Surgery – Instruments – Electrical application
Reexamination Certificate
2000-11-14
2003-08-05
Shay, David M. (Department: 3739)
Surgery
Instruments
Electrical application
C606S034000, C606S041000, C606S047000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06602249
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to a nozzle and electrode combination and method of manufacturing a gas seal therebetween and specifically the injection and over molding of a shroud and end cap to the electrode.
BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE
U.S. Pat. No. 3,595,239 has a catheter with a removable axial electrode and a proximal side port to receive fluid to inflate the catheter tube. Inert gas, such as argon, delivered concurrently with electrosurgical energy forms an ionized path for energy flow from an electrode in the distal end of the electrosurgical pencil. Commercially available gas electrosurgical pencils are made specially for controlled delivery of argon and electrosurgical energy delivery. Gas surgical pencils have a pair of switches that start and stop argon flow as disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,217,457; U.S. Pat. No. 5,244,462 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,088,997 all assigned to the same assignee as this disclosure. The switch for directing argon flow mounts on the electrosurgical pencil. A gas line for argon and a pair of switches for the electrosurgical generator coagulation or cut wave forms are on the pencil. The argon electrosurgical pencil includes an electrical cable with wires for connection directly to the gas surgical unit to trigger the flow of argon gas when the electrosurgical energy is called for by the surgeon. The gas delivery control is on the pencil and controls the gas delivery from the separate on and off switch buttons and wires connecting to circuits integral with the gas surgical unit. In addition to the three wires connected between the argon electrosurgical pencil and the gas surgical unit, there is another wire for providing electrosurgical energy from the electrosurgical generator. Cut and coagulation wave forms are controlled by buttons therefor on the gas surgical pencil.
A standard electrosurgical pencil without argon gas plumbing or an extra wire is made in high volume and cost about half of that for an argon electrosurgical pencil. Adapting a standard pencil to operate the gas surgical unit offers lower cost to practitioners that have never used argon with electrosurgery and to those who infrequently use argon electrosurgery due to added cost.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,781,175 has an argon electrosurgical pencil with a sensing lumen to determine the proper operation of the pencil by return of gas to the delivery apparatus thus verifying a proper connection and flow of the gas at the nozzle. Thus, the gas delivery apparatus responds accordingly.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,324,283 has a switch on an endoscope. The switch breaks a light path through optic fibers to control external accessories remotely turned on and off. U.S. Pat. No. 4,209,018 has a tissue coagulation apparatus with indicating means in circuit with the active and return electrode leads. An output signal from the indicating means provides information to a control for the electrosurgical generator. The specific indicating means can respond to various physical values showing the presence and strength of an electrical arc between the distal ends of bipolar electrodes. The device controls the strength of the arc so heat applied during electrosurgery is minimized to avoid tissue cell rupture and/or burning of albumin. The monitoring function provided by the indicating means controls internal circuitry within the electrosurgical generator by means of wiring directly to the generator. There is no teaching of the indicating means controlling something external of the generator such as the argon delivery from a gas surgical unit. The electrically connected (hard wired) indicating means is merely external pickup for the control and does not have an external output for another device such as a gas surgical unit.
Any number of internal inductive pickups has been proposed and used for control of RF leakage. U.S. Pat. No. 5,152,762 discloses an inductive pickup and references prior patents that use a winding on a common magnetic core about which the active and return leads are also wound. When there is an unbalanced between the flow of current through the active and return leads an EMF is generated in the extra winding. That EMF is used as a signal to control the RF leakage and maintain balanced flow of energy in the active and return leads. Inductive coils for leakage are internal with respect to the electrosurgical generator and as such precede the output connections on the exterior of the generator. They are sensitive to inductive differences in the active and return leads, but provide no external signal for use with an accessory.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,160,334 has an electrosurgical generator and suction apparatus with a switching circuit connected to a hand switch or foot switch to operate the electrosurgical generator remotely. The switching circuit activates a controller for a vacuum motor plumbed to remove the smoke that results at the site of the electrosurgery. Clearly the remote operation of the switching circuit for the smoke evacuator by the hand or foot switch is hard wired, i.e., passes through internal wires in the electrosurgical unit. This approach as well as those described are disadvantageous to the many of existing electrosurgical generators presently in operation in hospitals throughout the world. The internal wiring for automatic activation of the suction or the like accessory is required in the electrosurgical generator. It is desired to be able to have an automatic activation that easily starts and stops the argon gas flow and is external to the electrosurgical generator, gas surgical unit and the standard of electrosurgical pencil.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,108,389 discloses an automatic activation circuit for a smoke evacuator used with a laser. A foot switch breaks a laser beam and signals for operating the smoke evacuator. There is no physical association or direct electrical coupling or attachment between the laser and the smoke evacuator. That is to say that, when the laser beam is transmitted and received and the foot switch interrupts the laser beam the control signal comes from the foot switch not the laser.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,041,110 discloses a cart for supporting an electrosurgical generator, gas supply with automatic valves and a control logic panel. This cart adapts the many different existing electrosurgical generators for use with argon gas. While the term, “electrosurgical pencil” is repeatedly referred to throughout the '110 patent, the disclosure therein is made only to a special gas electrosurgical pencil. In particular, a gas tube connects to the pencil to supply the inert argon through a passage in the pencil hand piece and about a wire carrying the electrosurgical energy. There is no switch control on the pencil and no suggestion of how a standard pencil could be used. Moreover, the activation of the combined gas tube and special electrosurgical pencil is merely by a foot switch. The control logic panel is electrically connected to the gas flow control valve assembly and the electrosurgical generator for the control of gas flow and electrosurgical energy from the foot switch.
There remains a need to be able to adapt the inexpensive standard electrosurgical pencil for activation of the argon flow from a gas surgical unit. Readily available, inexpensive and high volume electrosurgical pencil thus can be used to start and stop the flow of argon during electrosurgery. The circuit disclosed responds to the surgeon's request for electrosurgery made at the electrosurgical pencil cut or coagulation buttons. The circuit concurrently delivers argon to a special gas electrode fit to the distal end of a standard electrosurgical pencil. The special gas electrode is the subject of U.S. application Ser. No. 08/619,380 titled “Circuit And Method For Argon Activation”, filed Mar. 21, 1996 and is assigned to the same assignee. The references noted herein are incorporated by reference and made a part of this disclosure.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
A circuit for concurrent activation of a gas surgical unit flow control valve and an electrosurgical generator upon the surgeon's
Ketcham Cliff Rodes
Reschke Arlan James
Stoddard Robert Bryant
Shay David M.
Sherwood Services AG
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