Surgery: light – thermal – and electrical application – Light – thermal – and electrical application – Thermal applicators
Reexamination Certificate
2000-02-11
2001-06-12
Nasser, Robert L. (Department: 3736)
Surgery: light, thermal, and electrical application
Light, thermal, and electrical application
Thermal applicators
Reexamination Certificate
active
06245093
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to methods and devices for the treatment of inches, rashes, and skin-diseases, and particularly to such methods and devices which effect such treatments by the application of heat at specific temperatures and for specific periods of time.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Doctors know that UV light relieves psoriasis, acne and eczema, but how? Use activated vitamin D did not give the same effect. It is now known that UV activates a group of genes called stress-genes, which produce stress proteins. These proteins are responsible for keeping the skin healthy and beautiful, and effectively clear up skin problems. Since UV can also cause DNA damage, immune suppression, skin aging, and skin-cancer, it is not the ideal means to activate stress-genes. Many other forms of energy have been found to be not only more powerful than UV in activating stress-genes, but also more effective at clearing up skin problems.
Since heat is the safest energy, it does not cause DNA damage, or skin-cancer, and it is the most effect in activate stress genes. Also, since the heat destroys toxins below the surface of the skin and shows the best results in clearing up skin-problems, the present invention is intended for the treatment of skin itch, skin rash, and related skin diseases by means of the controlled application of heat.
The use heat in the treatment of skin diseases has been known for a long time. Folk remedies using heat exist in many different cultures, and the origins of these remedies are often obscure.
However, the use of heat in the treatment of skin itch and rash is different from such treatment for other skin problems. An article in the British Journal of Dermatology 122(4):501-12, 1990, by Benee A. Glover, Cynthia S. Bailey, Kim E. Barrett, S. I. Wasserman and Irma Gifli, of the Division of Dermatology and Allergy Department of Medicine, University of CA, San Diego School of Medicine, San Diego, Calif. entitled: Histamine release from rodent and human mast cells induced by protoporphyrin and ultraviolet light: studies of the mechanism of mast-cell activation in erythropoietic protoporphyria, deals with just this issue. In a study reported therein, it was found that heating or prolonged heating at temperatures lower than 45° C. exacerbates skin itch and rash, but does not have any detrimental effect on most other skin problems. Those temperature ranges found effective against itch and rash are generally in excess of 49° C., Sufficiently hot to result in pain if applied to the skin for more than 3 seconds.
Furthermore, for treating itch and rash the temperature must be maintained at the superficial surface, that is not deeper than dermis where the mast cells are located. This must be done without burning the skin, or causing excessive discomfort. The mast cells must be inactivated, but the inner part tissues such as blood vessels must be maintained at a safe temperature, thus avoiding edema and pain. This is so whether or not the inactivation of mast cells is the sole mechanism for stopping itch. There is some variation of the best effective temperature for treating itch and rash, depending on factors, which are discussed below.
The inventor has been found those different types of itches and rashes require different treatment temperatures. These best effective temperatures depend, inter alia, on whether the patient being treated is a child or an adult and women or men. All of the treatment temperatures require, however, are within a range of about 10° C. It has been found that the use of these best effective temperatures, to within a tolerance of plus or minus one-half, effectively avoids side effects, such as edema and rebound of itch. And, for most people, temperatures below 49° C. must be avoid, as they worsen itch and rash, rather than providing relief. For most people, the effective temperatures against itch have been found to be above 49° C. Temperatures of 49±0.5° C. have been fond optimum for children, as have temperatures of 52±0.5° C. C for adults and 47° C. is for toddlers and some temperature sensitive women, in the case of itch.
Different parts of the body have also been found to have different best effective temperatures. For example, 50° C. is the best temperature for a child or an adult face, 52° C. for adult body and arm skin, and 54° C. for adult leg skin. If 50° C. is used for adult leg skin that is thicker than the face skin, the itch will not be stopped and side effects, such as edema and rebound of itch, may result. Furthermore, best effective temperature is also dependent upon the rate at which the skin is heated, and for that reason best effective temperature may change with changed in the material actually in contact with the skin. The above temperatures are for a planar steel heating surface.
New versions of the device are in development that will allow regulation of the temperature to take into account personal variations of the best effective temperature.
Experimental results, as well as the report of Glover, et al., Id., make it clear that the heating time of the skin should be as short as possible, while still receiving the benefit required. Thus the direct contact of the heating element to the skin provides the most direct method to effect an optimum treatment of this nature. This direct contact is accomplished in the present invention by a circular metal heat transfer surface of approximately one inch diameter. The direct contact also provides advantage in controlling the speed to heat up the skin. Some materials that can control the amount of heat to pass to the skin in a timely manner. They will be used as the skin heater or be put on the surface of the skin-heater so to heat the skin to the desired temperature in a desired time. This will avoid the pain and effectively clear up the itch. This is because if the skin is heated up to fast, it will get pain, if too slow, it will worsen the itch.
At present, there exist a number of commercially available devices which apply heat to the skin for therapeutic purposes. However, none of these is effective against skin itch and rash, because none of them accurately and precisely apply the required temperatures for treating itch and rash. For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 4,944,297(Ratkoff) describes a device which is used to heat the skin, and it further contains a reflector to direct the radiation from the heating element to the skin. Such an arrangement is incapable of the precision in controlling and maintaining temperature, required of the current invention.
Other apparatuses that are already known to heat the skin for therapeutic purposes are as described, for example, in the documents of U.S. Pat. No. 4,763,657 (Chen); U.S. Pat. No. 4,657,531 (choi); and U.S. Pat. No. 4,907589 (Cosman). None of these have provisions to precisely control and maintain temperature, as required of the current invention.
Without a precise temperature control, measured at the surface of the skin, the user, to avoid pain, will always chose a temperature lower that the effective temperature, which will often just worsen the itch, rather than curing it.
Other old methods of heat treatment for skin ailments include the use of scalding water to heat the skin to stop itch. This method obviously can not be done with the amount of control required to effect the best effective temperature, or with control of the time of application. For these reasons, this method has been abandoned.
As shown in the following results, this invention is different from the above treatments. It clears up skin problems in about 2 months and eliminates itching within one minute. It has shown great success in helping tens of thousands of patients. The invention is called ItchStopper in the following results.
Our clinical trial results on Psoriasis (two-month test).
Itch erased
psoriasis
psoriasis
Treatment
in 1 minute
complete remission
partial remission
ItchStopper
100% patients
68% patients
17% patients
Ultrasound
7% patients
54% patients
28% patients
Cream
0% patients
0% patients
11% pati
Li Huan-Chen
Wang Xiaoguang
Nasser Robert L.
White Mark P.
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