Ultrasonic diagnosis and therapy system in which focusing point of therapeutic ultrasonic wave is locked at predetermined position within observation ultrasonic scanning range

Patent 5471988 Issued on December 5, 1995. Estimated Expiration Date:

December 23, 2014. Estimated Expiration Date is calculated based on simple USPTO term provisions. It does not account for terminal disclaimers, term adjustments, failure to pay maintenance fees, or other factors which might affect the term of a patent.

Abstract Claims Description Full Text

Patent References

System of therapeutic ultrasound and real-time ultrasonic scanning
Patent #: 4932414
Issued on: 06/12/1990
Inventor: Coleman, et al.

Localization and therapy system for treatment of spatially oriented focal disease
Patent #: 5036855
Issued on: 08/06/1991
Inventor: Fry, et al.

Lithotripsy ultrasound locating device Patent #: 5158085
Issued on: 10/27/1992
Inventor: Belikan, et al.

Inventors

Assignee

Olympus Optical Co., Ltd.

Application

No. 363621 filed on 12/23/1994

US Classes:

600/439, With therapeutic device600/463, With acoustical or display imaging601/3Hyperthermia

Examiners

Primary: Manuel, George

Attorney, Agent or Firm

Armstrong, Westerman, Hattori, McLeland & Naughton

International Class

A61B 008/12

Foreign Application Priority Data

1993-12-24 JP

Abstract

Provided on the side of a distal end of an insertion part are an observation ultrasonic transducer for acquiring an ultrasonic image and a therapeutic ultrasonic transducer for outputting a therapeutic ultrasonic wave so as to be focused. Positioning or the like between the observation ultrasonic transducer and the therapeutic ultrasonic transducer is so conducted that a focusing point at which the therapeutic ultrasonic wave is focused is locked to a predetermined position within a scanning range of the observation ultrasonic wave. If the position of the focusing point is locked whereby a lesion part to be treated is set to a predetermined position on an ultrasonic image, it is necessarily possible to conduct the position setting to the focusing point. It is also made possible to confirm the position of the lesion part and to acoustically observe a state of the lesion part during irradiation of the therapeutic ultrasonic wave.