ELECTROSURGICAL HANDHELD DEVICE, AND CONTACT BODY FOR AN ELECTROSURGICAL HANDHELD DEVICE

Abstract

An electrosurgical handheld devices, and contact bodies of electrosurgical handheld devices, prove very difficult to clean. Cleaning them is very laborious, particularly when they have bores and receptacles of small diameters. Even mechanical cleaning cannot guarantee that the necessary degree of cleaning is achieved. The invention makes available an electrosurgical handheld device and a contact body that can be cleaned particularly easily and thoroughly and in a time-efficient manner. This is achieved by the fact that the contact body for an electrosurgical handheld device has at least one receptacle that is designed as a continuous bore through the contact body.

Claims

1. A contact body for an electrosurgical handheld device, in particular a resectoscope, with at least one receptacle for a proximal end, having at least one electrical contact, of an electrode carrier of the handheld device, the contact being able to be mechanically and electrically coupled in the receptacle wherein the at least one receptacle is designed as a continuous bore through the contact body.

2. The contact body as claimed in claim 1, wherein two receptacles which are each designed as a continuous bore through the contact body.

3. The contact body as claimed in claim 2, wherein the two receptacles are oriented parallel to each other and also parallel to a longitudinal axis of the handheld device and lie in a common plane.

4. The contact body as claimed in claim 1, wherein at least one receptacle has, on an inner wall, an electrical contact which is connectable to a generator via a plug connector and an electrical connection, the plug connector being integrated in the contact body.

5. The contact body as claimed in claim 4, wherein the electrical contact is designed, inside the at least one receptacle, as a cylindrical, hollow cylindrical or annular electrical contact.

6. The contact body as claimed in claim 4, wherein a distance of the at least one contact from an end face of the contact body, from an outlet of the at least one receptacle, measures at least 2 mm.

7. The contact body as claimed in claim 1, wherein a mechanical latching means, for releasably coupling at least a proximal end of the electrode carrier, extends into at least one receptacle, the latching element being able to be actuated, via a maneuvering means.

8. The contact body as claimed in claim 1, wherein the bore of the at least one receptacle has a funnel-like shape at a distal outlet, in that an end face of the contact body has a funnel-like depression or a funnel around the bore of the at least one receptacle.

9. The contact body as claimed in claim 1, wherein a seal, is arranged in the bore, in front of or behind the electrical contact.

10. The contact body for an electrosurgical handheld device as claimed in claim 1, wherein the contact body is made of plastic.

11. An electrosurgical handheld device, a resectoscope, with an electrode carrier which at a distal end has an electrode and at a proximal end has at least one electrical contact, with a grip unit consisting of a first gripping means and a second gripping means, with a tubular shaft which is coupled with a proximal end to the first gripping means, with an optical guide for receiving an optical unit, and a contact body through which the optical guide can be guided, the second gripping means can be fastened, and in which the at least one electrical contact of the electrode carrier can be latched and/or electrically contacted, wherein a contact body as claimed in claim 1.

12. The electrosurgical handheld device as claimed in claim 11, wherein at least one component, a stop, of the handheld device, which is arranged in the proximal or distal direction to the contact body or strikes the contact body, is made of an electrically non-conductive material or has an electrically non-conductive layer.

13. The electrosurgical handheld device as claimed in claim 11, wherein an electrically conductive component, in particular a stop, of the handheld device is separated by an air gap from the contact body, the air gap having a width of at least 1 mm.

14. The electrosurgical handheld device as claimed in claim 11, wherein a distance between the electrode and a distal end of the shaft, the optical unit or an electrode casing tube, is less than a distance between a proximal end of the electrode carrier and a proximal end face of the contact body and/or less than a distance between an electrical contact and at least one end face of the contact body.

Description

[0026] A preferred illustrative embodiment of the invention is explained in more detail below with reference to the drawing, in which:

[0027] FIG. 1 shows a schematic view of a resectoscope,

[0028] FIG. 2 shows a side view of a contact body,

[0029] FIG. 3 shows a view of an end face of the contact body according to FIG. 2, and

[0030] FIG. 4 shows a section through the contact body according to FIG. 2.

[0031] A possible illustrative embodiment of an electrosurgical handheld device, namely a resectoscope 10, is depicted highly schematically in FIG. 1. The resectoscope 10 has a working element 11 on which an elongate, tubular shaft 12 can be fastened. This shaft 12 is indicated by hatching in FIG. 1 and is fastened with a proximal end to a main body 13 of the working element 11.

[0032] The working element 11 has, in addition to the main body 13, a grip unit 14. This grip unit 14 has a first gripping means 15 and a second gripping means 16. While the first gripping means 15 is arranged fixedly on the main body 13, the second gripping means 16 is assigned to a contact body 17 in the illustrative embodiment of the working element 11 shown here. It is conceivable that the second gripping means 16 is screwed firmly on the contact body 17. For this purpose, the contact body 17 has a corresponding bore 31 in a wall.

[0033] The contact body 17 is guided slidingly on a tubular optical guide 18. For this purpose, the contact body 17 has a bore 19 whose diameter is slightly greater than a diameter of the optical guide 18. Since the contact body 17 can move to and fro on the optical guide 18 along a longitudinal direction of the resectoscope 10 or a longitudinal axis of the shaft 12, the contact body 17 is also designated as a slide.

[0034] While the optical guide 18 is connected with a distal end to the main body 13 or an inner tube 22, an optical guide plate 20 is fastened at a proximal end of the optical guide 18. The tubular optical guide 18 extends through the optical guide plate 20, such that the optical guide 18 is accessible from the proximal direction.

[0035] The second gripping means 16 and the contact body 17 are connected to the optical guide plate 20 via a spring element 21. This spring element 21 can be a tension spring or a compression spring, depending on the configuration of the working element 11.

[0036] Starting from the main body 13, a tubular inner tube 22 extends in the distal direction. This inner tube 22 can also extend in the proximal direction through the main body 13 and be connected to the optical guide 18.

[0037] An electrode carrier 23 extends parallel to the inner tube 22. This electrode carrier 23 is guided through the main body 13 and with at least one proximal contact is mechanically and releasably coupled to the contact body 17. The electrode carrier 23 has an electrode 24 at a distal end. An electrical RF voltage can be applied to this electrode 24. The diseased tissue can be manipulated or cut by means of electrical energy arising at the electrode 24. For this purpose, the operator moves the second gripping means 16, having a thumb ring 25, relative to the first gripping means 15. For stabilizing the electrode carrier 23, the latter can be guided on the inner tube 22 by guides 26.

[0038] For applying the RF voltage to the electrode 24, a receptacle 27 of the proximal contact of the electrode carrier 23 can be electrically contacted. For this purpose, the contact body 17 has at least one plug connector 29, in particular a plug socket. This plug connector 29 is in electrical contact with at least one part of an inner wall of the receptacle 27. By way of a plug (not shown here), the contact body 17 can thus be connected by a cable to an RF generator.

[0039] For performing the intervention, a rod-like optical unit is guided through the inner tube 22 or optical guide 18. A distal end (not visible here) of this optical unit is directed in the direction of the electrode 24, so that the operator has a view of the manipulation of the tissue. This optical unit can be a rod lens system or an optical fiber. As is shown in FIG. 1, an eyepiece 30 or a camera is located at the proximal end of the optical unit.

[0040] FIG. 2 shows a possible illustrative embodiment of a contact body 17. This contact body 17 can be annular and also square. PTFE has proven to be a particularly preferred material for this contact body 17. However, other fluoropolymers with similar material properties are also conceivable. Among others reasons, PTFE is recommended because of the fact that it has a particularly low sliding friction. The contact body 17 has in fact a continuous bore 19 through which, in the assembled state of the working element 11, the optical guide 18 extends. When the working element 11 is actuated, the contact body 17 is guided along the optical guide 18. To ensure that this guiding carried out by the operator can be carried out without too much force having to be exerted, it is important to keep the sliding resistance low.

[0041] On an outer wall, the contact body 17 has a bore 31 into which the second gripping means 16 can be mounted. However, this bore 31 is not absolutely necessary. Instead, it is conceivable that the second gripping means 16 can also be connected in another way to the contact body 17.

[0042] According to the invention, a channel-like receptacle 27 extends through the contact body 17, specifically from one end face 32 to the other end face 33 of the contact body 17. The illustrative embodiment of the contact body 17 shown here has two of these channel-like receptacles 27, 28 (FIG. 3, FIG. 4). These two receptacles 27, 28 are oriented parallel to each other and also parallel to the bore 19. The receptacles 27, 28 are located in the same plane in the contact body 17 and are spaced apart from each other in such a way that the two proximal ends of the electrode carrier 23 can be guided into the receptacles 27, 28. These two proximal ends of the electrode carrier 23 each have an electrical contact, for example an active contact and a return contact.

[0043] In the receptacles 27, 28, these contacts of the electrode carrier 23 are not only mechanically fixed but also have a predefined electrical potential applied to them. For easier insertion of the contacts into the receptacles 27, 28, the ends of the receptacles 27, 28 each have a funnel-like depression or a funnel 34 at the end face 32. This funnel 34 greatly facilitates the coupling of the electrode carrier 23 to the contact body 17.

[0044] The inner walls of the receptacles 27, 28 have electrical contacts. These contacts can be lamella contacts or helical spring contacts, for example. So that electrical energy can be applied to these contacts inside the receptacles 27, 28, both receptacles 27, 28 are connected to a respective plug connector 29, in particular a two-pole coaxial plug or a corresponding socket for a coaxial plug. As is shown for example in FIGS. 2 and 3, these plug connectors 29 can be guided from underneath through the contact body 17 to the receptacles 27, 28. It is equally conceivable that the plug connector 29 extends parallel to the receptacles 27, 28 through the contact body 17. To start up the resectoscope 10, plugs connected to the generator (not shown) by an electrical conductor or by a cable have to be inserted into the plug connector 29.

[0045] In order not only to electrically contact the electrode carrier 23 in the contact body 17 but also to produce the mechanical locking to the contact body 17, a latching means 36 is assigned to at least one receptacle 28. This latching means 36 is connected to a button 35 via a shaft-like pin 37 (FIG. 4). The latching means 36 is spring-pretensioned and can be actuated by the button 35. By the actuation of the button 35, the latching means 36 is pressed out of the receptacle 28, such that the electrode carrier 23 is insertable with the two contacts into the contact body 17. The contact guided into the receptacle 28 has a recess into which the latching means 36 engages, as a result of which the mechanical coupling is produced. It is equally conceivable that, during the insertion of the electrode carrier 23 into the receptacle 28, the latching means 36 is pressed back and latches into the corresponding recess.

[0046] Preferably, the latching means 36 is assigned to only one receptacle 27, 28, in order to avoid the danger of an electrical short circuit between the two receptacles 27, 28.

[0047] The continuous channel-like receptacles 27, 28 are particularly easy to clean. Thus, an irrigation liquid can be flushed easily and effectively through the contact body 17 from one end face 32 to the other end face 33. The above-described disadvantage of particles in particular remaining in a blind hole, even after the cleaning procedure, can be completely eliminated here. Subsequent drying of the contact body 17 is also readily possible.

[0048] To prevent a leakage current or an electrical breakdown, components of the resectoscope 10 that are directed toward an end face 32, 33 of the contact body 17 can be made of an electrically insulating material or can have a corresponding coating. This prevents an electrical contact to a further electrical potential being produced, for example by irrigation liquid that could pass through the receptacles 27, 28 during the operation.

[0049] The contact body 17 is dimensioned in such a way that a distance between a contact part of the electrode, or the contact 38, and one of the end faces 32, 33 is greater than the distance between the electrode 24 and the nearest conductive component, in particular the optical unit or an electrode casing tube, to return potential. It can thus be ensured that the plasma ignites at the electrode 24 and not in the contact body 17.