Patent · US Expired

Cryosurgical probe with sheath

US6193644A · kind A · utility

56Cited by
76References
11Claims
0Family size

Assignee

Inventors

Key dates

Filing dateMar 4, 1999
Grant dateFeb 27, 2001
Priority date
Expiry dateMar 4, 2019

Classification

  • Technology area (CPC A)Human Necessities
  • CPC primaryA61B2218/002
  • WIPO fieldMedical technology
  • WIPO sectorInstruments

Abstract

A sheath for use on a closed loop Joule-Thomson cryosurgical probe, and the combination of the and the closed loop probe. The sheath is slipped over the probe, thereby separating the probe from the environment. The sheath has a grip which fits over the handle of the cryosurgical probe, and an extendible shroud which can be longitudinally extended to cover tubing and which are attached to the handle. The sheath has a hollow multi-lumen catheter shaped and sized to fit snugly over the cannula of the cryosurgical probe. The catheter is not thermally conductive, preventing transfer of heat from the ambient to the gas mixture, and preventing the freezing of tissues at undesired locations along the catheter. A thermally conductive cap or tip is attached to the distal end of the hollow catheter. The thermally conductive cap or tip fits snugly over the cold tip on the probe, and it efficiently transfers heat from the target tissue to the cold tip, which in turn transfers heat to the expanded gas mixture. Various forms of auxiliary instrumentation can be mounted on the catheter or conductive tip, such as a temperature sensor, a heater, an ultrasonic transducer, or an optical element of a vi…

Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.