Breast Compression Paddle Inflatable Jacket Sliding Sheet
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current breast compression methods for mammography and tomosynthesis often cause discomfort due to non-uniform force distribution and can result in breast tissue being pushed towards the chest wall, reducing the amount of tissue imaged.
Innovation Solution
The use of an inflatable jacket on a breast compression paddle, which includes at least one inflatable chamber and a sheet that slides along the compression surface upon inflation, helps to pull breast tissue away from the chest wall and into the imaging area, reducing discomfort and improving tissue coverage.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a rigid compression paddle is used to compress the breast, then the breast is immobilized and tissue is spread out for imaging, but the patient experiences discomfort due to non-uniform force distribution
Solution Approach 1:
A sheet is introduced as an intermediary layer between the rigid compression paddle and the breast tissue. The sheet distributes the compression force more uniformly across the breast surface, reducing discomfort while maintaining effective immobilization for imaging
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses a flexible sheet that can conform to the breast surface, providing uniform pressure distribution. The sheet acts as a flexible interface that maintains contact and force distribution while accommodating the soft tissue geometry
2Reliability
If compression force is applied to immobilize the breast, then imaging quality improves, but breast tissue is pushed toward the chest wall and out of the image field
Solution Approach 1:
The compression paddle is angled relative to the compression surface, creating a three-dimensional compression geometry. This angular arrangement allows compression force to be applied in a direction that spreads tissue within the image field rather than pushing it uniformly toward the chest wall
Solution Approach 2:
The asymmetric positioning of the inflatable chamber and angled paddle configuration create non-uniform compression patterns that favorably distribute tissue within the imaging area while maintaining immobilization
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This solution reduces patient discomfort by distributing the compression force more evenly and ensures that more breast tissue is included in the imaging field, leading to improved imaging quality and patient comfort.
Implementation Method 1
the at least one inflatable chamber is configured to selectively inflate and induce the sheet to slide along the compression surface
Data Source
Figure 1A
Figure 1B
Figure 2A
AI summary
A breast compression paddle for use in an imaging system includes a compression surface and a jacket. The jacket includes at least one inflatable chamber disposed adjacent to the compression surface and a sheet covering at least a portion of the compression surface. The at least one inflatable chamber is configured to selectively inflate and induce the sheet to slide along the compression surface.