WO2012015248A2

WO2012015248A2 - Apparatus for generating high intensity focused ultrasound

Info

Publication number: WO2012015248A2
Application number: PCT/KR2011/005552
Authority: WO
Inventors: 조성찬
Original assignee: Cho Sung Chan
Priority date: 2010-07-30
Filing date: 2011-07-28
Publication date: 2012-02-02
Also published as: CN103052426A; WO2012015248A3; KR101052060B1

Abstract

An apparatus for generating high intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) includes: a housing; an ultrasonic transducer which is provided inside the housing and generates a diagnostic ultrasound; and a plurality of HIFU transducers which are provided in the housing and generates the HIFU. The apparatus for generating the HIFU includes the ultrasonic transducer for acquiring diagnostic images and the HIFU-generating transducers, which have a relatively short life and which can be exchanged at the end of their lifespan without exchanging the ultrasonic transducer since the HIFU transducers have a separate structure, allow for performance of a diagnostic function and simultaneously improve economic efficiency.

Description

Focused ultrasound generator

The present invention relates to a focused ultrasound generating apparatus capable of focused ultrasound therapy while performing a diagnostic function through real-time image confirmation by generating a diagnostic ultrasound and a focused ultrasound.

BACKGROUND ART Focused ultrasound therapy techniques for focusing ultrasound and using high intensity focused ultrasound to treat a patient's affected area or for skin beauty are known. This focused ultrasound therapy is performed by a focused ultrasound generating apparatus using a focused ultrasound transducer that focuses the ultrasound to generate a high intensity focused ultrasound.

Meanwhile, an apparatus for adding an ultrasound diagnosis function to a focused ultrasound generating device has been introduced to perform an image diagnosis on a treatment target while performing focused ultrasound therapy. Conventionally, a focused ultrasound generating apparatus having a diagnostic function in which a diagnostic ultrasound transducer for generating diagnostic ultrasound is integrally formed in a focused ultrasound generating apparatus has been developed.

Miniaturization is essential in order to utilize the focused ultrasound generating device having such a diagnosis function for skin cosmetic procedures, and conventionally, a method of acquiring an image for positioning is inserted by inserting a diagnostic ultrasound transducer of a single element into the center of the focused ultrasound transducer. It was.

However, in the case of a focused ultrasound generating apparatus using a diagnostic ultrasound transducer of a single device, since only the A-mode image can be obtained, only a still image stored by separately obtaining an image can be implemented when the treatment area is large, and for this purpose, Of the image processing apparatus had to be developed, and in particular it was impossible to obtain a real-time image for the treatment.

On the other hand, in order to obtain a real-time 2D cross-sectional image it is necessary to insert the array (array) ultrasound transducer in the center of the focused ultrasound transducer, in this case there is a problem that the manufacturing cost of the product is greatly increased and economic efficiency is lowered. In particular, since the life of the focused ultrasound transducer is limited, it is economically very inefficient when the life of the focused ultrasound transducer is relatively long, which means that the diagnostic array ultrasound transducer that can be used must be disposed together with the integrally configured focused ultrasound transducer. .

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the problems as described above, and the problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide an economically efficient focused ultrasound generating device having an ultrasound generating function for real-time diagnostic image acquisition.

A focused ultrasound generating device having a diagnostic function according to an embodiment of the present invention for achieving the above object is a housing (housing), an ultrasonic transducer installed in the housing and generating a diagnostic ultrasound, and is installed in the housing A plurality of focused ultrasound transducers for generating high intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU).

The diagnostic ultrasound transducer may be installed to be detachable from the housing.

The diagnostic ultrasound transducer may be a 2D ultrasound transducer.

The plurality of focused ultrasound transducers may be installed in front of the diagnostic ultrasound transducer so as to be spaced apart from each other so as to form an area through which the ultrasound generated by the diagnostic ultrasound transducer passes forward.

The plurality of focused ultrasound transducers may be arranged radially at equal intervals.

The plurality of focused ultrasound transducers may be arranged such that the generated focused ultrasounds have a common focus.

According to the present invention, a diagnostic ultrasound transducer for acquiring a diagnostic image and a focused ultrasound transducer for generating therapeutic focused ultrasound are provided, but the diagnostic ultrasound transducer is installed in a detachable state. In this case, since the ultrasound transducer for acquiring the diagnostic image can be separated and reused, a focused ultrasound generation apparatus with improved diagnostic efficiency and economic efficiency is provided.

In addition, a plurality of focused ultrasound transducers may be used to generate high intensity focused ultrasound similarly or identically to a single focused ultrasound transducer.

1 is a schematic diagram of a focused ultrasound generating apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

2 is a view showing the arrangement relationship between the ultrasound transducer and the focused ultrasound transducer of the focused ultrasound generation apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

3 is a diagram illustrating an arrangement relationship between an ultrasound transducer and a focused ultrasound transducer of a focused ultrasound generating apparatus according to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

4 is a simulation result of the generation of high intensity focused ultrasound using the focused ultrasound generation apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.

5 is a view for explaining a state in which the diagnostic ultrasound transducer is installed in the housing of the focused ultrasound generation device according to another embodiment of the present invention.

6 is a block diagram illustrating a control relationship of the focused ultrasound generating apparatus according to the exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Referring to FIG. 1, the focused ultrasound generating apparatus according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention includes a housing 40. The housing 40 has a form in which the tip thereof is opened to form an opening, and the treatment window 41 is installed in the opening.

The diagnostic ultrasound transducer 20 is installed inside the housing 10 and generates diagnostic ultrasound. The diagnostic ultrasound transducer 20 may be a conventional ultrasound transducer that generates diagnostic ultrasound for acquiring a diagnostic image, and is installed inside the housing 40 to allow the generated diagnostic ultrasound to move forward of the housing 40.

A plurality of focused ultrasound transducers 30 are installed in the housing 40, and the focused ultrasound transducers 30 generate high intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU). The plurality of focused ultrasound transducers 30 may be implemented as a conventional focused ultrasound transducer that generates focused ultrasound.

4 is a simulation result of the generation of high intensity focused ultrasound using the focused ultrasound generation apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 4, when focusing ultrasounds are generated by using two focused ultrasound transducers, a single focused ultrasound transducer is used even if the focused ultrasounds of two focused ultrasound transducers are generated at the same point to generate focused ultrasounds. The same effect occurs as to generate high intensity focused ultrasound. This can effectively generate high intensity focused ultrasound in an environment in which it is difficult to use a single focused ultrasound transducer due to various factors, such as when the focused ultrasound transducers are spaced apart to obtain a diagnostic ultrasound image, as in the exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

In this case, the plurality of focused ultrasound transducers 30 may be installed on the support 10 fixed inside the housing 40. An opening 11 is formed at the tip of the support 10, and a plurality of ultrasonic transducers 30 may be disposed around the opening 11.

On the other hand, as shown in Figure 1, the diagnostic ultrasound transducer 20 may be disposed behind the ultrasound transducer 30, wherein the diagnostic ultrasound generated by the diagnostic ultrasound transducer 20 is the opening of the support 10 It passes through (11) and advances forward.

The diagnostic ultrasound transducer 20 is installed in a detachable state in the housing 40. For example, the diagnostic ultrasound transducer 20 may be installed in a manner passing through the center of the housing 40. That is, referring to FIG. 4, the through hole 43 may be formed in the housing 40 in the lateral direction, and the diagnostic ultrasound transducer 20 may be inserted into the through hole 43. In this case, the diagnostic ultrasonic transducer 20 may be formed to be discharged again through the through hole 43, and thus may be detachably installed in the case 40. At this time, the support 10 is also formed with a through hole 13 (shown in FIG. 1) through which the diagnostic ultrasonic transducer 20 is inserted. The diagnostic ultrasound transducer 20 is inserted into the through hole 43 of the housing 40 and the through hole 13 of the support 10 in a detachable state.

Since the focused ultrasound transducer 30 is installed in the housing 40 in a detachable state, the focused ultrasound transducer 30, which has a relatively short lifespan, is shorter than the diagnostic ultrasound transducer 20 that generates diagnostic ultrasound. In this case, by separating and reusing the diagnostic ultrasound transducer 20 and replacing the focused ultrasound transducer 30 and the housing 40, the diagnostic ultrasound transducer 20 may be reused to implement a new focused ultrasound generating device. Can be greatly improved.

The support 10 on which the focused ultrasound transducer 30 is installed, and the diagnostic ultrasound transducer 20 may be installed to be movable in the housing 40. Accordingly, the procedure can be performed while moving the treatment and diagnosis site.

On the other hand, in Figure 1 is shown a case of two focused ultrasound transducer 30, the focused ultrasound transducer 30 may be provided with three or more.

In this case, as shown in the drawing, the plurality of focused ultrasound transducers 30 are diagnosed so as to be spaced apart from each other so as to form an area A through which ultrasonic waves generated by the diagnostic ultrasound transducer 20 pass forward. It may be disposed in front of the ultrasonic transducer 20. In addition, the plurality of focused ultrasound transducers 30 may be arranged radially at equal intervals. For example, referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, when the two focused ultrasound transducers 30 are provided, the two focused ultrasound transducers may be disposed at intervals of 180 degrees while being spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance.

Meanwhile, referring to FIG. 3, according to another embodiment of the present invention, four focused ultrasound transducers 30 may be provided, and the three focused ultrasound transducers 30 are spaced 90 degrees apart from each other by a predetermined distance. It can be arranged as. In this case, the four focused ultrasound transducers 30 may be arranged to focus the focused ultrasound at a common focal point. The number of focused ultrasound transducers 30 is not limited to two or four but may be provided as three or five or more.

In this case, as shown in FIG. 1, the plurality of focused ultrasound transducers 30 may be arranged such that the focused ultrasounds generated by each have a common focal point F. FIG. The focused ultrasounds generated by the plurality of focused ultrasound transducers 30 are focused at the same point to generate heat, which can be used for treatment. In this case, the focal point F of the focused ultrasound generated by the focused ultrasound transducer 30 may be positioned outside the treatment window 41.

On the other hand, as shown in the figure, the ultrasound generated by the diagnostic ultrasound transducer 20 is irradiated to the body in the same direction as the focused ultrasound through the front end of the housing 40. In this case, the diagnostic ultrasound may be formed to coincide with the treatment position of the focused ultrasound. Accordingly, during the treatment using the focused ultrasound, the treatment site may be examined in real time using the diagnostic ultrasound.

Meanwhile, according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the diagnostic ultrasound transducer 20 may be a 2D ultrasound transducer. If the diagnostic ultrasound transducer 20 is a 2D ultrasound transducer, diagnostic images may be obtained in real time by improving diagnostic efficiency, and a housing including a plurality of focused ultrasound transducers 30 may be used even if a relatively expensive 2D ultrasound transducer is used. Since the 10 can be detachably detached, the diagnostic ultrasound transducer 20 can be recovered after separation and replaced along only the focused ultrasound transducer 30, thereby preventing the 2D ultrasound transducer from being disposed together with the focused ultrasound transducer 30. Therefore, economic feasibility can be secured.

From above, the interior of the housing 40 may have a space filled with water or an ultrasonic delivery medium. When the focused ultrasound transducer 30 is immersed in water or an ultrasonic delivery medium, desaturation may be performed to remove bubbles in the water to improve ultrasonic attenuation and delivery characteristics of the filled water or the ultrasonic delivery medium. The interior of the housing 40 may be sealed to be filled with water or an ultrasonic delivery medium, and the front end of the housing 40 and the surface in close contact with the diagnostic ultrasonic transducer 20 may be formed of a material having less attenuation of ultrasonic waves. have.

Meanwhile, referring to FIG. 5, the focused ultrasound generating apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention controls the first control unit 51 and the focused ultrasound transducer 30 that control the diagnostic ultrasound transducer 20 that generates the diagnostic ultrasound. The second control unit 53 and the system control unit 55 for controlling the first control unit 51 and the second control unit 53 as a whole. In addition, a monitor 57 displaying an image acquired by the diagnostic ultrasound transducer 20 may be connected to the first control unit 51.

The

control units

51, 53, 55 include a microprocessor, memory, and associated hardware and software, and may be configured to perform a control algorithm in accordance with predetermined logic.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the scope of the present invention is not limited thereto, and the present invention is easily changed and equivalent to those of ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention pertains. Includes all changes and modifications to the scope of the matter.

The present invention relates to a focused ultrasound generating device can be applied to medical devices and the like, there is industrial applicability.

Claims

Housing,

A diagnostic ultrasound transducer installed in the housing and generating diagnostic ultrasound;

And a plurality of focused ultrasound transducers installed in the housing to generate focused ultrasound (HIFU).
In claim 1,

The diagnostic ultrasound transducer is a focused ultrasound generating device having a diagnostic function that is installed in a removable state in the housing.
In claim 1,

The diagnostic ultrasound transducer is a focused ultrasound generating device having a diagnostic function that is a 2D ultrasound transducer.
In claim 1,

The plurality of focused ultrasound transducers may include a focused ultrasound generator having a diagnostic function installed in front of the diagnostic ultrasound transducer so that the plurality of focused ultrasound transducers are spaced apart from each other so as to form an area through which the ultrasound waves generated by the diagnostic ultrasound transducer pass forward. Device.
In claim 4,

And a plurality of focused ultrasound transducers having diagnostic functions arranged radially at equal intervals.
In claim 4,

The plurality of focused ultrasound transducers are arranged so that the generated focused ultrasound has a common focus.