KR100674042B1 - Apparatus for urinary incontinence treatment having pressure sensor - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention provides an electrode unit for transmitting an electrical signal to the muscles in the body cavity, an electrode wire electrically connected to the electrode unit and transmitting an electrical signal to the electrode unit, and spaced apart from the electrode unit at regular intervals and inside the insulating body. A pressure sensor which is inserted into and supports a rear portion of the insulated body and has an opening formed therein, and a pressure sensor which is attached to an opening in the support and measures the pressure applied to the front portion of the insulated body which is not supported by the support portion; And a signal processor configured to be mounted inside the support to process pressure data measured by the pressure sensor, a rear seal to seal the back of the insulating body, and to connect the electrode wiring and the signal processor to the outside. Electrically connected to the electrode wiring and the signal processor Connected to and receiving a pressure data value processed by the signal processor to determine an electrical signal to be transmitted to the electrode unit, and the urinary incontinence treatment apparatus having a control unit for controlling to transmit the determined electrical signal to the electrode through the electrode wiring; It is about.

According to the present invention, the urinary incontinence treatment device or urinary incontinence diagnosis device to improve the shortcomings of urinary incontinence diagnosis and treatment can be performed in parallel, and can be used in combination of electromyotherapy and electro-stimulation therapy at the same time and also Kegel exercise or femcon therapy During the treatment, the pressure inside the body cavity can be measured to actively contract and relax the pelvic floor muscles, and biofeedback can be used to maximize the therapeutic effect.

Urinary incontinence, pressure measurement, body cavity, electrodes, electromyography, electrostimulation

Description

Incontinence treatment device with pressure sensor {APPARATUS FOR URINARY INCONTINENCE TREATMENT HAVING PRESSURE SENSOR}

1 is a perspective view of the urinary incontinence treatment apparatus according to the prior art.

Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view of the urinary incontinence diagnostic apparatus according to the prior art.

Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view of the urinary incontinence treatment apparatus having a pressure sensor according to the present invention.

4 to 6 is a view showing an example of the manufacturing process of the urinary incontinence treatment device having a pressure sensor according to the present invention.

<Description of the symbols for the main parts of the drawings>

110: main body 120: annular metal band

130: electric wire 210: flexible tube

220: flexible circuit board 230: pressure sensor chip

240: conductive ball 250: sealing portion

310: insulating body 315: protrusion

320: electrode portion 330: electrode wiring

340: support 341: internal support structure

343: internal structure 345: O-ring

347: second O-ring 349: support

350: pressure sensor 360: signal processing unit

370: rear seal 375: wiring

The present invention relates to a urinary incontinence treatment device having a pressure sensor, and more particularly, to improve the disadvantages of the conventional incontinence treatment device or urinary incontinence diagnosis device can be performed in parallel with the diagnosis and treatment of urinary incontinence therapy EMG and electrostimulation therapy Can be used in combination at the same time, and also can measure the pressure inside the body cavity during kegel exercise or femcon therapy to actively contract and relax the pelvic floor muscles and use biofeedback to maximize the therapeutic effect A urinary incontinence treatment apparatus having a sensor.

Urinary incontinence can be defined as 'a symptom of unknowingly leaking urine and causing mental and social problems'. If females have these symptoms, it can be called female urinary incontinence, male urinary incontinence, and appears mainly in women due to physical characteristics.

These incontinences are classified by symptoms as follows.

Intrinsic tension or stress urinary incontinence is a condition in which the person's urine leaks unintentionally when he presses on the lower abdomen, such as coughing, sneezing, laughing, lifting heavy objects, or jumping rope, and the main cause is that the pelvic floor is less elastic after delivery. The urethra and bladder support of the pelvic floor is weakened. If the amount of incontinence per day is not more than 5g, it is regarded as non-significant symptom.

Urgent urinary incontinence is caused by irritation of the bladder as a symptom that the urine continually dries or becomes unbearable and stops wet underwear. The main cause of bladder irritation is abnormal contraction of the bladder muscle, cystitis or overactive bladder.

Mixed urinary incontinence is a symptom of a combination of tension and incontinence.

Urinary urinary incontinence is a condition in which the urine flows out of the bladder when the urinary bladder is not completely discharged.

These treatments for incontinence can be largely classified into non-surgical and surgical methods.

Non-surgical treatments are also called conservative treatments in the sense of alleviating or eliminating symptoms while preserving the original, without damaging the original. Such conservative treatments include drug treatments, behavioral treatments, pessary wear treatments, pelvic floor exercise treatments, and electrical stimulation treatments. Pelvic floor muscle exercise therapy and electric stimulation therapy have been comparatively accumulated and widely used.

Pelvic floor exercise therapy is a method to fundamentally solve the problem by strengthening the weakened pelvic floor muscle, which is pointed to be the main cause of female urinary incontinence, and there are kegel exercise, EMG method, and femcon method. Such pelvic floor muscle exercise therapy is known to be particularly effective in non-medium tension incontinence in women.

First, to explain the relationship between pelvic floor and urinary incontinence in order to better understand the treatment of pelvic floor muscles, a woman's pelvic floor is a plank-shaped muscle layer that extends from the pubic coccyx to the anal tailbone. The urethra, bladder and anus are sub-systems that support them to function normally. Therefore, if the muscle layer is impaired, the urinary and bladder support will fall, causing urinary incontinence.

Kegel exercise is a name given by the inventor, and is a method of relieving or eliminating symptoms by strengthening the pelvic floor and normalizing urethral function through the perineal contraction exercise as a basis of the pelvic floor muscle exercise treatment described below. This is a kind of exercise therapy similar to gymnastics without using a device, but it has a therapeutic effect, but it takes a long time to treat and it is not easy to exercise, so there are many cases of stopping in the middle, and if it is not accurate, it can weaken the pelvic floor. have.

Therefore, the method designed to effectively compensate for these shortcomings is to assist Kegel exercise by using the apparatus as EMG therapy and femcon therapy.

In femcon therapy, five weights (femcons) of the same size and different weights are inserted into the vagina in order to induce contraction and relaxation of the pelvic floor.

In other words, by giving biofeedback by using the weight of each step of the pants (cone femcon) to increase the pelvic floor muscles to relieve or eliminate the symptoms.

EMG therapy is a method to induce contraction and relaxation of the pelvic floor muscle using intravaginal insertion device and EMG with sensor, and to strengthen the pelvic floor muscle by giving biofeedback and to alleviate or eliminate symptoms. Such EMG therapies may be used in combination with electrical stimulation.

Electro stimulation therapy is a method of forcibly contracting the pelvic floor muscles by placing an electric appliance into the vagina and giving electrical stimulation.

The pessary insertion method inserts a balloon or ring-shaped device into the vagina, compresses the urethra or supports the bladder to prevent urinary incontinence. It is different from the pelvic floor muscle therapy therapy that increases the strength of the pelvic floor muscles and treats urinary incontinence. .

Surgical treatment is used for women with severe incontinence, older and weaker pelvic muscle contraction, or for other treatments that fail. A method of raising the sagging bladder is being used. However, these surgical treatments have disadvantages of being inadequate and suffering from relapse when patients need more childbirth and patients do not want to.

Various techniques have been disclosed for the treatment device for treating such incontinence.

For example, Patent Registration No. 10-0357435, filed on July 7, 1998 and registered on October 7, 2002, by Su-Yeul et al. As a treatment device for treating urinary incontinence, an urinary incontinence treatment device is disclosed in which an electrode part is inserted into a body cavity such as the vagina or anus, is used to be in contact with muscle cells, and generates an electrical signal under the control of a controller.

In addition, Patent Registration No. 10-0377104, filed on June 20, 2000 and registered on March 10, 2003, by Morigi, also includes an incontinence treatment device using electrical stimulation. It is starting.

1 is a perspective view of a body cavity insertion electrode disclosed in Patent No. 10-0377104, that is, an urinary incontinence treatment device.

Referring to FIG. 1 and the claims of Patent No. 10-0377104, the body cavity insertion electrode disclosed in Patent No. 10-0377104 includes a rod-shaped main body 110 made of an insulating material, and a body of the main body on the main body. A plurality of annular metal bands 120a to 120e which are sequentially inserted spaced apart from each other along the longitudinal direction and made of an electrically conductive material, and a support (not shown) made of an insulating material buried in the main body, A plurality of metal thin plates (not shown) positioned between the annular metal band of the main body and the main body and fixed in close contact with the inner surface of the metal band, one end of which is connected to the metal thin plate, and the other end of the main body of the main body It includes a plurality of wires 130 extending to the rear end and electrically coupled to the controller.

The conventional urinary incontinence treatment device is mainly for the treatment of electric stimulation, and simply inserts the urinary incontinence treatment electrode in the body cavity and applies electric stimulation, and no method of controlling the electrical stimulation according to the user's state is not disclosed at all.

In addition, Patent Application No. 10-2003-0028944, filed on May 7, 2003, by Kay, Inc., discloses a pressure sensor device for diagnosing urinary incontinence.

2 is a cross-sectional view of the urinary incontinence diagnostic device disclosed in the patent application No. 10-2003-0028944.

Referring to FIG. 2, the urinary incontinence diagnostic apparatus disclosed in Patent Application No. 10-2003-0028944 includes a flexible tube 210 having an empty inside and a predetermined size opening formed near an end thereof. A flexible circuit board 220 inserted into the tube and bonded to the openings with an adhesive; a pressure sensor chip 230 having an active region facing downward on an upper surface of the flexible circuit board corresponding to the opening; And a plurality of conductive balls 240 allowing the pressure sensor chip to be flip chip bonded to the flexible circuit board, and an encapsulation part 250 filling the opening of the flexible tube to protect the pressure sensor chip from the external environment. It is configured to include.

This conventional incontinence diagnostic device is intended to be used to diagnose urinary incontinence symptoms by simply measuring the pressure inside the body cavity and does not disclose any device for performing urinary incontinence treatment using such a measurement.

In addition, it may be effective to treat urinary incontinence, for example, in combination with other urinary incontinence therapy such as kegel exercise or femcon therapy, but such kegel exercise or femcon therapy is only an arbitrary contraction exercise of the pelvic floor muscle and objective data such as pressure in the body cavity. There is a disadvantage in that the user cannot perform an active contraction movement to fit the data by measuring the.

Therefore, it is possible to carry out the diagnosis and treatment of urinary incontinence by improving the shortcomings of the conventional incontinence treatment device or urinary incontinence diagnosis device, and can be used in combination of EMG therapy and electro-stimulation therapy at the same time, and also in the treatment using kegel exercise or femcon therapy There is a growing need for urinary incontinence treatment devices that can actively contract and relax the pelvic floor muscles by measuring the pressure inside the body cavity and maximize the therapeutic effect using biofeedback.

The purpose of the present invention is to improve the disadvantages of the conventional incontinence treatment device or urinary incontinence diagnosis device can be performed in parallel with the diagnosis and treatment of urinary incontinence can be used in combination of EMG therapy and electro-stimulation therapy at the same time and also Kegel exercise or femcon therapy The present invention provides a urinary incontinence treatment device having a pressure sensor that can actively contract and relax the pelvic floor muscles by measuring the pressure inside the body cavity during the treatment, and maximize the therapeutic effect using biofeedback.

In order to achieve the above technical problem, the present invention provides an electrode unit for transmitting an electrical signal to the muscles in the body cavity, an electrode wire electrically connected to the electrode unit and transmitting an electrical signal to the electrode unit, and constant with the electrode unit A support part inserted into the insulating body spaced at intervals to support a rear part of the insulating body and having an opening formed therein, and a front part of the insulating body attached to the opening in the supporting part and not supported by the supporting part; A pressure sensor measuring a losing pressure, a signal processor mounted inside the support and processing pressure data measured by the pressure sensor, and sealing a rear surface of the insulating body and connecting the electrode wiring and the signal processor to the outside. The back seal for the electrode through the back seal and An electrical signal connected to a line and the signal processing unit and to receive the pressure data value processed by the signal processing unit to determine an electrical signal to be transmitted to the electrode unit and to control the transfer of the determined electrical signal to the electrode unit through the electrode wiring. Provided is a urinary incontinence treatment apparatus having a control unit.

delete

In addition, in the urinary incontinence treatment apparatus having a pressure sensor according to the present invention, the control unit preferably further comprises a display unit for displaying the pressure measured by the pressure sensor.

In addition, in the urinary incontinence treatment apparatus having a pressure sensor according to the invention, the control unit preferably further comprises a pressure data storage for storing the pressure measured by the pressure sensor.

In addition, in the urinary incontinence treatment apparatus provided with a pressure sensor according to the present invention, the insulating body is preferably strengthening the sterilization power through the silver nano-coating treatment.

Hereinafter, the incontinence treatment apparatus having a pressure sensor of the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

3 is a cross-sectional view of the urinary incontinence treatment apparatus having a pressure sensor according to the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 3, the urinary incontinence treatment apparatus including the pressure sensor according to the present invention includes an insulating main body 310, an electrode part 320, an electrode wiring 330, a support part 340, and a pressure. The sensor 350, a signal processor 360, and a rear seal 370 are included. In addition, a control unit (not shown) is connected to the outside through the rear seal 370 to control the operation of the urinary incontinence treatment device.

The insulating body 310 is configured to be inserted into the body cavity and has a flexible rod shape with an empty inside. That is, the flexible rod is inserted into the vagina or the anus, and the inside of the insulating body 310 is disposed so that the pressure sensor 350 or the like is disposed. The insulating body 310 may be formed of, for example, electrically insulating silicon. Also, as shown in FIG. 3, the front portion of the insulating body 310 may be configured in a conical shape to facilitate insertion into the body cavity. In addition, the rear portion of the insulating body 310 may include a protrusion 315 to be configured to serve as a handle when the user uses. In addition, since the urinary incontinence treatment device is inserted into the human body, there is a high possibility of being contaminated with bacteria, so that the surface of the insulating body 310 may be strengthened through the silver nano coating treatment.

The electrode unit 320 is integrally injected with the insulating body 310 and is made of an electrically conductive material to transmit an electrical signal to muscles in the body cavity. That is, when inserted into the body cavity for the treatment of diseases such as urinary incontinence, the electrical signal is transmitted to the muscles in the body cavity by contacting the muscles in the body. The electrode unit 320 may be made of electrically conductive silicon to be integrally injected with the insulating body 310 and may be configured to be connected to the electrode wiring 330 by including a conductive metal therein. The electrode unit 320 may include one or more electrodes, and may have an annular band shape. For example, in FIG. 3, two electrodes are included.

The electrode wire 330 is electrically connected to the electrode part 320 to transmit an electrical signal to the electrode part 320. The electrode wiring 330 may be directly connected to the electrode 320, and when the electrode 320 is made of electrically conductive silicon and includes a conductive metal therein, the electrode wiring 330 may be formed of conductive metal. It can be configured to be bonded to.

The support part 340 is spaced apart from the electrode part 320 at regular intervals and is inserted into the insulating body 310 to support the rear portion of the insulating body 310. The reason why the support part 340 is spaced apart from the electrode part 320 at regular intervals is that the front part of the insulating main body 310, which is not supported by the support part 340, is compressed by the muscles in the body cavity in the body cavity and thus the pressure sensor ( It is to ensure a constant space to be measured by 350). In addition, the support part 340 supports the rear portion of the insulating body 310 to allow the pressure sensor 350 and the signal processor 360 to be disposed therein. In addition, the support 340 is configured to be attached to the pressure sensor 350 is formed in the opening.

The pressure sensor 350 is attached to an opening in the support 340 and measures the pressure applied to the front portion of the insulating body 310 that is not supported by the support 340.

The signal processor 360 is mounted inside the support 350 to signal the pressure data measured by the pressure sensor 350.

The rear seal 370 seals the rear surface of the insulating body 310 and connects the electrode wire 330 and the signal processor 360 to the outside. The back seal 370 includes a wiring 375 for sealing through, for example, a silicon molding process and for connecting to an external controller (not shown).

The controller (not shown) is electrically connected to the electrode wiring 330 and the signal processor 360 through the rear seal 370, and receives the pressure data value processed by the signal processor 360 to receive the electrode 320. It determines the electrical signal to be delivered to and controls to deliver the determined electrical signal to the electrode unit 320 through the electrode wiring 330.

In addition, the controller may further include a display unit (not shown) that displays the pressure measured by the pressure sensor 350. For example, the user measures the pressure formed at the front of the insulating body 310 when the user contracts the pelvic floor and displays it on the display to display the strength and strength of the contraction numerically, thereby compensating for the disadvantages of conventional kegel exercise or femcon therapy, and actively The pelvic floor muscles can contract and relax, and biofeedback can be used to maximize the therapeutic effect.

The control unit (not shown) may also include a pressure data storage unit (not shown) that stores the measured pressure to record the change in the muscular strength of the pelvic floor muscle by measuring the pressure in the pressure sensor when the pelvic floor muscle contracts. . This change in strength can determine whether the symptoms of incontinence are alleviated.

4 to 6 is a view showing an example of the manufacturing process of the urinary incontinence treatment device having a pressure sensor according to the present invention.

 First, the electrode wiring 330 and the electrode unit 320 are connected. The electrode unit 320 may be made of electrically conductive silicon, or may be configured to include a conductive metal to facilitate connection with the electrode wiring 330 while being made of electrically conductive silicon. The electrode wire 330 is connected to the electrode unit 320 by soldering or clapping.

Thereafter, the electrode 320 and the internal support structure 341 are connected. The internal support structure 341 is part of the support 340.

Thereafter, the insulating main body 310 is formed by injecting it integrally. In the injection, the protrusion 315 may be included in the insulating body 310.

4 is a cross-sectional view after the insulating body 310 is integrally injected.

Thereafter, the internal structure 343 and a space sealing member, such as an O-ring 345, are attached. The inner structure 343 or the o-ring 345 is also part of the support 340, which is used for sealing between the inner support structure 341 and the inner structure 343. An opening is formed in the internal structure 343, and then a pressure sensor is attached. The inner support structure 341 and the inner structure 343 and the O-ring 345 support the insulating body 310 to transfer pressure to the pressure sensor.

Thereafter, the pressure sensor 350 and the signal processor 350 are mounted in the opening of the internal structure 343. In this case, the second O-ring 347 may be used for sealing between the pressure sensor 350 and the opening.

5 is a diagram illustrating a process of mounting the pressure sensor 350 and the signal processor 360.

Since the rear seal 370 is mounted. The rear seal 370 includes a wire for connecting to an external control unit, and also includes a support 349 for supporting the rear seal 370 and the internal structure 342.

6 is a view illustrating a process of mounting the rear seal 370 and the support 349.

The internal support structure 341, the internal structure 343, the O-ring 345, the second O-ring 347, and the support 349 constitute the support 340 and may be modified according to design. For example, the internal support structure 341 and the internal structure 343 may be configured to be integrally formed, or the internal structure 343 and the support 349 may be integrally formed.

4 to 6 is just one example of the manufacturing process of the urinary incontinence treatment device having a pressure sensor according to the present invention and the urinary incontinence treatment device having a pressure sensor according to the present invention is to be manufactured through another manufacturing process Keep in mind that you can.

In addition, although the urinary incontinence treatment device having a pressure sensor of the present invention is to measure the pressure of the muscles in the body cavity by inserting in the body cavity and to use the same to treat the urinary incontinence, but without inserting in the body cavity to measure the grip force of other muscles, such as hand muscles It can also be used to

Although the present invention has been described in detail, this is for illustrative purposes only, and the protection scope of the present invention is not limited thereto, and the protection scope of the present invention is defined through the description of the claims.

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to perform both urinary incontinence diagnosis and treatment by improving the disadvantages of the conventional urinary incontinence treatment device or urinary incontinence diagnosis device. In addition, by measuring the pressure inside the body cavity during treatment with or femcon therapy, the pelvic floor muscle contraction and relaxation can be actively performed, and biofeedback can be used to maximize the therapeutic effect.

Claims (5)

An urinary incontinence treatment device having a pressure sensor, A flexible rod-shaped insulating body configured to be inserted into the body cavity and having an empty interior; An electrode unit configured to be integrally injected with the insulating body and made of an electrically conductive material to transmit an electrical signal to the muscles in the body cavity; An electrode wire electrically connected to the electrode unit and transmitting an electrical signal to the electrode unit; A support part spaced apart from the electrode part at a predetermined interval and inserted into the insulating body to support a rear part of the insulating body and having an opening formed therein; A pressure sensor attached to an opening in the support portion, the pressure sensor measuring a pressure applied to a front portion of the insulating body not supported by the support portion; A signal processor mounted inside the support and configured to process pressure data measured from the pressure sensor; A rear seal unit for sealing the rear surface of the insulating body and connecting the electrode wiring and the signal processing unit to the outside; The electrical signal is electrically connected to the electrode wiring and the signal processor through the rear seal part and receives the pressure data value processed by the signal processor to determine an electrical signal to be transmitted to the electrode part. Control unit to control the transmission of electrical signals Urinary incontinence treatment device having a pressure sensor comprising a. delete The method of claim 1, The control unit further comprises a display for displaying the pressure measured by the pressure sensor incontinence treatment apparatus having a pressure sensor. The method of claim 1, The control unit further comprises a pressure data storage unit for storing the pressure measured by the pressure sensor. The method of claim 1, The insulative body is incontinence treatment device having a pressure sensor comprising a silver nano-coating on the surface.

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