Endoscope systems with bending sections that can bend in four directions independent of the rotatable viewing configuration of the endoscope systems are provided. Methods of using the endoscope systems in a patient's body are further provided.

A steerable medical apparatus includes a shaft, a steering mechanism, and an actuation mechanism. The shaft has a proximal portion, a distal portion, a first pull wire, and a second pull wire. The distal ends of the first and second pull wires are coupled to the distal portion of the shaft. The steering mechanism has a first wheel and a second wheel coupled by a differential mechanism. The proximal ends of the first and second pull wires are respectively coupled to the first and second wheels. The actuation mechanism is coupled to the steering mechanism. Actuating the actuation mechanism in a first operational mode causes the distal portion of the shaft to curve in a first plane. Actuating the actuation mechanism in a second operational mode causes the distal portion of the shaft to curve away from the first plane.

An articulated bending section body has a number of segments including a proximal end segment, a distal end segment and a number of intermediate segments. Each intermediate segment has a central passage adapted in cross-sectional shape to receive and support the exterior surface of a bendable tubular member providing a working channel of the endoscope. The cross-sectional shape includes a number of sectors of a circular periphery having a shared center and the same radius, the total length of the sectors being longer than half of the circular periphery. The cross-sectional shape comprises at least one outwardly extending lobe. The exterior surface of the bendable tubular member providing the working channel of the endoscope forms a closed lumen adjacent but separated from the working channel of the endoscope.

A steering joint wire rope fixing device is provided. The steering joint wire rope fixing device includes a front-end assembly, a cable and a resin. The front-end assembly includes a channel part and a groove. The channel part is located between two ends of the front-end assembly. The groove is located between one end of the front-end assembly and the channel part, and the channel part and the groove are interconnected. A part of the cable passes through the channel part and the groove. The resin is placed in the groove to fix the part of the cable located in the groove. Therefore, the invention can fix the steel cable in a limited space and reduce the overall volume. Further, the invention can prevent the cable cuts from protruding or the workpieces from falling off. Besides, the invention can decrease assembly time and reduce cost of parts and fabrication.

An endoscopic instrument (1, 134), for inserting into a body of a patient, includes a tubular shank (3, 47, 137) which is coupled or can be coupled to a handling device (5, 135), and at least two electrical, mechanical and/or optical leads (11, 13, 15, 19, 57, 59, 65, 67, 123, 181) which run through the shank (3, 47, 137). The handling device (5, 135) includes a housing (23) which at a proximal end has two limbs (141, 143) which are arranged obliquely to one another and enclose a contact surface (145). At least one of the leads (11, 13, 15, 19, 57, 59, 65, 67, 123, 181) is led outwards out of the handling device (5, 125) out of one of the limbs (141, 143).

An articulated medical device having a hollow core, wherein the device is capable of maneuvering through cavities to reach a target with minimal invasiveness, and once the medical device has reached the target, allowing a medical tool to be guided through the hollow cavity for facilitating medical procedures, including endoscopes, cameras, and catheters, at the target.

In one example, a medical device may include a handle including a proximal portion and a distal portion, and the proximal portion may pivot relative to the distal portion. The medical device may also include an insertion portion coupled to the distal portion of the handle and configured to be positioned within a body lumen; and an articulation wire extending from the handle through the insertion portion. Pivoting of the proximal portion of the handle relative to the distal portion of the handle may move the articulation wire relative to the insertion portion to bend a distal portion of the insertion portion.

An apparatus includes a body, a shaft assembly, and a shaft actuation assembly. The shaft assembly extends distally from the body and defines a longitudinal axis. A portion of the shaft assembly is configured to be inserted into an anatomical passageway associated with an ear, nose, or throat of a patient. The shaft assembly further defines a working passageway that is dimensioned to receive an instrument. An actuator of the body is operable to drive the instrument longitudinally relative to the shaft assembly. The shaft actuation assembly is operatively coupled with a proximal portion of the shaft assembly. Further, the shaft actuation assembly is translatable in a distal direction to extend the shaft assembly distally along the longitudinal axis and is translatable in a proximal direction to retract the shaft assembly proximally along the longitudinal axis.

A catheter system comprises an elongate catheter body including a distal end, a cannulation lumen extending through the catheter body and terminating at the distal end of the catheter body, and a steering element extending through the catheter body for steering the distal end. The catheter system also comprises an imaging element secured to a distal end portion of the catheter body and configured to obtain optical images of an area located distally of the distal end of the catheter body. The catheter body includes a ridge extending axially along an outer surface of the distal end portion, wherein a width of the ridge measured about a circumference of the catheter body is less than a length of the ridge measured along the longitudinal axis, and the imaging element is radially aligned with the ridge with at least a portion of the imaging element disposed within the ridge.

A steerable instrument has a proximal end and a distal end, a steering device (168), and a tubular body (18) extending in a longitudinal direction from said proximal end to said distal end. The tubular body (18) has an intermediate flexible zone (12a) and a distal deflectable zone (17) and a tube element made from a metal. The tube element has a first slotted structure (74) in the flexible zone (12a) and a second slotted structure (72; 106; 136; 156) in the deflectable zone (17). The tubular body (18) has tangential rotation blocking elements which form cable channels (96; 97; 146; 152), each cable channel (96; 97) accommodating one of a plurality of cables (90). The cables (90) are connected at the proximal end to the steering device (168) and at the distal end to the deflectable zone (17) to allow deflection of the deflectable zone (17) by the steering device (168).