Alcon Laboratories, Inc.

Medical Instrument Development Laboratories, Inc.

Other

Cooper Medical Devices Corporation

Alcon Instrumentation, Inc.

Carl C Wang

Wayne W Rogers

Erik William Peterson

Steve Charles

Donald A Parker

Joseph T Buckingham

Daniel David Rogers

Julian M Cortella

Leif J Sundblom

Michael John Smidebush

Andrew C Wang

Fu-Ming Lian

A high-speed pneumatic cutting system having a cutter and an actuator. The cutter is a guillotine-type, pneumatic cutter that receives a train of pressure pulses from the actuator. The actuator is designed to capture pressure pulses it receives from a pneumatic energy source in a surgical machine, such as a vitrectomy machine, or to generate its own pneumatic energy. The actuator has an accumulator coupled to the outlet of the pneumatic energy and a pressure transducer that senses the pressure level inside the accumulator. A control and display unit with a plurality of input mechanisms receives inputs from a user who selects a desired cutting rate or frequency for the cutter. The control and display unit produces an output signal based on the inputs received. The outputs from the control and display unit and the pressure transducer are sent to a waveform shaping circuit. The waveform shaping circuit produces a command signal based on the inputs that it receives. The command signal is delivered to a valve that is coupled in fluid communication to the accumulator. The valve is opened and closed according to the command signal to produce a pulse train that will operate the cutter at the selected cutting rate. The actuator may be designed as a stand-alone unit or may be integrated into a surgical machine.

High-speed vitreous cutting system

High speed vitreous cutting system

A system and method is provided for preventing the development of an air embolism in an animal during and after a cardiovascular surgical procedure. Also provided is a device that can accurately control the pressure and/or flow of gas into the heart cavity and related blood vessels.

System and method for preventing an air embolism in a surgical procedure

A digital fluid delivery and aspiration apparatus with a mechanical de-amplifier for the delivery or removal of discrete volumes of fluidic material from a surgical site. The apparatus has a syringe with a plunger designed to be powered by a pneumatic air supply system. A ratcheting mechanism attached to a pneumatic piston by a mechanical linkage causes the plunger of the syringe to inject discrete doses of the fluidic material into the surgical site or remove discrete amounts of fluidic material from the surgical site. The mechanical linkage increases the force provided to the plunger by the movement of the piston and also de-amplifies the movement of the piston into a lesser movement of the plunger. Adjusting the waveform of the pneumatic air supply, coupled with the mechanical de-amplification of the movement of the pneumatic piston, reduces the jetting of the fluidic material being delivered, and allows the delivery or removal of precise volumes of fluidic material from the surgical site at precise rates without damaging the tissue into which or from which the fluidic material is being delivered or removed. The irrigation and aspiration features may be incorporated into one device.

Digital fluid delivery and aspiration apparatus with mechanical

A cutter for use in a surgical probe where the cutter has a first end for being coupled to a driving mechanism and an opposite end on which a blade portion and a contact portion are formed. The cutter is formed from a tube of hard material, such as stainless steel. The contact portion extends beyond the blade portion, which is used to cut tissue, thereby preventing the blade portion from contacting or hitting the inner surface of the closed end or tip of the needle of the probe.

Cutter for surgical probe

A device (10) for injection of fluidic materials into body tissue includes a syringe (22) and an injection housing (24). The syringe (24) includes a first end (26), a second end (28) , a hollow barrel (30) , a plunger (32) , and a rod (34) which extends through the second end (28) of the syringe (24). The housing (24) further includes a first end (42), a second end (44), and a bore (46). The first end (42) of the housing is disposed in juxtaposed relationship with the second end (28) of the syringe ( 22 ) . The rod ( 34 ) extends beyond the second end (44) of the housing (24). A piston (72) travels within the bore ( 46 ) in a reciprocal fashion, and cooperates with the rod ( 34 ) in a ratchet-like fashion. The piston (72) engages the rod (34) as the piston (72) travels toward the first end (42) of the housing (24), and disengages from the rod (34) as the piston (72) travels toward the second end (44) of the housing (24). The plunger (32) of the syringe (24) is thereby advanced in increments, each of which is translatable to a specific volume of fluidic material.

Device for injection of fluidic materials into body tissue

A method for injecting viscous material into the eye. In the injection into the eye, sufficient material is injected to separate a membrane from the retina so that intraocular scissors may be manipulated between the membrane and the retina to cut the attachment points. The membrane is then aspirated away. The injection is done using a standard glue injector with a one-shot and a continuous mode. The glue injector is pneumatically coupled through a sterile filter and a custom adaptor to a sterile syringe storing the material to be injected.

Method for injecting viscous fluid into the eye to lift retinal membrane

Method for injecting viscous fluid into the eye to life retinal membrane

An apparatus and method for injecting viscous material into the body. In the case of injection into the eye, sufficient material is injected to separate a membrane from the retina so that intraocular scissors may be manipulated between the membrane and the retina to cut the attachment points. The membrane is then aspirated away. The injection is done using a standard glue injector with a one-shot and a continuous mode. The glue injector is pneumatically coupled through a sterile filter and a custom adaptor to a sterile syringe storing the material to be injected.

Method and apparatus for injecting viscous fluid into the eye to lift

A pneumatic retinopexy injector includes a syringe to which is communicated a controllable gaseous pressure source. A desired volume of a gaseous substance can be injected by the syringe by utilizing a controller to introduce the pressurized gas to the syringe to cause the piston of the syringe to eject any contents of the syringe. The manual controller can comprise a foot pedal having a variable flow pneumatic valve. The invention can also utilize a vacuum source which is switchable to the syringe to allow automatic filling of the syringe.

Pneumatic retinopexy injector

A linear suction control system 10 includes a linear solenoid valve 11 which exhibits a flow through rate having a known proportional relationship with the current through the solenoid 30. Regulated fluid pressure 12 is fed through the linear solenoid valve 11 to a venturi-type pressure vacuum converter 17. The resulting vacuum is proportional to the flow rate through the valve 11 and thus to the current through the solenoid 30. A transducer 16 samples the vacuum output and produces a signal fed to a differential amplifier 17. The signal is compared in negative feedback fashion with a variable input voltage set by a potentiometer 18 or other variable voltage source, so that the transducer signal tracks the voltage source signal. The voltage source can comprise a potentiometer 18 actuated by a foot switch 19 or the like, so that angular position of the foot switch 19 relates directly and predictably to the vacuum output of the converter 13. The linear solenoid valve 11 includes an electromagnetic coil 30 arranged to translate a valve member 36, with an elastic member 35 biasing the valve member closed with a generally linear restoring force.

Linear suction control system

There is disclosed herein a system for providing control of multiple functions needed to perform eye surgery. A microprocessor based system controls a vacuum generation system using venturis and linear valves and a pneumatic system for driving vitrectomy probes and pneumatic scissors in either a variable frequency, multicut mode or a proportional cut mode where the cutting pressure is proportional to the position of a foot operated position sensor. The frequency of the vitrectomy probe cutting action can also be controlled and the level of vacuum can be controlled from a foot operated position sensor which can also be used to turn on or off a fragmentation device. The footswitch can also be used to turn irrigation fluid on or off, and the flow rate can be controlled from a control on the front panel. By making a certain foot motion in any certain aspiration modes, reflux of the aspiration line can be controlled. The vacuum level is continuously monitored over all aspiration conditions and adjusted to stay as close as possible to the desired vacuum level. A cassette proximity sensing system senses the presence of a cassette, and aids the user in drawing in and latching the cassette. The vacuum integrity of the cassette is automatically checked by the microprocessor each time one is drawn into the machine. The microprocessor also monitors the cassette for fullness and initiates a transfer to empty one bottle of the cassette into another bottle for storage when the first bottle becomes full. A back-up system checks the accuracy of cassette liquid level sensing apparatus by double checking for liquid in the line leading to the vacuum generation system. If water is detected, a fluid transfer from one bottle of the cassette to the other is initiated.

Multimedia apparatus for driving powered surgical instruments

There is disclosed a receptacle for a plug on the end of a fiber optic light guide probe used for projecting light into an area in which a surgeon is operating, said receptacle serving to prevent heat transfer from light source to the plug of said probe. A shoulder in the bore of the receptacle engages another shoulder on the plug with minimal area of contact to minimize the area of potential heat transfer. The dimensions of the central bore of the receptacle relative to the plug are such that an air gap exists all around the plug when inserted in the receptacle. The plug is provided with an insulating sleeve behind the plug shoulder, and this sleeve is mechanically supported by a Delrin plate and insert which give the system mechanical support and which minimizes heat transfer between the mechanical support of the receptacle and the plug because of the poor heat conductivity of plastic. There is also disclosed a light concentrator comprised of a parabolic mirror which concentrates light from an input cone entering an input aperture of the mirror into a smaller output aperture of the mirror in which the tip of a fiber optic bundle resides.

Optical system for powered surgical instrument system

A system 10 for proportional control of a pneumatic cutting device 13 includes a linear solenoid valve 11 having a flow rate therethrough proportional to the current passing through the solenoid 32. The linear solenoid valve 11 is actuated by a selectively varied electrical signal generated by a power supply 18 and controlled by a potentiometer 14 which is itself operated by a pedal foot controller 16. Regulated fluid pressure is fed through the linear soleoid valve 11 to a pneumatic cutting device 13 such as an intraocular microscissors which closes increasingly as the applied pressure increases. The linear solenoid valve 11 includes a flow path which is variably constricted or closed by a valve member 36, and a solenoid 32 which is arranged to pull the valve member 36 to open the flow path. An elastic member 35 is disposed to resiliently bias the valve member to the closed position; the linear restoring force of the elastic member provides a generally linear relationship between the fluid flow-through rate and the current through the solenoid 32, and a proportional relationship between the control pedal position and closure of the cutting device.

Growing community of inventors

Oakland, CA, United States of America

Carl C Wang