Optical: systems and elements – Single channel simultaneously to or from plural channels – By partial reflection at beam splitting or combining surface
Reexamination Certificate
2000-01-21
2001-08-14
Mack, Ricky (Department: 2873)
Optical: systems and elements
Single channel simultaneously to or from plural channels
By partial reflection at beam splitting or combining surface
C359S631000, C359S632000, C359S642000, C349S011000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06275340
ABSTRACT:
This invention relates to a device and method for reducing and in many cases eliminating the need for anesthesia in medical procedures. More particularly, it relates to a device which provides visual images and sound impulses to patients receiving radiotherapy or other therapies, while the patient is resting in either a prone or supine position. A device according to the invention is adapted to be retrofitted for use with existing hospital equipment.
BACKGROUND
A large number of diseases which plague the human organism are known to persons in the health care and related fields. Within the large number of known diseases are several sub-classes into which the various ailments may be categorized, including cardiovascular, renal, pulmonary, dermal, cerebral, lymphatic, hepatic, carcinomic, etc. The several specific diseases within these classes and others are in general treatable by techniques specific to the particular disease in consideration; however, a common thread in the field of the treatment of diseases is that some form of anesthesia is typically employed by physicians when operating on patients, in order to make the procedure feasible, for most human patients are unable to bear the physical pain and/or emotional distress associated with operational procedures employed, and in the absence of anesthesia would tend to move themselves about, thus making surgeries and other operational procedures impossible for all practical purposes.
The field of anesthesiology, in a broad sense, is one which dates back perhaps to ancient times, when a chemical substance was given to a first person to enable a second person to carry out physical actions on the first person that the first person would not normally permit, owing to instinctive reactions, with the use of alcohol probably being the first anesthetic. Since the advent of modern chemistry in the latter portion of the eighteenth century with the discovery of nitrous oxide by Priestly, and subsequently its effects on humans by Sir H. Davy, a large number of substances either natural, synthetic, or semi-synthetic, that are possessive of anesthetic properties have been identified and utilized as general and/or local anesthetics, including, without limitation, various alkaloidal substances including ecgonine derivatives, morphine derivatives, ethers, alkyl halides, halogenated ethers, derivatives of barbituric acid and thiobarbituric acid, nitrous oxide, steroidal derivatives, procaine, etc.
To be effective as an anesthetic, a chemical substance must be capable of causing the person to whom administered to exist in a state of consciousness where physical actions such as lacerations no longer cause a pain response which would otherwise manifest in instinctive bodily movements away from the source of the pain. The anesthetic must also be statistically safe to use on human subjects so that the anesthetic substance does not cause complications or lead to abnormal vital signs or even death of the patient. Ideally, anesthetics would be short-acting on a relative time scale, being effective only for the duration of the surgery or other medical procedure, and would have no after effects on the consciousness of the person subject to medical treatment.
In actual practice, the various identified anesthetics possess some degree of undesirability with respect to one or more physical properties and actions, and the most suited anesthetic for a given medical procedure is one which has the most desirable overall characteristics. Still, there are essentially no anesthetics which are completely devoid of the requirement for pretreatment conditioning and after effects on the mental and/or physical state of the patient. In cases where frequently repeated medical procedures are required, in particular radiotherapies for carcinomas, a patient receiving chemical anesthetics spends a great deal of time preparing for the anesthesia and experiencing the after-effects of the anesthesia administered. In many cases, this translates to the loved ones and family of the affected person being unable to carry out normal relations with that person during the time which they are experiencing the after effects of the anesthesia, or extended time periods of fasting required prior to treatment and contending with disrupted sleep patterns caused by repeated daylight anesthesia treatments. In cases where the persons being treated are suffering from a disease which has a high statistical death rate within a short time period, such as a year or even a few months, the loss of normal interaction with the affected person becomes a hindrance to the quality of life and mental well-being of all persons involved. Therefore, it is desirable to provide for the complete elimination of the use of anesthetics when possible to enhance the overall quality of life for persons suffering from ailments which require frequent, repeated therapy normally accompanied by anesthesia. This is especially true in the case of younger persons whose mental faculties are in a stage of development which may be more negatively affected by the repeated use of anesthetics over a time period of 6 months to a year.
Finally, it is well known that the liver is an indispensable organ within the human body whose function includes removal of various impurities from the blood stream by at least three known mechanisms. The liver includes special cells known as Kupffer cells that are responsible for engulfing and digesting dead cells, cancer cells, yeasts, viruses, bacteria, parasites, artificial chemicals (including anesthetics and their metabolites), incompletely digested or denatured proteins and other dangerous foreign particles. If the Kupffer cells are worked too hard, such as by the repeated administration of anesthetics, then the Kupffer cells are likely to become less available to cleanse the system of the other normally-encountered biological and chemical species which must be removed to maintain “normal” health, and the subject individual may begin to show symptoms traditionally associated with hepatic dysfunction, which symptoms are varied but include: excessive body mass, abdominal bloating, poor digestion, frequent fatigue, headaches, unpleasant moods, bad breath and coated tongue, irritable bowel syndrome, sluggish metabolism, an overburdened immune system, high cholesterol, gall bladder disease, a fatty liver, allergies, high blood pressure, excessive body heat, sugar cravings, and the inability to lose weight. Therefore it is desirable for all persons whenever possible to minimize the exposure of the liver to chemical substances foreign to the body. This is especially true for persons undergoing repeated therapies such as radio therapy which is known to generate a myriad of biological species, free radicals, and other chemical species known to burden the liver.
It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a means by which persons who suffer from ailments which require repeated therapy regiments (including radio therapy) and attendant anesthesia can undergo treatments without the need for administration of anesthetics prior to the procedure.
It is also an object of the invention to provide a means by which persons who suffer from ailments which require repeated therapy regiments and attendant anesthesia can undergo treatments without the need for administration of anesthetics prior to the procedure, wherein the means is retrofittable to existing equipment commonly found in hospitals and treatment facilities.
It is a further object of the invention to increase the overall health level of a person subject to repeated procedures normally requiring anesthesia by elimination of the need for such chemical anesthetics, which lessens the load on the liver in order to render it more efficient at fighting the underlying cause of the ailment, in addition to carrying out its normal functions.
Through use of a device and means according to this invention, the foregoing objects may be accomplished, providing a higher quality of life for persons undergoing procedures requiring anesthesia on a regular basis.
SUM
Lucas Michael A.
Mack Ricky
Whewell Christopher J.
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