Improved systems and methods for extracorporeal blood temperature control and patient temperature control, e.g., for induced hypothermia and optional normothermia, may include or otherwise employ a heat exchanger for cooling/warming of a fluid, a thermal exchange module having fluidly isolated first and second volumes, and a fluid pump for circulating the fluid through the heat exchanger and the first volume of the thermal exchange module. A blood pump may be provided for the flow of blood through the second volume of the thermal exchange module, and a first controller may be provided for providing output signals for use in operation of the heat exchanger to selectively control thermal exchange between the fluid circulated through the first volume of the thermal exchange module and the blood flowed through the second volume of the thermal exchange module, thereby providing for selective cooling/warming of the blood. A multi lumen catheter may be utilized for the flow of blood from a patient vascular system to the second volume of the thermal exchange module, and for flow of blood from the second volume of the thermal exchange module back to the patient vascular system. The circulated fluid may be optionally circulated through a patient contact pad(s) for contact cooling/warming, wherein patient cooling/warming may be provided in a first mode via blood cooling/warming in the thermal exchange module, and patient cooling/warming may be provided in a second mode via thermal exchange by the contact pad(s).

A heat exchanger is disclosed for causing cryolysis of adipose tissue of a human tongue. The heat exchanger includes a body having cooling channels for circulating fluids therein. The body forms a contact surface that contacts a portion of the dorsal surface of the tongue and a portion of the base of the tongue. The heat exchanger includes a pair of side walls extending from the body and forming a pair of side contact surfaces that are dimensioned so that they contact the dorsal and lateral surfaces of the tongue in a manner so as to constrict the tongue when the contact surface is in contact with the tongue. A method of treatment for apnea using the heat exchanger and/or administering a chemical adipolysis formulation/vasoconstriction agent is also disclosed.

An intravascular catheter site pad is provided for thermal exchange (e.g. cooling) adjacent to a catheter introduction site (e.g. a catheter for the administration of a chemotherapeutic agent). The pad includes an opening defined by an opening edge that may be positioned about the catheter introduction site. The pad may further include a fluid containing layer and an inlet port and an outlet port for circulating fluid (e.g. cooled fluid) through the pad. The pad may be fluidly interconnected to a fluid conditioning unit to circulate fluid through the pad under negative pressure. The pad, system and an associated method may be employed to reduce tissue damage at an IV catheter introduction site.

A method of treating a subject in need thereof, is carried out by (a) administering said subject a therapeutic intervention (e.g., an active agent) in a treatment effective amount; and concurrently (b) administering said subject caloric vestibular stimulation in a treatment effective amount, said caloric vestibular stimulation administered so as to enhance the efficacy of said active agent. In some embodiments, the caloric vestibular stimulation is administered as an actively controlled time varying waveform.

The present invention relates to a low-temperature treatment device capable of preventing nerve damage. The low-temperature treatment device according to one embodiment of the present invention can comprise: a cooling pocket which is inserted and positioned in a rectum and which has a predetermined shape during expansion; and a circulation tube which has a passage through which fluid flows in and out and which is inserted into the cooling pocket so as to circulate the fluid in an inner space of the cooling pocket.

The present disclosure includes devices, systems and related methods useable for controlling a patient's body temperature by endovascular heat exchange as well as body surface heat exchange.

An injection tool and associated methods are shown. Example tools and methods described provide cooling to numb a local area prior to an injection. The local numbing can be used to reduce or eliminate pain associated with the subsequent injection. In selected examples, circuitry and one or more sensors are used to calculate an appropriate contact time of a heat sink with the local region to best provide a desired amount of numbing.

A therapeutic treatment device, system and method for improving administration of a temperature sensitive drug into a tissue on the body of a patient at a drug injection site are disclosed. The device includes a treatment element with a controllable heating element in temperature communicative contact with the tissue adjacent to the drug injection site. The controllable heating element is configured to heat the tissue adjacent to the drug injection site to a controllable temperature but does not heat the injected drug above a predetermined limiting temperature, above which degradation of the injected drug may occur.

The present invention relates to a control and command method for a device for thermal stimulation of animal or human tissue (1), said method being characterised in that it includes: determining a neutral temperature applied to the tissue (1), thermally adjusting the neutral temperature by activating a control loop, determining a cold or hot thermal stimulation temperature to be applied to the tissue (1), in alternation with the neutral temperature; determining a duration and a frequency of the thermal stimulations; in the case of an instruction to initiate the stimulation temperature by activating a control loop and by deactivating the control loop on the neutral temperature; and synchronising a physiological recording with the thermal stimulation.

The present invention relates to a transportable therapy device for the therapeutic treatment of at least one person, in particular of a painful condition of at least one limb of the person, comprising a box-like housing which encloses at least one cold chamber which is only accessible from outside via at least one opening, the at least one opening being formed and arranged in the housing in such a way to introduce a limb, which is to be treated, into the cold chamber, comprising at least one cooling means which is thermally coupled in such a way to the cold chamber to cool the cold chamber and is configured in such a way to generate in the cold chamber a predetermined temperature for the therapeutic treatment of the limb which has been introduced, in particular for the therapeutic treatment of a painful condition of the limb which has been introduced.