1054results about "Anaesthesia" patented technology

Method for carrying out the recovery of an intact volume of tissue wherein a delivery cannula tip is positioned in confronting adjacency with the volume of tissue to be recovered. The electrosurgical generator employed to form an arc at a capture component extending from the tip is configured having a resistance-power profile which permits recovery of the specimen without excessive thermal artifact while providing sufficient power to sustain a cutting arc. For the recovery procedure, a local anesthetic employing a diluent which exhibits a higher resistivity is utilized and the method for deploying the capture component involves an intermittent formation of a cutting arc with capture component actuation interspersed with pauses of duration effective to evacuate any accumulation or pockets of local anesthetic solution encountered by the cutting electrodes.

Method for carrying out the recovery of an intact volume of tissue wherein a delivery cannula tip is positioned in confronting adjacency with the volume of tissue to be recovered. The electrosurgical generator employed to form an arc at a capture component extending from the tip is configured having a resistance-power profile which permits recovery of the specimen without excessive thermal artifact while providing sufficient power to sustain a cutting arc. For the recovery procedure, a local anesthetic employing a diluent which exhibits a higher resistivity is utilized and the method for deploying the capture component involves an intermittent formation of a cutting arc with capture component actuation interspersed with pauses of duration effective to evacuate any accumulation or pockets of local anesthetic solution encountered by the cutting electrodes.

Devices and methods are provided for the treatment of ocular disorders. An ocular implant has a body comprising material that includes a therapeutic drug. The body has an inlet portion and an outlet portion. The inlet portion is configured to reside in an anterior chamber of an eye when the outlet portion is disposed in a physiological outflow pathway of the eye. The outlet portion has an outflow opening such that the body drains fluid from the anterior chamber to the physiological outflow pathway. One method of treating an ocular disorder involves introducing an implant comprising a therapeutic drug into the eye such that the implant drains aqueous humor into a physiological outflow pathway and the therapeutic drug reaches eye tissue.

A formulation for inducing sustained regional local anesthesia in a patient comprising a substrate comprising a local anesthetic and an effective amount of a biocompatible, biodegradable, controlled release material prolonging the release of the local anesthetic from the substrate to obtain a reversible local anesthesia when implanted or injected in a patient, and a non-toxic augmenting agent effective to prolong the duration of the local anesthesia for a time period longer than that obtainable from the substrate without the augmenting agent. In preferred embodiments, the controlled release material is a low molecular weight, acid-terminated polymer. A further aspect of the invention is directed to such formulations which release the local anesthetic in two phases, the first a rapid "bolus" to initiate anesthesia and a second, slower release to maintain anesthesia.

Methods and systems for anesthetizing a portion or all of a patient's maxillary dental arch using a nasal delivered anesthetizing composition. The process generates anesthesia sufficient for facilitation of operative dentistry, endodontics, periodontics or oral surgery for teeth of the maxillary arch. The dental nasal spray process consists of inserting one or more dispensing devices through the patient's nostril and delivering metered dosages of anesthetic solution or gel into the nasal cavity. The process may utilize a single solution which is a mixture of anesthetic agents, vasoconstricting agents and other physiological inert agents or two separate solutions, wherein one solution contains the vasoconstricting agents and the other solution contains the anesthetic agents. Anesthetic diffusion through the thin walls of the nasal cavity allows for the blocking of nerve impulses originating from the maxillary dentition and surrounding tissues. Anesthesia of specific oral regions such as right versus left sides of the dental arch, anterior versus posterior teeth, and soft tissue anesthesia may be controlled through modification of the dosage volume and the selection of right or left nostril insertion and agent delivery.

A skin desensitizing device for temporarily numbing and / or cooling a surface of a subject's skin. The skin desensitizing device comprises a controller, a skin-bracing interface, and at least one overloading-neural source, which includes (i) a transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulator (TENS)-like device capable of electrically stimulating superficial skin neurons of the subject's skin into a state of fibrillation, (ii) a thermoelectric device capable of cooling the subject's skin to approximately 30° F. to 38° F., and (iii) a vibration device capable of vibrating the subject's skin to overload the skin's vibration sensors.

Apparatus and methods for cooling selected regions within a body are described herein. An implantable cooling system is used to cool regions of the brain, spinal cord, fibrous nerve bodies, e.g., vagus nerve, etc. down to about 30° C. to diminish nerve impulses which control seizures or chronic pain. The system includes an implantable unit containing a pumping mechanism and / or various control electronics. It also has a heat exchanger attachable to a tubular body organ, such as the superior vena cava or the inferior vena cava, through which the heat is effectively dissipated. Also included is a heat pump such as a Peltier junction configured to be placed into contact with the region of tissue to be cooled. The heated portion of the Peltier junction is cooled by a liquid heat transfer medium which absorbs the heat from the junction and dissipates it into the tubular body organ.

A method for cerebral and systemic cooling by providing a nebulized liquid having a boiling point of 38-300° C. The nebulized liquid is delivered as a mist or a spray via the nasal and / or oral cavities of a patient. The mist causes cooling by direct heat transfer through the nasopharynx and hematogenous cooling through the carotids and the Circle of Willis. Compositions and medical devices for cerebral and systemic cooling are also provided. Cooling assemblies, and methods of use, are also provided that include flexible balloon assemblies that are inserted to various locations in a patient's body. The flexible balloons are then infused with a liquid having a temperature between about −20° C. and about 37° C. The flexible balloon assemblies can be inserted into the nasal cavity, oral cavity, throat, stomach, and other locations to effect cerebral cooling.

A system and method for use in iontophoretic anesthesia of a tympanic membrane are disclosed. The system generally includes an earplug and an electrode device. The earplug includes at least one sealing member for sealing the earplug in an ear canal. The sealing member includes microholes which vent fluid above a certain pressure threshold. A headset may connect the earplug to a second earplug. The method involves using the system on a human or animal subject.

An automatic injection apparatus uses non-continuous fluid-flow of drugs to identify an intended injection site and includes a drive mechanism, a sensor and a controller for establishing fluid flow and pressure and preventing fluid flow until the pressure drops below a predetermined threshold. The pressure threshold is determined based on an internal pressure generated during an injection and more fluid will not flow until it drops below a predetermined pressure. An injection is performed to establish an initial pressure threshhold and then to stop the fluid flow into a patient until the pressure drops below a predetermined pressure which allows fluid flow to resume, thus identifying a fluid filled tissue space. The initial pressure threshold is used as a control parameter to a microprocessor below which controls the rate of injection. Fluid flows below certain pressures are also used to identify a specific location within the body during injections.

An apparatus and method for the treatment of stress urinary incontinence. The apparatus includes a suburethral sling having an adjustment member for adjusting the tension of the sling both during the procedure and post-procedure. The method includes using a needle to simultaneously implant the sling and to deliver a local anesthetic in the groin area while implanting the sling.

Systems for injecting fluids and / or other materials into a targeted anatomical location, in particular, an intra-articular space, include a handpiece assembly having a proximal end and a distal end, a needle extending from the distal end of the handpiece assembly, a fluid delivery module comprising a cassette and a fluid transfer device. A conduit is generally configured to place the fluid delivery module in fluid communication with the handpiece assembly. Medications, formulations and / or other fluids or materials contained within vials that are secured to the fluid delivery module can be selectively delivered into an anatomy through a needle located at the distal end of the handpiece assembly. In some embodiments, ultrasound or other imaging technologies can be used to locate a joint or other targeted anatomical location.

A method, apparatus, and system are provided for mucous membrane therapy. The method includes receiving at least one body signal from a patient; detecting a condition of the patient based on the body signal; and administering the therapy to at least one of a mucous membrane or a serous membrane of the patient. A medical device system configured to implement the method is provided. A computer-readable storage device for storing instructions that, when executed by a processor, perform the method is also provided.

Devices and methods to heat and cool human beings, including inducing and maintaining hypothermia in human patients. Methods include inducing hypothermia to treat ischemic events, including heart attack and stroke, to limit damage caused by the ischemic event. Methods can include: using the lungs for heat exchange; using cooled gases for ventilation; using helium in the ventilation gas mixture, using medications to control reflex heat production; and injecting a perfluorocarbon mist into the gas stream to increase the cooling rate. The high thermal conductivity and diffusivity of helium results in greater inspired gas temperature equalization toward body temperature. Due to the latent heat of vaporization, addition of even small quantity of phase-change perfluorocarbon dramatically increases the heat carrying capacity of the respiratory gases. Hypothermia may be terminated by discontinuing the medications and warming the patient using a warmed helium-oxygen mixture.

A care system and associated methods are provided for alleviating patient pain, anxiety and discomfort associated with medical or surgical procedures, the system comprising: at least one patient health monitor device coupled to a patient and generating a signal reflecting at least one physiological condition of the patient; a drug delivery controller supplying one or more drugs to the patient; a memory device storing a safety data set reflecting parameters of the at least one patient physiological condition; and an electronic controller interconnected between the patient health monitor, the drug delivery controller and the safety data set; wherein said electronic controller manages the application of the drugs in accord with the safety data set. In another aspect of the invention, the care system facilitates a procedural physician's safely and efficaciously providing conscious sedation to a patient by additionally providing a consciousness monitoring-system which monitors the consciousness of the patient and generates a value representing the level of patient consciousness. Methods for alleviating patient pain and anxiety in accordance with the invention comprise connecting a drug delivery device to a patient, such device having a drug delivery controller supplying one or more drugs and being coupled to an electronic controller; attaching at least one patient health monitor device to the patient; accessing a memory device which stores a safety data set reflecting parameters of at least one patient physiological condition; and delivering the drugs to the patient in accord with the safety data set. In further aspects of the invention, the consciousness monitoring system is an automated consciousness monitoring system which includes patient query and response devices. Additional embodiments of the system and methods are directed to alleviating patient pain or discomfort while enabling safe patient controlled drug delivery in correlation with the monitoring of patient health conditions.

A method is provided for a minimally invasive procedure utilizing the telescoping dilation introducer to insert a bone fixation device into a patient's spine for posterior spine fusion. The dilation introducer has a locked assembled configuration for placement of the dilation introducer against a patient's bone tissue to be treated, and an unlocked, collapsed configuration for dilating the patient's soft tissue down to the bone tissue to be treated to a desired degree of dilation to permit minimally invasive surgical procedures on the patient's bone tissue to be treated. Dilator tubes are successively released and advanced to progressively expand the patient's soft tissue down to the bone tissue to be treated.

The present invention of one embodiment includes a combined microclimate, thermal management, life-support system for care of patient and system for measurement of vital signs. The system of one embodiment, provides active external heating and simultaneously provides active internal heating.

Methods of delivering a pharmaceutical compounds directly to the olfactory epithelium of a mammal by providing a pharmaceutical aerosol suspension comprising an aerosol and the pharmaceutical compound; aerosolizing the suspension to generate a stream of droplets, the stream having a rotational component, and, delivering the droplets directly to the olfactory epithelium, wherein at least 15% of the droplets are delivered directly to the olfactory deposition. The pharmaceutical compound may be encapsulated within a liposome nanoparticle.

Provided are needle locks and methods of using the same for ultrasound guided catheter insertion. The needle locks hereof substantially immobilizes a needle relative to an ultrasound probe to permit manipulation of a catheter or other device through the needle. The needle locks of the present invention may be used in nerve block, venous catheter insertion procedures or other invasive procedures.

A method for cerebral and systemic cooling by providing a nebulized liquid having a boiling point of 38-300° C. The nebulized liquid is delivered as a mist or a spray via the nasal and / or oral cavities of a patient. The mist causes cooling by direct heat transfer through the nasopharynx and hematogenous cooling through the carotids and the Circle of Willis. Compositions and medical devices for cerebral and systemic cooling are also provided. Cooling assemblies, and methods of use, are also provided that include flexible balloon assemblies that are inserted to various locations in a patient's body. The flexible balloons are then infused with a liquid having a temperature between about −20° C. and about 37° C. The flexible balloon assemblies can be inserted into the nasal cavity, oral cavity, throat, stomach, and other locations to effect cerebral cooling.

Method, systems and devices for treating insomnia by non-invasive hypothermic treatment are described. In general, these devices, systems and method enable cooling of the frontal cortex prior to and / or during sleep to enhance sleep, which may be particularly beneficial to treat insomnia.

A method for delivering medicament such as for ameliorating pain in a patient includes introducing an injector through a nasal passage of the patient into a region substantially medial and / or posterior and / or inferior to a sphenopalatine ganglion (SPG) of the patient; and delivering a medicament from the injector superiorly and / or laterally and / or anteriorly towards the SPG. A device for delivering a medicament to a patient in need thereof includes (a) an injector containing a first end configured to remain outside a nasal passage of the patient and a second end configured for entry into the nasal passage of the patient; and (b) an introducer configured for engagement with a nostril of the patient and containing a passageway configured for slidably receiving the injector. The injector is moveable between a storage position preceding the engagement and an engaging position pursuant to the engagement.

The present invention provides a method and apparatus for controlling a patient's body temperature and in particular for inducing therapeutic hypothermia. Various embodiments of the system are described. The system includes: a source of breathing gas, which may be in the form of a compressed breathing gas mixture; a heat exchanger or other heating and / or cooling device; and a breathing interface, such as a breathing mask or tracheal tube. Optionally, the system may include additional features, such as a mechanical respirator, a nebulizer for introducing medication into the breathing gas, a body temperature probe and a feedback controller. The system can use air or a specialized breathing gas mixture, such as He / O2 or SF / O2 to increase the heat transfer rate. In addition, the system may include an ice particle generator for introducing fine ice particles into the flow of breathing gas to further increase the heat transfer rate.

A method of anesthetizing a tympanic membrane of an ear of a patient using iontophoresis is disclosed. The method involves delivering an anesthetizing drug solution to an ear canal of the patient's ear, wherein the drug solution includes an anesthetic and a buffer, and wherein the drug solution has a pH in the range of about 6.5 to about 7.5; and applying an amount of current to the drug solution, wherein the amount of applied current is increased at a rate of less than about 0.5 milliamp per second until a maximum current is achieved.

A hand-operated cooling device for cryotherapy for treating pain, includes a main body and a receptacle, which can be inserted at least partially into the main body, for the exchangeable accommodation and insertion of a gas pressure vessel. The main body includes a manual gas outlet actuation arrangement, which can effects the outflow of a gas from the gas pressure vessel when the receptacle is inserted. The receptacle includes a cooling surface, which can be cooled by the outflowing gas and by the gas pressure vessel jacket, wherein the gas can be conducted inside the main body and inside the receptacle by a gas conducting arrangement and can exit at the receptacle adjacent to the cooling surface. Commercially available gas pressure vessels, can be inserted into the cooling device, so that a simple and cost-effective use of therapeutic OT medical cryotherapy having a pleasant cooling effect is made possible.

The invention generally relates to a continuous anesthesia nerve conduction apparatus and method thereof, and more particularly to a method and system for use in administering a continuous flow or intermittent bolus of anesthetic agent to facilitate a continuous or prolonged nerve block. In one embodiment, the apparatus includes a sheath having a proximal end, a distal end and at least one lumen extending from the proximal end to the distal end. The sheath also includes an embedded conductive element for transmitting an electrical signal from a proximal portion of the sheath to a distal portion of the sheath. A cannula is arranged in the at least one lumen of the sheath and has a distal end protruding from a distal portion of the sheath. The cannula is electrically coupled to at least a portion of the embedded conductive element and is configured to provide nerve stimulation.