APPARATUS FOR MEDICAL TREATMENT

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a medical apparatus for sound wave and/or magnetic therapy applications.

Background Art

For some time the prior art has described the use of sound energy for therapeutic purposes. Briefly, this type of treatment consists in subjecting the biological tissues to sound waves which vary in frequency and in intensity according to the type of pathology to be treated. The interaction of the sound waves with the biological tissues produces mechanical, thermal and chemical effects. The mechanical effects of the wave propagation in the tissues are translated into a micro-massage due to the movement of the particles in the tissues crossed by the sound waves. The thermal effects are generated by an endogenic heating which develops when the sound waves cross the tissues. The heating has effects on both the superficial and the deep blood vessels, as well as on the neurone physiology. The overall effect is antalgic and anti-inflammatory.

Finally the chemical effects are caused by the considerable acceleration forces to which the ependymal cells and the underlying astrocytes of the tissues are subjected on the passage of the sound waves. The sonophoresis, or sound therapy, can be administered through an operating head, provided with an acoustic transducer of a piezoelectric type or a magnetic-strictive type, connected to an apparatus comprising a generator of sound waves. The administering of the therapy includes placing the operating head in contact with the skin at the position of the tissues to be treated and moving the head within a circumscribed zone at the point of application.

Between the operating head and the tissues a substance is usually interposed, which favours the transmission of the waves from the acoustic transducer to the tissues as well as eliminating the possibility that between

the transducer and the skin there might be air, which could attenuate the sound transmission and thus reduce the therapeutic effect. The substance can be in the form of a grease or gel, or can be a cream, and often incorporates pharmaceutical products having a therapeutic use. A first drawback in the prior art is that with known-type apparatus, in order to obtain relevant results from the application of the sound therapy numerous and long therapeutic sittings are required, which very often discourages the user from using this type of therapy. A second drawback is due to the fact that, with known-type apparatus, the penetration of the pharmaceutical products contained in the greases reaches a depth comprised between 3mm and 5mm below the skin surface, which limits the usefulness of this therapy to tissues close to the skin surface. The aim of the present invention is to obviate the problems inherent in the prior art in the ambit of a simple and rational solution. A second aim of the invention is to provide an apparatus which can be used directly by the user without any need for intervention by professional operators.

Disclosure of Invention The invention attains the aims with a medical apparatus as described in appended claim 1.

In particular the invention makes available a medical apparatus comprising both a generator of sound waves, connected to a transducer of sound waves destined to be placed in contact with the skin, and means for generating pulsating magnetic fields. The operation of the sound wave generator and the means for generating pulsating magnetic fields is managed by a microprocessor according to the pathology to be treated. The means for generating pulsating magnetic fields comprise a generator of pulsating current and a magnetic transducer. The transducer is preferably realised by a coil, while the sound wave transducer, or sound transducer, can alternatively be of a piezoelectric type or of a magnetic-strictive type.

In a preferred embodiment, the generator of pulsating currents and the sound wave generator are both positioned internally of the apparatus, while the two respective transducers, magnetic and sound, to which the generators are connected, are housed internally of an operating head destined to be rested on the patient's skin.

It has advantageously been found that by contemporaneously activating and/or in succession and/or alternatively both the sound wave generator and the means for generating pulsating magnetic fields a considerable improvement in the treatment results is obtained. Indeed, taking results to be the same, the treatment time is reduced and a penetration obtained of the pharmaceutical products into the tissues reaches a depth of over 20 mm. All of the foregoing is mainly due to the fact that the cells of the tissues are oriented in the direction of the flow lines generated by the pulsating magnetic fields, favouring penetration of the pharmaceutical products internally of the cells of the tissues. Thus by subjecting the tissue cells to the pulsating magnetic fields and, before they return to their natural position to the sound waves, the penetration and absorption of the pharmaceutical product into the tissues are favoured. The dependent claims delineate preferred and advantageous embodiments of the invention.

Brief description of the Drawings

The characteristics and advantages of the present invention will emerge from the detailed description that follows, made with reference to the figures of the appended drawings which illustrate, purely by way of non-limiting example, two special and preferred embodiments.

Figure 1 is a schematic view of the apparatus of the invention; Figure 2 is a block diagram of the apparatus of the invention; Figure 3 is a section of the operating head equipped by the invention. Best Mode for Carrying out the Invention The figures show the apparatus 1 , which comprises an external casing 2 on an upper surface of which means for interfacing 3 are positioned, which

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enable the user to use the apparatus 1 , which means for interfacing 3, in the illustrated embodiment, comprise a keyboard 4 and a display 5. A microprocessor 6 is positioned internally of the casing 2, which microprocessor 6 is for managing the functioning of the apparatus 1. In detail, the microprocessor 6 controls and commands the functioning of a sound wave generator 7 and means 8 for generating pulsating magnetic fields. In particular the sound wave generator 7 is connected to a transducer 9 of sound waves, while the means 8 for generating pulsating magnetic fields comprise a generator of pulsating currents 80 and a magnetic transducer 81. In the illustrated embodiment the sound wave generator 7 and the generator of pulsating currents 80 are both located internally of the casing 2, while the respective transducers 9 and 81 are housed internally of an operating head 11 destined to be placed in contact with the patient's skin. A memory unit 12 is associated to the microprocessor 6, in which memory unit 12 the setting parameters of the apparatus are stored according to the pathology to be treated. In particular the memory unit 12 can alternatively be incorporated in the microprocessor 6, or, as in the illustrated embodiment, can be associated to a second microprocessor 13 positioned on a removable physical support, such as for example a smart card 14. In general however the memory unit 12 can be realised using any device able to store data which is associable to the microprocessor in such a way as to make the stored data available to the microprocessor.

The apparatus 1 is provided with a reader 15 of the smart card 14, on the memory 12 of which smart card 14 are stored the essential data relating to the patient, the type of treatment the patient is to be subjected to, as well as the number of treatments, the frequency, the wave amplitude and shape, both of the sound waves and the pulsating currents, for each treatment. The operating head 1 1 comprises a cup-shaped body 16, internally of which an electronic card 17 is housed, which electronic card 17 is connected to the microprocessor 6 and is destined to manage the functioning of the sound wave and pulsating magnetic field transducers.

With reference to figure 3, the magnetic transducer 81 is housed internally of the body 16 and comprises a coil 18 wound on a reel 19 which exhibits a central through-hole 20. Internally of the hole 20 of the reel 19 a ferromagnetic nucleus of the coil 18 is wound, which nucleus comprises a permanent magnet 22 having a cylindrical shape and being provided with a central through-hole 23.

The sound transducer 9 is positioned below the magnetic transducer 81 , at the mouth of the cup-shaped body 16. In the illustrated embodiment the sound transducer 9 comprises a piezoelectric plate connected to the electronic card 17, through a stem 24.

Further, a cooling fan 25 is installed internally of the body 16, for expelling from the body 16 the heat generated by the coil 18, through ventilation holes 26 which place the internal volume of the body 16 in contact with the outside environment. Finally, a temperature sensor 27 is connected to the electronic card 17, for detecting the temperature internally of the body 16.

The functioning of the invention involves the user inserting the specially- programmed smart card 14 internally of the reader 15. On insertion of the smart card 14 the processor 6 reads the patient's data as well as all the setting and operating parameters of the apparatus 1. In this way the treatment can advantageously be performed without the presence of a professional operator, as once the smart card 14 has been programmed the user needs to enter no apparatus operating parameter settings, but only has to insert the smart card 14 internally of the special reader. Following the treatment the patient is to be subjected to, which as mentioned is stored on the memory of the smart card 14, the processor activates in succession and/or alternatively the means for generating pulsating magnetic fields and the sound wave generator for the time apportioned for the treatment.