TOOTH ROOT CANAL IRRIGATION ASSEMBLY FOR CLEANING TOOTH ROOT CANALS

Abstract

A root canal irrigation assembly, comprising a vacuum device, a suction element having an elongate suction tip, and a sonic device having a sonic handpiece for introducing sonic vibrations into the suction element and thus causing the suction tip to vibrate, wherein the rear end of the suction element is connected to the vacuum device such that an irrigation fluid containing tissue residues and/or bacteria can be suctioned out of a root canal. The suction element comprises an internal vibrator which is held in the suction tip and projects out of the front end thereof, wherein the suction tip and the internal vibrator are interconnected at their rear ends, wherein the suction tip is resiliently formed and dimensioned such that, when the suction tip is introduced into a root canal, the suction tip sealingly closes the root canal in the region of the root canal wall.

Claims

1. Dental root canal irrigation arrangement for cleaning dental root canals of a patient, with a vacuum device (2), a suction element (5) with an elongated suction tip (6), which is at least partially made of a flexible material and is positioned at a front end of the suction element (5), and a sonic device having a sonic handpiece (15), wherein the suction element (5) is detachably attached to the distal end of the sonic handpiece (15) so that sonic vibrations generated by the sonic handpiece (15) can be introduced into the suction element (5) to cause the suction tip (6) to vibrate, wherein a suction channel (7) is formed in the suction element (5), which extends from the rear end of the suction element (5) in the direction of its front end into the suction tip (6), wherein the suction tip (6) has at least one suction opening (8) which opens into the suction channel (7), and the rear end of the suction element (5) is connected to the vacuum device (2) via a conduit (9), in particular by a connecting hose, so that a rinsing liquid with tissue residues and/or bacteria contained therein can be sucked by means of a vacuum generated by the vacuum device (2) via the at least one suction opening (8) into the suction channel (7) and via the latter to the vacuum device (2), wherein the suction element (5) has an inner oscillator (6a) which is held in the suction tip (6) and projects out of the front end thereof, the suction tip (6) and the inner oscillator (6a) being connected to one another at their rear end.

2. Dental root canal irrigation arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the inner oscillator (6a) consists of a solid material.

3. Dental root canal irrigation arrangement according to claim 2, wherein the inner oscillator (6a) has a core made of wire with a coating made of plastic, wherein the wire is a braided wire and the coating is made of PTFE, PEEK, PE or PA.

4. Dental root canal irrigation arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the inner oscillator (6a) is hollow, the inner oscillator (6a) consisting of one of plastic, metal, or of plastic-coated metal.

5. Dental root canal irrigation assembly according to claim 4, wherein the inner oscillator (6a) has an outer diameter of >0.1 mm and/or <0.5 mm.

6. Dental root canal irrigation arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the suction tip (6) tapers towards its front end, the suction tip (6) having a conically tapering sealing section (D) which is designed and dimensioned elastically in such a way that, when the suction tip (6) is introduced into a tooth root canal, it seals the latter in the region of the tooth root canal wall.

7. Dental root canal irrigation arrangement according to claim 6, wherein the outer diameters of the conical sealing section (D) of the suction tip (6) are ≥0.4 mm, in particular ≥0.5 mm and/or ≤1.4 mm, in particular ≤1.2 mm.

8. Dental root canal irrigation arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the suction element (5) has a connecting part (11) to which the conduit (9) is connected and in which a suction canal section (7a) is formed, and wherein the suction tip (6) and the inner oscillator (6a) are each fixed at their rear end to the connecting part (11) and are thus connected to one another, the suction tip (6) being plugged onto one of the connecting part (11) or the inner oscillator engaging in the suction channel section (7a) and being fixed there to the connecting part (11).

9. (canceled)

10. (canceled)

11. (canceled)

12. (canceled)

13. (canceled)

14. (canceled)

15. (canceled)

16. (canceled)

17. (canceled)

18. (canceled)

19. (canceled)

20. Suction element for sucking irrigation liquid from a dental root canal of a patient to be cleaned, with an elongated suction tip (6) which consists at least partially of a flexible material, wherein the suction element (5) has a suction channel (7) which, starting from the rear end of the suction element (5), extends in the direction of its front end into the suction tip (6), and wherein the suction tip (6) has at least one suction opening (8) which opens into the suction channel (7), wherein the suction element (5) has an inner oscillator (6a) which is held in the suction tip and projects out of the front end thereof, the suction tip (6) and the inner oscillator (6a) being connected to one another at their rear end.

21. Suction element according to claim 20, wherein the inner oscillator (6a) is made of a solid material.

22. Suction element according to claim 21, wherein the inner oscillator (6a) has a core made of wire with a coating made of plastic, the wire being a braided wire and/or the coating being made of PTFE, PEEK, PE or PA.

23. Suction element according to claim 20, wherein the inner oscillator (6a) is hollow, the inner oscillator consisting of one of plastic, metal, or of plastic-coated metal.

24. Suction element according to claim 20, wherein the inner oscillator (6a) has an outer diameter of ≥0.1 mm and/or ≤0.5 mm.

25. Suction element according to claim 20, wherein the suction tip (6) tapers towards its front end and has a conically tapering sealing section (D), which is elastically formed and dimensioned in such a way that, when the suction tip (6) is introduced into a root canal, it seals the latter.

26. Suction element according to claim 25, wherein the outer diameters of the conical sealing section (D) of the suction tip are ≥0.4 mm, in particular ≥0.5 mm and/or ≤1.4 mm, in particular ≤1.2 mm.

27. Suction element according to claim 20, wherein the suction element (5) has a connecting part (11) to which the conduit (9) is connected and in which a suction channel section (7a) is formed, and wherein the suction tip (6) and the inner oscillator (6a) are each fixed at their rear end to the connecting part (11) and are thus connected to one another, the suction tip (6) being plugged onto one of the connecting part (11) or the inner oscillator engaging in the suction duct section (7a) and being fixed there to the connecting part (11).

28. (canceled)

29. (canceled)

30. (canceled)

31. (canceled)

32. (canceled)

33. Suction element according to claim 20, wherein the suction tip has a plurality of suction openings (8) which penetrate the wall of the suction tip (6) starting from its outer lateral surface and open into the suction channel (7).

34. Suction element according to claim 33, wherein the suction openings (8) are located at the front end of the suction tip (6), and/or wherein the suction openings (8) are located at the front end of the suction tip (6), and/or wherein in each case a plurality of suction openings (8) are formed one behind the other in the longitudinal direction of the suction tip (6) in the lateral surface of the suction tip (6), and/or wherein in each case a plurality of suction openings (8) are distributed along the circumference of the suction tip (6), in particular uniformly distributed, are formed in the circumferential surface of the suction tip (6), and/or wherein a plurality of rows of suction openings (8) lying one behind the other in the longitudinal direction of the suction tip (6) and aligned with one another are formed in the circumferential surface of the suction tip (6), and the rows are distributed along the circumference of the suction tip (6), in particular the suction openings (8) of rows adjacent along the circumference being offset with respect to one another in the longitudinal direction.

35. (canceled)

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Description

[0053] FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of a vacuum irrigation arrangement 1 for cleaning a dental root canal of a patient according to the present invention. The vacuum irrigation arrangement 1 comprises a vacuum device 2, which can be designed as a conventional dental suction system, but here has a vacuum pump 3 with a vacuum of 400 to 1000 mmHg and a vacuum and collection container 4, and a suction element 5 with an elongated suction tip 6 positioned at its front end, which is made of a flexible material.

[0054] The suction tip 6 may be formed in various ways. In the embodiment example shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the suction tip 6 is made of a heat-treated nickel-titanium alloy, namely a martensitic FGL alloy with a low pseudoelasticity and a higher pseudoplasticity relative thereto.

[0055] As can be seen from FIGS. 3 and 4, a suction channel 7 is formed centrally in the suction element 5, extending from the rear end of the suction element 5 to the front closed end of the suction tip 6.

[0056] Furthermore, the suction tip 6 has several suction openings 8 which penetrate the wall of the suction tip 6 starting from its outer lateral surface and open into the suction channel 7. In the illustrated embodiment example, four rows of three suction openings 8 each are formed, one behind the other in the longitudinal direction of the suction tip 6 and aligned with each other. The rows are evenly distributed along the circumference of the suction tip 6, i.e. positioned with 90° offset to each other. The suction openings 8 in the rows are arranged equidistantly, with the suction openings 8 of rows adjacent along the circumference being offset from one another in the longitudinal direction by half a hole spacing.

[0057] The suction element 5 is connected at its rear end via a conduit 9 to the vacuum device 2 so that irrigation liquid introduced into a dental root canal can be sucked by means of a vacuum generated by the vacuum device 2 via the suction openings 8 into the suction channel 7 and via this to the vacuum device 2. To illustrate this, the flow path along which the irrigation liquid is drawn off is shown in FIG. 4 by means of arrows 10.

[0058] Specifically, the suction element 5 has a connecting part 11 made of a plastic material fixedly attached to the rear end of the suction tip 6, which comprises a cylindrical section 12 with an external thread at its front end 11 and centrally has a suction channel section 7a.

[0059] At its rear end, the connecting part 11 is connected to the conduit 9 via a plug-in connection. To make and/or secure the plug-in connection, the connecting part 11 has a plug-in section 13 which widens like a funnel and has a circumferential bead 14 which, when the plug-in connection is made, engages with the line 9 in the manner of a hose plug-in nipple connection.

[0060] The vacuum irrigation arrangement 1 further comprises a sonic device in the form of a conventional sonic handpiece 15, which carries coupling means at one end thereof, which are designed in a manufacturer-specific manner and serve for the detachable attachment of attachments. According to the invention, as an attachment, a holder 16 or coupling element is attached to the sonic handpiece 15, which is designed and serves to fix the suction element 5 to the sonic handpiece 15, so that vibrations/vibrations generated by the sonic handpiece 15 can be introduced the suction element 5 to cause the suction tip 6 to vibrate.

[0061] The holder 16 comprises a holder body 16a carrying at one end thereof coupling means 16b for attaching the holder 16 to the sonic handpiece 15, and having at the opposite end thereof fastening means for fixing the suction element 5 to the holder 16b. The fastening means comprise a retaining ring 17 having a through opening 17a which is provided with an internal thread. The through opening 17a is penetrated by the suction element 5, which is screwed into the through opening 17a via the external thread on the cylindrical section 12.

[0062] FIG. 5 shows a further embodiment of a vacuum irrigation arrangement 1 according to the present invention. This differs from the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 to 4 in that it has a valve device 18 along the conduit 9, between the suction element 5 and the vacuum device 2, and the sonic handpiece 15 is missing.

[0063] The valve device 18 is designed to alternately open and close the line 9 with such a frequency that longitudinal oscillations are generated in the suction channel 7 of the suction tip 6. These cause a repeated rise and fall of the negative pressure transmitted to the suction channel 7 via the vacuum device 2, which stimulates the rinsing liquid in the dental root canal.

[0064] Thus, the sonic handpiece 15 and the valve device 18 can be used selectively or together to cause the suction tip 6 to vibrate.

[0065] FIGS. 6 to 13 show an alternative design of a sonic handpiece 15 with a holder 16 and a suction element 5 for the dental root canal irrigation arrangement from FIG. 1. As can be seen in particular in FIGS. 9, 11 and 12, the suction element 5 comprises an elongated suction tip 6, which is made of a flexible plastic material and is hollow in the manner of a suction cannula. As can be readily seen in the figures, the suction tip 6 has an outer contour which tapers from the rear end of the suction tip 6 towards its front end. The rear, open end of the suction tip 6 is attached to a cylindrical connecting part 11 and fixed to the latter. In the manner already explained, the connecting part 11 has an external thread via which it is screwed into the holder 16, which is fixed to the sonic handpiece 15, so that vibrations/vibrations generated by the sonic handpiece 15 can be introduced into the suction element 5. Thereby, a suction channel 7 is centrally formed in the suction element 5, which extends from the rear end of the connecting part 11 to the front open end of the suction tip 6, wherein a suction channel section 7a is formed in the connecting part 11. The line 9 leading to the vacuum device 2 is connected to the connecting part 11.

[0066] The suction element 5 additionally has an inner oscillator 6a, which is fixed in the suction channel section 7a of the connecting element, extends through the suction tip 6 and protrudes from its front end. The suction tip 6 and the inner oscillator 6a are connected to each other via the connecting element 11.

[0067] In the embodiment shown in FIG. 11, the inner oscillator 6 is made of a solid material, in this case a wire coated with plastic. Alternatively, it is possible to make the inner oscillator 6a hollow, in which case it is preferably made of a plastic material.

[0068] The outer contour of the suction tip 6 is selected so that when the suction tip 6 is inserted into a tooth root canal, it comes into contact with the dental root canal wall from a certain insertion depth and thus seals the dental root canal between the dental root canal wall and the suction tip. As a result of this sealing, a negative pressure is created in the dental root canal during dental root canal treatment due to the effect of the vacuum device 2, which abruptly drops again when the suction element 5 is pulled out of the tooth root canal again. By alternately inserting/extracting the suction tip 6 into/from the tooth root canal, shock waves can thus be generated alternately, whereby the air bubbles contained in the dental root canal and the irrigation solution therein expand and collapse at the same time, thereby supporting the cleaning of the dental root canal.

[0069] When the suction tip 6 closes the dental root canal, this simultaneously results in the fact that vibrations introduced into the suction element 5 via the sonic handpiece 15 can no longer or hardly cause the suction tip 6 to vibrate. The internal transducer 6a, on the other hand, continues to vibrate so that the rinsing liquid continues to be excited by the vibrating front end of the internal transducer 6a protruding from the suction tip 6.

[0070] As shown in the figures, the suction tip 6 has a number of conical sections on the outside, which are formed and dimensioned as a sealing section D to sealingly close the tooth root canal as described.

LIST OF REFERENCE SIGNS

[0071] 1 vacuum irrigation arrangement

[0072] 2 vacuum device

[0073] 3 vacuum pump

[0074] 4 vacuum and collection tank

[0075] 5 suction element

[0076] 6 suction tip

[0077] 6a inner oscillator

[0078] 7 suction channel

[0079] 7a suction channel section

[0080] 8 suction opening

[0081] 9 conduit

[0082] 10 arrows

[0083] 11 connecting part

[0084] 12 cylindrical section

[0085] 13 plug-in section

[0086] 14 bead

[0087] 15 sonic handpiece

[0088] 16 bracket

[0089] 16a retainer body

[0090] 16b coupling means

[0091] 17 retaining ring

[0092] 17a through hole

[0093] 18 valve device

[0094] 19 interior transducer

[0095] D sealing section