02 and 0.3 mm. In the example shown in Figure 6, this sheet (10) is reinforced and has a greater thickness in the peripheral portion (1b).

[0036] Once the nature of the invention has been sufficiently described, as well as an example of a preferred embodiment, it is noted for the appropriate purposes that the materials, shape, size and arrangement of the elements described may be modified, provided that this does not imply an alteration of the essential characteristics of the invention claimed below.

Claims

CLAIMS 1. Oral splint for the practice of ultrasound; characterized in that it comprises a body (1) formed by a sheet (10) of a flexible and impermeable material, which delimits a cavity (2) containing a gel (21) that conducts ultrasound, said body (1) comprising a central portion (1a) with a first surface (11) in contact with the inside of the mouth and a second surface (12) in contact with an ultrasound transducer, distanced from said first surface (11); and a peripheral portion (1b) that surrounds a “II” shaped part of said central portion (1a) and that has a channel (13), open towards the first surface (11) of the central portion (1a); said channel (13) forming a reception and support area for the teeth of one of the arches, upper or lower, of the patient during the practice of ultrasound.

2. Oral splint, according to claim 1, wherein the first surface (11) of the central portion (1a) of the body (1) has a domed or convex configuration towards the outside of the body (1) of the oral splint (100).

3. Oral splint, according to any of claims 1 and 2, wherein the second surface (12) of the central portion (1a) of the body (1) of the oral splint (100) has a substantially flat configuration. 4 Oral splint, according to any of claims 1 and 2, wherein the second surface (12) of the central portion (1a) of the body (1) of the oral splint (100) has a concave configuration that extends into the cavity (2) containing the ultrasound-conducting gel (21) 5. Oral splint, according to any preceding claim, wherein the sheet (10) forming the body (1) of the oral splint (100) is made of latex, polyurethane or other similar material suitable for dental use.

6. Oral splint, according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the sheet (10) forming the body of the splint has a thickness between 0.02 and 0.3 mm.

7. Oral splint, according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the ultrasound-conducting gel (21) contained in the cavity (2) is a gel comprising in its composition water, glycerol, and propylene glycol.

8. Oral splint, according to any of claims 1 to 7, wherein the cavity (2) containing the ultrasound-conducting gel (21) encompasses the central portion (1a) and the peripheral portion (1b) of the body (1) of the oral splint (100).

9. Oral splint, according to any of claims 1 to 7, wherein the cavity (2) containing the ultrasound conductive gel occupies only the central portion (1a) of the body (1) of the oral splint (100).

Images