In an embodiment, a method for effecting thermal therapy using an in vivo probe includes positioning the probe in a volume in a patient, identifying an irregularly shaped three-dimensional region of interest and automatically applying thermal therapy to the region using the probe. Applying thermal therapy may include identifying a first emission level at a first rotational angle based in part on a depth of a radial portion of the region in the direction of probe emission, activating emission of the probe, causing rotation of the probe to a next rotational angle, identifying a next emission level at the next rotational angle based in part on a depth of a radial portion of the region in the direction of probe emission, activating emission to deliver therapeutic energy, and repeating rotation and emission until therapeutic energy has been delivered to the volume.

Dermatological systems and methods for providing a therapeutic laser treatment using a handpiece delivering one or more therapeutic laser pulses to a target skin area along a first optical path, and sensing the temperature of the target skin area based on infrared energy radiating from the target skin area along a second optical path generally counterdirectional to the first office action, and sharing a common optical axis with the first optical path for at least a portion of the first and second optical paths. The handpiece may also provide contact cooling for a first skin area comprising the target skin area.

Systems, methods, and devices for treating a subject are described herein. In some embodiments, an applicator for selectively affecting a subject's subcutaneous tissue is provided. The applicator can include: a housing; a treatment cup mounted in the housing, wherein the treatment cup defines a tissue-receiving cavity and includes a temperature-controlled surface; at least one thermal device coupled to the treatment cup and configured to receive energy via a flexible connector coupled to the applicator and to cool the temperature-controlled surface; an at least one vacuum port coupled to the treatment cup and configured to provide a vacuum to draw the subject's tissue into the tissue-receiving cavity and against at least a portion of a treatment area of the temperature-controlled surface to selectively damage and/or reduce the subject's subcutaneous tissue.

Apparatus, systems and methods for percutaneous ablation of a tumor in a subject, and more specifically, percutaneous tumor ablation with the ability for real-time, intra-operative ablation planning, execution and adjustment.

A power supply device for high frequency treatment instrument to treat living tissue includes an output unit to supply high frequency power to the treatment instrument's electrode, a distance information acquisition unit to acquire a distance between the living tissue and the electrode, a determination unit to determine whether the distance satisfies a first condition, and an output control unit to control the output unit so that its output is placed in a controlled state if the distance satisfies the first condition and so that the output is set to a first output level higher than an output level in the controlled state if a second condition is satisfied after the output is placed in the controlled state.

A computing device for generating and using a graphical user interface (GUI) is disclosed. The computing device includes one or more controllers configured to generate a graphical representation of a plurality of electrodes of an ablation catheter for displaying via the GUI; designate, via the GUI, at least some of the plurality of electrodes to be active electrodes; automatically designate the active electrodes as a source electrode or a sink electrode; assign an amount of energy to each of the designated source electrodes; and estimate an amount of energy associated with each of the designated sink electrodes based at least in part on the assigned energy of the designated source electrodes.

Described herein are various implementations of systems and methods for accessing and modulating tissue (for example, systems and methods for accessing and ablating nerves or other tissue within or surrounding a vertebral body to treat chronic lower back pain). Assessment of vertebral endplate degeneration or defects (e.g., pre-Modic changes) to facilitate identification of treatment sites and protocols are also provided in several embodiments. Several embodiments comprise the use of biomarkers to confirm or otherwise assess ablation, pain relief, efficacy of treatment, etc. Some embodiments include robotic elements for, as an example, facilitating robotically controlled access, navigation, imaging, and/or treatment.

An ablation device includes a feedline including an inner conductor having a distal end, an outer conductor coaxially disposed around the inner conductor, and a dielectric material disposed therebetween, an elongated electrically-conductive member longitudinally disposed at the distal end of the inner conductor and having a proximal end, a first balun structure disposed over a first portion of the outer conductor and positioned so that a distal end of the first balun structure is located at a first distance from the proximal end of the electrically-conductive member and a second balun structure disposed over a second portion of the outer conductor and positioned so that a distal end of the second balun structure is located at a second distance from the proximal end of the electrically-conductive member.

Devices, kits, and methods described herein are usable for medical treatments by generating local maxima using constructive interference of multiple oscillator outputs. Where constructive interference occurs between the oscillator waves, the output signal can have significant strength to cause heating and coagulation at a bleeding vessel, for instance, while at areas with little interaction (or with destructive interference) there is insufficient power dissipated by the output signal to cause heating sufficient to cause coagulating heating.

A device for radio frequency (RF) skin treatment of skin of a user is provided. The device comprises an active electrode and a return electrode. The device further comprises an RF generator arranged to supply RF energy to the user's skin via the active electrode and the return electrode. The return electrode has a planar skin contact surface extending in a main plane. The active electrode has a skin contact surface with a maximum dimension in a range from 100 μm to 500 μm, and a surface area of the planar skin contact surface of the return electrode is at least 5 times larger than a surface area of the skin contact surface of the active electrode. The skin contact surface of the active electrode is arranged in a position at a distance from the main plane, seen in a direction perpendicular to the main plane. The device may be advantageously used, for example, to control the dimensions and shape of a thermal lesion in the user's skin generated by the RF energy.