Surgery: light – thermal – and electrical application – Light – thermal – and electrical application – Light application
Reexamination Certificate
2000-07-06
2003-09-02
Dvorak, Linda C. M. (Department: 3739)
Surgery: light, thermal, and electrical application
Light, thermal, and electrical application
Light application
Reexamination Certificate
active
06613071
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a whole body thermotherapy treatment apparatus, and more particularly to a whole body thermotherapy treatment apparatus for raising the body surface temperature and deep intracorporeal temperature, promoting blood circulation, and alleviating the stiffness, pains, and numbness caused by diseases in various parts of the body as well as treating various diseases, malignant tumors, and viral diseases by radiating far infrared rays to a human body
2. Description of the Related Art
Hitherto, for malignant tumors such as cancers, sarcoma, etc., treatments such as abscission by operations, radiation of radioactive rays, administration of drugs, etc., have been given, but tumors which have metastasized are difficult to treat. Even if they are at the initial stages, operations and other methods may cause excessively heavy burdens to the human body, lower the immunological competence, and have problems of recurrence of tumors, occurrence of other diseases, etc. Viral diseases cannot be treated unless suitable vaccine is present, and such is the state of the art that there is no effective treatment when people are infected with AIDS virus, etc.
Because it has been found out in recent years that cells of such malignant tumors and viruses die out or are inactivated when heated to temperatures exceeding 41° C., thermotherapy has attracted keen attention, and treatments for immersing patients in warm water or methods for radiating infrared rays have been developed, and infrared ray radiation apparatus have started to be fabricated.
However, since the treatment by immersing patients in warm water is achieved by thermal conduction from the human body surface, long time is required for heating the inside of the human body, imposing a heavy burden on the human body. In addition, the infrared ray radiation sources used for infrared ray radiation apparatus which have been fabricated and commercially available to date are said to be far infrared, ray radiation sources, but in actuality contain a large quantity of near infrared rays, and has a construction in which the infrared ray radiation source is formed in a single unit. Near infrared rays have large energy, and provide low permeability to a human body, and require a long time to heat the depth of the human body, and patients must be anesthetized for treatment in order to prevent patients from moving. In addition, because the human body is exposed to the infrared ray radiation source containing near infrared rays for a long time, the energy applied to the human body surface increases, and a problem of low-temperature burns occurs in the patients, and in order to reduce this problem, an expensive control means must be provided.
In view of the aforesaid problems in the prior art, the inventors of the present invention have invented a far infrared ray radiation apparatus that can allow far infrared rays to reach the depth of the human body in a short time without causing low-temperature bus in the patients (See U.S. Pat. No. 6,004,344).
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Further, the inventors of the present invention have made efforts in order to improve a thermotherapy treatment apparatus using the aforesaid infrared ray radiation apparatus, and completed an invention of a thermotherapy treatment apparatus capable of allowing far infrared rays to reach the depth of the human body in a short time and setting the radiation intensity arbitrarily for each part of the human body as well as maintaining the human body atmosphere in the optimal state, increasing the treatment effects, and maintaining the chamber environment in a good condition without causing low-temperature burns in the human body.
Namely, the construction of a thermotherapy treatment apparatus according to the present invention is a thermotherapy treatment apparatus including a human body mounting portion; a cover portion for covering a human body corresponding site on the human body mounting portion; a far infrared ray radiation source for radiating far infrared rays onto the human body corresponding site, the far infrared rays being capable of raising a temperature of a depth portion thereof, and a ventilation hole for ventilating the human body corresponding site, characterized in that a ventilation duct is provided which is in communication with the ventilation hole.
According to this construction, since the ventilation duct being in communication with the ventilation hole is provided, it is possible to prevent the human body atmosphere inside the cover portion from directly entering a chamber if an end portion of the ventilation duct on the side opposite to the other end portion that is in communication with the ventilation hole is allowed to be in communication with the outside of the chamber or a processing device.
As a result, a good thermotherapy can be carried out by maintaining the human body atmosphere in an optimal state by ventilation, and also aggravation in terms of temperature, humidity, and odor of the environment inside the chamber can be prevented. Furthermore, even if a plurality of the thermotherapy treatment apparatus are disposed in the chamber, the environment inside the chamber is not aggravated.
It is preferable that a plurality of the ventilation holes are dispersed and arranged, and one common ventilation duct is provided for the plurality of ventilation holes.
According to this construction, since the plurality of ventilation holes are dispersed and arranged for ventilating each site in the human body atmosphere, the whole human body atmosphere can be made uniform more easily as compared with, for example, a case in which only one ventilation hole is provided for ventilation.
Furthermore, since one common ventilation duct is provided for the plurality of dispersed and arranged ventilation holes so as to assemble air for ventilation, the exhaust air discharged from the plurality of ventilation holes can be collectively carried out.
As a result of this, the whole human body atmosphere can be made uniform and the thermotherapy treatment effects can be enhanced more. In addition, the ventilation process can be carried out more rationally.
It is preferable that the ventilation hole is provided with a ventilation fan.
According to this construction, since a ventilation fan is disposed in each ventilation hole, the amount of ventilation in each ventilation hole can be adjusted, so that the whole human atmosphere can be made uniform all the more easily.
As a result of this, the thermotherapy treatment effects can be enhanced more.
Here, the ventilation fan may be disposed in all of the ventilation holes or may be disposed in some of the ventilation holes.
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Dvorak Linda C. M.
Fulbright & Jaworski L.L.P.
Schopfer Kenneth
Sun Medical Co., Ltd.
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