Urologix, Inc.

Cynosure, Inc.

Ellman International, Inc.

Jonathan Achenbach

Eric Norman Rudie

Simon M Furnish

Claude Tihon

Neil Nye

James E Burgett

Richard Epstein

Allen Putnam

RF energy for skin conditioning with a non-ablative electrode is applied with a handpiece incorporating means to prevent electrical shock to the patient when the energized electrode surface makes or breaks contact with the skin. In a preferred embodiment, switch means are incorporated in the handpiece and configured such that the active electrode surface is not energized until it is in actual contact with the patient's skin, and remains energized only while the active electrode surface remains in contact with the patient's skin, so that no voltage is present on the electrode, when an air gap whose dielectric breakdown can cause an electrical shock to the patient arises, immediately before or immediately after skin contact during a skin conditioning procedure. In another preferred embodiment, the electrode to skin impedance change as the electrode touches the skin is used to activate a switch that transfers RF to the electrode.

Radio-frequency treatment of skin tissue with shock-free handpiece

A device for treating tissue adjacent to a body lumen includes a catheter shaft and an energy emitting assembly. The catheter shaft is insertable into the body lumen and includes a plurality of cooling lumens arranged generally circumjacent a generally central lumen. At least some of the circumjacent cooling lumens are in fluid communication with the central lumen and the energy emitting assembly extends through the central lumen. The central lumen and at least one portion of the energy emitting assembly are configured to direct a flow of cooling fluid about an outer surface of the at least one portion of the energy emitting assembly within the central lumen.

Cooled antenna for device insertable into a body

An electrode especially useful for RF skin tightening procedures is characterized by an active front that is conical in part with the conical surface having a cone angle that is shallower than the corresponding angle in known electrodes. Preferably, the electrode of the invention has a conical section whose surface forms an angle greater than 60 degrees with the longitudinal axis of the electrode, and the outside diameter of the conical section is greater than 50% of the overall outside diameter of the electrode.

RF cosmetic rejuvenation device and procedure

A thermal therapy of body tissue with electromagnetic energy is controlled by feedback from one or more temperature sensors placed in the vicinity of the tissue to be treated. The temperature sensors are calibrated by comparing stabilized temperature values of the one or more temperature sensors against a normal range of body temperature and adjusting sensed temperature to a value within a normal body temperature range if the actual temperature value of a stabilized temperature sensor is less than the normal body temperature range. The temperature adjustment to the temperature sensor is maintained throughout the thermal therapy which reduces the risk of thermal damage to healthy tissue located near the tissue to be treated.

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New York, NY, United States of America

Jonathan Achenbach