JPS6337672B2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

[Field of the Invention] The present invention relates to an applicator for heating therapy, and particularly to an applicator for heating therapy for heating a predetermined location of a living body using electromagnetic waves. [Conventional technology and its problems] In recent years, heating therapy

[Purpose of the invention]

In consideration of the disadvantages of the conventional example, the present invention provides a variable radio wave that can effectively concentrate electromagnetic waves and locally heat the cancer even if the cancer is located at a position deviated from the set position of the applicator. The object is to provide a heating therapy applicator with a lens. [Summary of the Invention] Therefore, the present invention includes a case main body having a function as a waveguide, an electromagnetic wave feeding section provided at one end of the case main body, and an electromagnetic wave feeding section provided at the other end of the case main body. An applicator for heating therapy, which has an opening for delivery, the opening is equipped with a cooling mechanism for a living body, and a radio wave lens section is disposed between the opening and the power feeding section, The objective is to be achieved by adopting a configuration in which each of the plurality of metal plates forming the lens portion is rotatably provided. [First Embodiment of the Invention] The first embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. 6 to 1.
This will be explained based on FIG. In these figures, 10 indicates a case body that functions as a waveguide, and 11 indicates a cooling mechanism for cooling the surface of the living body A (see FIG. 1). Inside the case body 10, a power feeding section 12 is provided at the left end in FIG. 6, and a radio wave lens section 13 is provided at the fan-shaped section at the right end in FIG. Further, the case body 10 is filled with a liquid dielectric member that also serves as a cooling member, and this liquid dielectric member has a structure that allows this liquid dielectric member to flow out from the case body 10 side to the radiation opening 10A on the electromagnetic wave radiation side, as described later. It is becoming. As shown in FIG. 8, the power feeding section 12 has a width W set to be 1/2 to 1 wavelength of the electromagnetic wave in the liquid dielectric member. 12A
indicates a coaxial connector, and 12B (see FIG. 7) indicates an excitation antenna. As shown in FIG. 8, a dielectric plate 20 (made of plastic, for example) with low loss and a relatively large relative dielectric constant is attached to the inner wall of the power feeding section 12 in a plane parallel to the electric field direction E of the electromagnetic wave. As a result, the electric field distribution is made uniform as will be described later. This dielectric plate 20 has a structure that extends to the inner wall of the case body 10. The cooling mechanism 11 is configured to cool a living body (first
A contact support plate 21 made of a dielectric plate curved according to the angle (see A in the figure), a contact plate 22 fixed to the outside of this contact support plate 21, and an abutment support plate 22 fixed to the outside of the contact support plate A soft film member 23 is installed in a sealed manner. Among these, the contact support plate 2
1 is formed with a square through hole 21A that matches the radiation opening 10A of the case body 10,
Square cut hole 22A larger than this through hole 21A
are formed on the abutment plate 22 as shown in FIG. 8, thereby creating a structure in which the cooling fluids in the case body 10 and the cooling mechanism 11 can flow very naturally. In this embodiment, the cooling liquid used in the cooling mechanism 11 is water (relative permittivity ε _r =80.36; however,
20℃, measurement wavelength ∞) is used. A coolant inlet 11A for sending the coolant to the cooling mechanism is provided at the center of the case body 10 in FIG. 6, and a coolant outlet 11B is provided at the center of the case body 10 in FIG.
are provided at the four corners of the abutting support plate 21 as shown in FIGS. 6 to 8, so that the cooling liquid can be uniformly and effectively spread over the entire range from the inside of the case body 10 to the surface of the living body A. It is now possible to cool down. As described above, the radio wave lens section 13 includes a plurality of metal plates 13A, 13A,
..., and a rotation support shaft 13B, 13B, ... is fixed to each power feeding part side of each metal plate 13A,
This pivot shaft 13B is rotatably supported by the case body 10. Further, the rotation support shaft 13
On the side of the case main body 10 of B, a rotation locking means 25 having a rubbed structure in this embodiment is installed via a spring seat (not shown), which allows each metal plate 13A to be held in a predetermined position. It is designed so that it can be freely rotated within a range of 1 and can be locked at any position. Further, 13D indicates a rotating knob used in that case, 13E indicates an indicator hand, and 13
F each indicates an angle scale plate. Here, to explain the radio wave lens section 13 in more detail, the metal plates of the radio wave lens section 13 in this embodiment are the same as those in the conventional example described above (see Figs. 2 to 4). ing. On the other hand, regarding the radio wave lens section 13,
In addition, as shown in Fig. 10, the arrangement spacing is the same but different (where a>b>c>λ/2; λ is the wavelength), or as shown in Fig. 11, the arrangement spacing is the same but on the radiation aperture side. The ends may be on the same line as shown by dotted lines, and a long metal plate may be arranged on the inner wall side (however, S>λ/
2). In this case, the one in FIG. 10 is the metal plate 13A.
The phase velocity of the electromagnetic wave is faster on the outside where the interval is narrower, and in the case of FIG. It is designed to function effectively as a radio wave lens section. At the center of the outer end (left end in FIG. 6) of the power supply section 12, a liquid discharge section 26 for venting air is provided. The liquid discharge section 26 is configured to allow a predetermined amount of cooling liquid to flow out intermittently or a minute amount of cooling fluid to flow out continuously as necessary, thereby allowing air bubbles generated inside to be discharged to the outside. It's summery. Further, 27, 27, ... are the radio wave lens section 1
The dielectric film attached to each metal plate 13A, 13A, . . . in No. 3 is shown. This dielectric film 27
is formed of a dielectric member having the same properties as that attached to the inner wall of the case body 10 described above. Therefore, the same electric field effect as shown in FIG. 9 described above can be obtained in this radio wave lens section 13 as well, thereby making the temperature of the heating surface of the living body A more uniform and performing heating treatment. It has now become possible to further alleviate the patient's pain caused by partial heating during treatment. Furthermore, since water (relative dielectric constant ε _r =80.36; however, 20°C, measurement wavelength ∞) is used as the cooling liquid as described above, each dimension of the case body 10 and the radio wave lens portion 13 is This has the effect of reducing the size to approximately 1/√80.36 of that when it contains air, and at the same time improving the fit with the living body. Next, to explain the overall operation of the first embodiment, first, the excitation antenna 1 in the power feeding section 12
The electric field strength of the electromagnetic waves sent into the case body 10 from 2B is made uniform by the action of the dielectric plate 20 attached to the inner wall of the power feeding section 12, and as a result, the electromagnetic wave energy is not biased towards the center of the case. It is made substantially uniform within the cross section of the main body 10 and sent to the radio wave lens section 13 . Therefore, the radio wave lens section 13 effectively exhibits a lens effect on electromagnetic waves and sends out focused electromagnetic waves toward the radiation aperture 10A side. This radiation opening 1
Since 0A is placed close to the aforementioned living body A via the cooling liquid of the cooling mechanism 11 and the dielectric film 23, the focus of the radio wave lens section 13 is on the living body A.
Formed deep within. This makes it possible to more effectively heat the deep part of the body than the surface of the body. Furthermore, since the surface of a living body has a large absorption of electromagnetic waves, the temperature rise is relatively large in addition to the lens effect.
In contrast, the inflow and outflow of the cooling liquid by the cooling mechanism 11 effectively cools down not only the surface of the living body but also the temperature rise due to the Joule loss and dielectric loss inside the case body 10, as described above. . In this case, the dielectric plates 20 and 27 attached to the inner wall of the case body 10 and each metal plate 13 of the radio wave lens section 13 form a substantially uniform electric field in a cross section perpendicular to the direction of propagation of electromagnetic waves. The electromagnetic wave energy is also made substantially uniform as described above. Therefore, there is no unevenness in heating temperature on the surface of the living body, and the disadvantage of the conventional example in which the central part of the surface of the living body is heated more than the surrounding area is greatly improved. On the other hand, the effect when the radio wave lens section 13 is rotated will be explained with reference to FIG. 14. FIG. 14 shows the results of a heating experiment using a phantom model with electrical and thermal constants equivalent to those of a living body. Figure 1 shows the heating pattern when each metal plate 13A, 13A,... is set parallel to the central axis of the case body 10 (no tilt), and Figure 2 shows the heating pattern on one side assuming an extreme case. The heating pattern is shown when the opening 10A is closed (however, the isothermal line is ΔT
= 1℃, model radius 125mm, liquid temperature constant 20℃). As a result, by variable irradiation by the radio wave lens unit 13, the center of deep heating can be moved very easily, and thereby cancer tissue can be treated in a relatively wide area almost uniformly or unevenly. It has become clear that this method has the advantage of being able to reliably capture electromagnetic waves at the center of the focal point, even for cancerous tissue located in the same position. [Second Embodiment] Next, a second embodiment will be described based on FIGS. 12 and 13. This second embodiment has a structure in which the power feeding section 40 and the radio wave lens section 50 are detachable.Thereby, a plurality of radio wave lens sections 50 can be prepared in advance, and the optimum radio wave lens section 50 can always be selected. It is intended for selective use. Further, in this embodiment, the power feeding unit 40 includes:
It is filled with oil with a relative dielectric constant ε _r ≒ 2.5. This oil is selected to have extremely low attenuation of electromagnetic waves. On the other hand, the metal plate 5 of the radio wave lens section 50
1, 51,... are the rotational fulcrums 51B, 51B,
... is provided approximately at the center of each metal plate 51, thereby facilitating the rotational movement of each metal plate 51. Furthermore, in this embodiment, a coolant inflow portion 11A is provided at the center of the upper and lower ends of the contact support plate 21 in FIG. 12 (on the central axis of the case body 60), thereby allowing the coolant to The structure is such that the air flows into the living body surface and into the radio wave lens section 50 from the central side end of A, and flows out from the four corners around the cooling mechanism 11 in the same manner as described above. Note that air removal can be made more effective by changing the inflow and outflow directions of the coolant as necessary. 42,5
Reference numeral 2 indicates a connecting flange portion for attachment and detachment, 61 indicates a sealing member, and 62 indicates an oil sealing plate. Further, this oil-filled plate 62 is surrounded by a fixed frame 63.
is fixed to the power feeding section 40 side. The other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment described above. As described above, according to the second embodiment, in addition to having substantially the same effects as the first embodiment described above, it is possible to efficiently generate electromagnetic energy, especially since the power supply section 40 is filled with oil with extremely low dielectric loss. It has the advantage that it can be delivered into the body and that the radio wave lens part can be selectively used according to the shape of the living body. In this second embodiment, the dielectric material filled in the power supply section 40 is not necessarily limited to oil, but may be any other liquid or solid dielectric material as long as it has low attenuation of electromagnetic waves and has a high dielectric constant. You may replace it with other parts. Furthermore, in each of the above embodiments, the cooling mechanism 11 may have a flat shape. Further, the coolant inflow portion 11A may be provided in the center between the metal plates of the radio wave lens portions 13 and 50. Furthermore, each metal plate 13A, 51 of the radio wave lens part 13, 50
Alternatively, a method may be adopted in which the entire device is driven simultaneously by motor drive or the like. In this case, as for the rotation locking means, the driving force transmission means can also serve as the rotation locking means. [Effects of the Invention] As described above, according to the present invention, there is provided a case body having a function as a waveguide, an electromagnetic wave power feeding section provided at one end of the case body, and the other end of the case body. an opening for transmitting electromagnetic waves formed in the opening, the opening is equipped with a biological cooling mechanism, and a radio wave lens section is disposed between the opening and the power supply section. In the applicator for this purpose, each of the plurality of metal plates forming the lens part is rotatably equipped, so even if the heating treatment position is offset from the central axis of the case body, it can be used effectively. It is possible to provide an unprecedented and excellent applicator for heating therapy, which is capable of intensively heating deep parts of the body, and can gradually heat the entire area even if the area to be heated is relatively wide. Furthermore, in claim 2, it is possible to simultaneously cool the living body and the inside of the applicator, thus enabling long-term heating therapy, and increasing the durability of the device. ing. Furthermore, in claim 3, there is an advantage that the electric field distribution of the electromagnetic waves sent to the radio wave lens portion is made uniform, thereby fully demonstrating the focusing function of the radio wave lens and improving the efficiency of deep heating. . In addition, in claim 4, the electric field distribution on the output side of the radio wave lens section is made uniform, thereby making it possible to make the temperature distribution on the living body surface uniform, thereby reducing the burden on the patient. It has advantages.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing a conventional example, Fig. 2 is an explanatory view showing a radio wave lens section equipped in Fig. 1,
Figures 3 and 4 are explanatory diagrams of the operation of Figure 2, respectively;
5. FIGS. 1 and 2 are explanatory diagrams showing the propagation status of electromagnetic waves in the waveguides shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, respectively. FIG. 6 is a plan view showing an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view taken along the - line in FIG. 7, FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing the electric field distribution in the power feeding section as seen from the right direction in FIG. 8, and FIGS. 10 and 11. are schematic plan views showing other examples of radio wave lens parts,
FIG. 12 is a front view showing the second embodiment, FIG. 13 is a sectional view taken along the - line in FIG. 12, and FIG.
FIGS. 1 and 2 are explanatory diagrams showing the experimental results of the first example. 10...Case body including main body waveguide section, 11
... Cooling mechanism as a cooling means, 12 ... Electromagnetic wave power supply section, 13 ... Radio wave lens section, 13A, 51 ...
...Metal plate, 20...Dielectric plate, 27...Dielectric plate.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A case body having a function as a waveguide,
The case body has an electromagnetic wave power supply section provided at one end of the case body, and an electromagnetic wave sending opening formed at the other end of the case body, and this opening is equipped with a biological cooling mechanism. A heating therapy applicator in which a radio wave lens part is disposed between the opening part and the power feeding part, characterized in that each of the plurality of metal plates forming the lens part is rotatably provided. applicator for heating therapy. 2 A case body with a function as a waveguide,
The case body has an electromagnetic wave power supply section provided at one end of the case body, and an electromagnetic wave sending opening formed at the other end of the case body, and this opening is equipped with a biological cooling mechanism. In the heating therapy applicator in which a radio wave lens section is disposed between the opening section and the power feeding section, each of the plurality of metal plates forming the radio wave lens section is rotatably equipped, and the Rotation locking means for locking each metal plate at a predetermined rotation position is provided, and each of the electromagnetic wave power supply part and the radio wave lens part is filled with a cooling liquid, and the cooling liquid is used as the cooling liquid of the cooling mechanism. An applicator for heating therapy characterized by communication. 3 A case body with a function as a waveguide,
The case body has an electromagnetic wave power supply section provided at one end of the case body, and an electromagnetic wave sending opening formed at the other end of the case body, and this opening is equipped with a biological cooling mechanism. In the heating therapy applicator in which a radio wave lens section is disposed between the opening section and the power feeding section, each of the plurality of metal plates forming the radio wave lens section is rotatably equipped, and the A rotational locking means for locking each metal plate at a predetermined rotational position is provided, and the electromagnetic wave on the inner wall of the power feeding section is directed to a plane parallel to the direction of the electric field using a dielectric material with low loss and a relatively large dielectric constant. An applicator for heating therapy characterized by having a plate laid thereon. 4 A case body with a function as a waveguide,
The case body has an electromagnetic wave power supply section provided at one end of the case body, and an electromagnetic wave sending opening formed at the other end of the case body, and this opening is equipped with a biological cooling mechanism. In the heating therapy applicator in which a radio wave lens section is disposed between the opening section and the power feeding section, each of the plurality of metal plates forming the radio wave lens section is rotatably equipped, and the A heating device characterized in that a rotational locking means for locking each metal plate at a predetermined rotational position is provided, and a dielectric plate with low loss and a relatively large dielectric constant is attached to each metal plate. Therapy applicator.