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Urological Instruments Research, Inc.

Urological Instrument Research, Inc.

Advanced Urological Developments

German G Borodulin

Alexander Shkolnik

Maxim D Persidsky

Ananias Diokno

Joachim W Thuroff

Perinchery Narayan

Gary E Leach

Marshall Stoller

Alexander Shkornik

Raphael Baron

Joachim Thuroff

A vaginal speculum having a handle portion and a set of blade pairs some of which can be removably attached to the distal end of the handle and others can be slidingly inserted through the proximal end of the handle. Both pairs of the blades have snapping engagement with one and the same locking mechanism of the handle. The handle may constitute a permanent part, and the blades may be replaceable.

Universal vaginal speculum with disconnectable blades

The invention relates to a combination of a vaginal speculum with a single-lens colposcope for use in a screening process for detecting mucosal abnormalities of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia or invasive cancer, e.g., in the vaginal cavity or on the external parts of the genitalia, as an addition to a Pap Smear screening process. The vaginal speculum is identical to a conventional speculum in its shape, dimensions, and function and differs from a conventional instrument only by having on the inner surface of the lower blade a small projection with a slot for guiding a single-loop colposcope. The latter consists of a tubular rod that can be slidingly inserted into the aforementioned slot and support on its distal end an optical lens. The lens may have a central opening for insertion of surgical instruments, e.g., a biopsy sampler. The proximal end of the tubular rod may support a rubber bulb for suction fluids from the distal end of the lower blade via the tubular rod. In use, the colposcope is inserted into the vaginal speculum through the guide slot so that the physician can manipulate with the colposcope by moving it in axial direction for focusing the lens and by turning the rod to the left or to the right for observing an area of interest. The vaginal speculum and the colposcope can be molded from plastic and can be disposable.

Combination of a vaginal speculum with a single-lens colposcope

A universal pot and pan lid holder is composed of two cylindrical segments having through aligned circular slots and radial outward projections. The projection of one of the segments passes through the circular slot of the other segment and vise verse. The side edges of the cylindrical segments, which face each other, define an opening between them for access to the interior of the holder. In an assembled state of the segments they form a substantially cylindrical body with open ends and an access opening in the side of the body, so that the holder can rest on a support surface with its lower edge and provide the upper edge for temporary supporting pot or pan covers or lids during cooking. The diameter of the cylindrical body should be smaller than the diameter of the lids to be supported. The segments have recesses in the aforementioned projections for insertion of protruding portions formed on additional support member, so that this member can be inserted and stored together with the holder in a storage position, in which both segments are shifted with respect to each in a circular direction to a position of maximum overlapping and minimum space occupied by the device.

Universal pan and pot lid holder

The method of the invention for measuring positions and dimensions of vaginal prolapses is carried out with the use of a vaginal speculum having at least one removable with a scale. Measurements are carried out by manipulating the pivotally connected parts and the removable blade by inserting the moveable blade into the vagina of a female patient until contact with the reference point, e.g., the top of the cervix, and reading the number on the scale for determining the distance L1 from the reference point to the top of the cervix. The speculum is then withdrawn in a direction away from the cervix and expanded by rotating the pivotal parts for exposing the wall of the vagina on the side of the completely removable blade for observation. The exposed prolapse is evaluated with regard to its severity. The removable blade is shifted to the tip of the prolapse, and the distance L2 from the reference point to the tip of the prolapse is determined with the use of the scale. Position of the prolapse is then determined by subtracting L2 from L1.

Method for measuring positions and dimensions of vaginal prolapses with a vaginal speculum having removable blades

A universal pot and pan lid holder in the form of an open-top cylindrical body having at least one portion of its cylindrical side wall removable for access to the interior of the body from its side. The diameter of the cylindrical body should be smaller than the diameter of the lids to be supported. The removable portion has on its outer surface radial outward projections. For use as a lid support, the holder is placed onto the table or counter top with its open side up, the removable portion is removed from the cylindrical body and is placed onto the table or counter top, using the aforementioned radial projections as supports for the removed portion. When necessary, the hot or fatty pot or pan lid is placed during cooking onto the open top side of the cylindrical body with the internal (pot or pan covering) side of the lid facing up. Since the internal side of the lid faces up, dripping from the lid to the support surface is completely prevented. The cylindrical side wall may have two removable portions. The second removable portion may be located diametrically opposite to the first one and may have a flat pad on the outer side of the removable portion. When removed and placed onto the table or counter top with its flat pad up, this second removable portion may be used as a support for a a kettle, pan, pot, or the like. The perforations in the bottom of the holder make it possible to use it as a strainer for washing such foods products as fruits, vegetable, berries, rice, etc.

A vaginal speculum consists of two pivotally interconnected disconnectable parts. Each part slidingly supports a movable blade moveable in the longitudinal direction of the speculum. In addition to longitudinal movement, one of the blades can be moved circumferentially. Each blade can be completely withdrawn from the speculum, even during the procedure, i.e., without removing the speculum from the vagina. As a result, the same speculum can be used in procedures requiring both as well as only one blade. Furthermore, the entire upper part of the speculum, i.e., the guide portion together with the removable blade, can be completely disconnected from the speculum without removing the latter from the vagina. The remaining lower part can be used as a spatula. Circumferential displacement of one of the blades in both directions makes it possible to observe the vaginal cavity over the entire periphery without rotating the entire speculum or replacing it with another tool.

Disconnectable vaginal speculum with removeable blades

A female urethral catheter for self-catheterization with catheter guiding means comprising: a tubular catheter body having a distal end for insertion into the patient's urinary bladder through the urethra, said distal end having a urine inlet opening; an opened proximal end not insertable into the urethra and used for discharging the urine taken from the urinary bladder; a sterile infection protective cap slidingly fit onto said distal end of said catheter, said cap having a slit on its distal end for possibility of pushing said catheter through said sterile tip into the bladder without physical contact of the catheter with the infectious front part of the urethra; and a combined mirror and catheter attachment means on the distal end of said cap to facilitate the patient in finding the position of the urethra meatus and for attachment of the catheter to the patient's after insertion of the cap into the urethra.

Catheter for self-catheterization with guiding mirror

An inflatable vaginal pessary of the invention, which can be mechanically inserted into and removed from the patient's vagina, comprises a tapered body inflatable at its large-diameter side and having an axial channel inflation of the pessary. This channel passes from the small-diameter end to the inflatable chamber and has a check valve at the outer end of the channel for inflation of the pessary. The pessary can be connected to and disconnected from a mechanism for insertion and removal of the pessary into and from the vaginal cavity. This mechanism has a hollow tubular housing with a funnel-like finder for engagement with the tapered end of the pessary. On the bottom of the finder the pessary installation mechanism has a threaded tubular stem that could be screwed into the threaded opening on the tapered end of the pessary. On the proximal end the mechanism has a pumping bulb for inflating the pessary via the check valve by squeezing the bulb, in the same manner as inflation of the occlusive cuff in a manually-operated blood-pressure measuring apparatus. The pessary of the invention can be easily installed into the patient's vagina by the patient herself. For this purpose, the pessary is connected to the aforementioned mechanism, inserted by the patient into an appropriate position inside her vagina, inflated to a required degree in order to fix the pessary in place, and is then disconnected from the mechanism for use during the day. In its inflated state with an increase diameter the pessary compresses the urethra through the vaginal wall and thus reduces the cross section of the urethral lumen. At the end of the day before the bed time, the patient easily reconnects the mechanism to the pessary, deflates the pessary, and removes the latter by means of the same mechanism.

Device and a method for mechanical installation and removal of inflatable vaginal pessary

A vaginal speculum consisting of two blades pivotally interconnected through a fork-like member so that the blades can be expanded and fixed in an expanded state in order to dilate the vagina for observing the condition of the vagina cavity. The device is characterized by having adjustable blades, which can be withdrawn partially or completely for replacement with blades of other dimensions without withdrawing the entire speculum from the vagina. In a closed state, the distal ends of the blades form a bifocal lens, which can be used for visually detecting changes, associated with an earlier stage of cancer or erosion. Provision of retractable blades makes it possible for a physician to withdraw the blades in an alternating sequence for exposing one of the walls of the vagina cavity by pressing down with the longer blade on the opposite wall.

Vaginal speculum with adjustable blades

A combined bottle opener and stopper comprises a metal plate with side edges bent downward and inwardly. Opening is performed with the use of a conventional pry off method. Opened bottles are closed with a rubber pad attached to the bottom of a recess on the inner face of the plate. The opener-stopper has three bent edges which have different heights with the difference corresponding to the pitch of the thread on a threaded bottle neck. For temporary closing the bottle, i.e., with beer or carbonated water, the device is screwed onto the threaded bottle neck as a nut until the rubber pad is tightly pressed to the upper face of the bottle to hermetically close the latter. For closing bottles with nonthreaded bottle necks, the device is moved onto the bottle neck by guiding the convergent bent edges over the neck in a direction transverse to the bottle's axis until the device is fixed tightly on the bottle due to convergence of the bent edges with the rubber pad, thereby to seal the bottle's opening. The device is also provided with sharp edges for cutting plastic wrappings around the bottle neck and with an opener for metal cans openable by pulling up a tongue connected to a scored can cover.

Opener and stopper for crimped and threaded bottle caps

A universal mechanical dilator combined with massaging action comprises a probe (12) consisting of a two rods (22 and 24), a drive unit (14) and an adapter (16) that connects the probe (12) to the drive unit. The instrument is intended for dilation of the urethra or other ducts of a human body and can operate in three different modes: pure dilation, pure vibration, and dilations combined with vibrations. This is achieved by using the adapter (16) as an adjustable coupling. The probe (12) together with the adapter (16) can be disconnected from the drive unit (14) and used separately as a mechanical manual dilator. At its distal end, the probe (12) has means for connecting replaceable tips (28a, 32a) used for various applications, i.e., urethral, anal, vaginal, etc. The invention also relates to a method of treatment of voiding or an orectal diseases by combining dilations with vibrations. The instrument can also be used for training sphincteric muscles.

Universal mechanical dilator combined with massaging action

A vibratory device (20) for treating female voiding dysfunctions, such as urinary stress incontinence, by inserting it into a patient's urinary tract and imparting vibrations to the urethral walls and the bladder neck. The device is made in the form of a urological bougie (23) which has a distal end and a proximal end and consists of two resilient rods (26 and 28). The rods are removably interconnected at their distal ends by means of two short extensions (52a and 52b) which are inserted into a cup-shaped cavity (68). This cavity is formed at the end of a cam (66). The cam has an elliptical or oval shape and is driven into rotation from a rotary drive unit (24) through a cam shaft (64) which passes through the hole formed by grooves (54) on the mating surface of the rods. Due to the elliptical configuration of the cam, its rotation causes expansion of the rods (26 and 28). The rods, however, cannot be disconnected during the operation, as their projections (52a and 52b) are confined within the cup-shaped cavity. The probe is covered by a rubber condom-like shell (30) which protects the mucosa of the patient's urethra from pinching. At the same time the outer shell prevents leaking of the urine from the patient's bladder during the treatment procedure. With the shell the vibratory treatment can be carried out with the bladder being filled. In this case vibration can be transmitted to the detrusor muscles, i.e., to the bladder walls. As a result, the vibratory treatment can be more efficiently used.

Vibratory device for treating voiding dysfunction

A cystoscope of the invention comprises a main portion (10) and a tubular sheath (12, 110) that carries on its distal end a balloon (22, 114, 214) inflatable from the outer side of the cystoscope for spreading apart the prostate lobes in the prostatic part of the urethra and thus improving conditions for observation and operation on the prostate. The invention also provides a cystoscope convertable into a resectoscope which consists of a sheath (12, 110) and an outer sleeve (112), slidingly guided over the sheath. On the outer side of its distal portion, the sliding outer sleeve (112) carries an inflatable balloon (114) which is connected to an air-feed tube (118) located inside the sheath. The outer sleeve is connected to an inner sleeve (116) which slides inside the sheath. The distal end face (110b) of the sheath is inclined at an acute angle to accommodate the inclined optical portion of the cystoscope, whereas the distal end face (116a) of the inner sleeve is arranged substantially at 90.degree. to the longitudinal direction of the instrument to define the resectoscopic end of the instrument. Thus, the instrument is inserted once and can be used both for observation and operation by shifting the inner sleeve forward or backward and replacing the optical system, thus converting the instrument into a resectoscope or a cystoscope. At the same, time, by supplying air into the balloon (114) via the air-feed tube (118), which also functions as a pusher for the moveable part of the instrument, it is possible to inflate the balloon (114) and thus to move the prostate lobes apart and to improve observation conditions in the operation site.

Method for improving observation conditions in urethra and a cystoscope

A combined mechanical dilator-urethrotome comprising a radially-expandable probe (12) consisting of two rods (16 and 18) of a semicircular cross-section which form a complete circle in a closed state of the probe. One of the rods (16) has a core (32) rigidly attached thereto at the proximal end of this rod and arranged at an angle to the direction of the probe. The second rod (18) has a post portion (52) at the proximal end. The post portion (52) has a central opening (51), and the aforementioned core (32) is slidingly inserted into the central opening (51). The end of the core that projects beyond the limits of the post is connected to a handle (14) that can rotate with respect to the core (32) and has a thread engageable with the mating thread on the post. As a result, rotation of the handle causes screwing or unscrewing of the thread of the handle onto or from the thread of the post. Displacement of the handle (14) with respect to the core (32) causes expansion or contraction of the probe. Longitudinal slots are cut in both rods for insertion of a knife (42) that allows incision of constructions that may occur in the urethra. The same slots can be used for attachment of diameter-expanding pads (84) that increase the total outside diameter of the probe and make it suitable for use in a very wide rage of dilation diameters. The instrument can be used as a universal mechanical dilator and a urethrotome.

Growing community of inventors

San Francisco, CA, United States of America

German G Borodulin