Operation unit

Surgical unit

The invention relates to a surgical unit.

Usually, surgery on humans or animals is performed in operating rooms, rooms that are specially adapted for surgery in sterile conditions. Said operating rooms take up space and are very expensive, due, for example, to the expensive installation to purify the air, maintain a slight overpressure inside said room and to sterilize all surgical instruments and the like. In addition, since said operating room has to be suitable for all kinds of surgery, in that room more equipment will be present than is necessary for each individual type of surgery.

An additional disadvantage of such operating rooms is that all persons who have to be present in said surgery, such as the surgeon, the nurse, the anesthetist, the clinic assistant or other persons necessary to perform the surgery, or each of them, They must be specially dressed and have made a specific cleaning before entering the room, as should be done with the patient. This also consumes time, is expensive and, if not done well, can lead to contamination of the area of ​​operation, which will be detrimental to the patient. A further problem with said operating room is that people leaving and / or entering said room will generate air turbulence, which can also be detrimental to the sterility of the room in general and, specifically, to the patient.

Another additional disadvantage is that known operating rooms have to be construction and are static. Patients must be brought to the surgery room.

US 3,602,212 discloses a surgical unit, according to the preamble of claim 1. In said surgical unit a downward flow of air is constantly provided over the entire surface area.

The USA document 3,151,929 discloses a unit to prevent the spread of diseases, which comprises a construction to be placed above a patient's bed, said construction having a sealed closure comprising, on its lower side, air outlet openings over the entire surface, providing, during use, a constant laminar flow of air, descending over the entire surface of the bed and over a surface area directly adjacent to said bed.

The present invention relates to surgical units. An objective of the present invention is to disclose a surgical unit that is easy to use.

In addition, the present invention aims to disclose a surgical unit that is relatively small and less expensive than a known operating room.

A further objective of the present invention is to provide an operating room that allows freedom of movement during the preparation and performance of surgery to surgical assistants, anesthetists, nurses, clinic assistants and the like.

Another additional objective of the present invention is to disclose a surgical unit that minimizes the need for sterilization.

At least several of these and other objectives and advantages are achieved by a surgical unit as defined by the features of claim 1.

A surgical unit, according to the present invention, is arranged in such a way that only the relevant part of the patient and the surgeon performing the surgery have to be inside a space comprising means to provide a sufficiently sterile environment for said surgery. It must be understood by a relevant part of the patient as the part of the patient's body on or in which the surgery has to be performed. For example, for eye surgery, only the patient's head has to be introduced into said space, under a cover that makes available only to the surgeon's eye and, possibly, its direct environment. An air flow over said cover and said relevant part of said patient provides the desired sterile environment.

Due to these characteristics, a surgical unit, according to the present invention, can be constructed relatively small and economically. In addition, people and appliances or other equipment that will not be used in said sterile environment, such as anesthetics, monitoring equipment and the like, can be kept outside of said unit. In addition, said persons can approach and move away from said patient without the need for special clothing, cleaning or the like. Also, air turbulence around said unit is not harmful to a high degree for said patient. In addition, said unit allows surgery on parts of said body without the need for cleaning and / or special clothing of the patient. Another additional advantage of said unit is that it can be built lightly and is easily transportable. If mobile is built, it can be arranged virtually anywhere where surgery has to be performed.

A unit, according to the present invention, is separated from said wall, which will also be referred to below as the front wall, preferably provided with side walls, a roof and a rear wall, such that it limits a space, protected from the environment. The unit is preferably foldable, at least partially, so that it can be taken to an even more compact storage position.

The side walls and the roof element are preferably foldable on said drive unit and / or against it, so that the rear wall can be made foldable and / or made of strip-like elements, such that it can be entered or easily exit said space through said rear wall.

In a surgical unit, according to the present invention, said cover element is preferably made of a flexible, foldable and / or hanging material, such as cloth. For example, a surgical sheet. During use, said cover can be easily folded or folded over a part of the body in which it is to be operated, such as head, abdomen, foot or the like. One or more openings are arranged in said cover to make accessible a place to operate such as an eye, abdomen, foot or the like. The upper part of said cover is preferably located against the front wall, so that the air in said space from said drive unit will be directed substantially over said cover.

At least said opening, at least in said wall, is preferably sized in such a way that at least one end of a hospital bed, a stretcher or the like can be introduced through said opening below said cover. The opening can be, for example, between 20 and 90 cm wide and between 20 and 120 cm high. These dimensions are provided only as examples and should not be considered in any way as limiting the scope of protection sought.

In an alternative embodiment, the opening is made such that a limb of a human being or an animal can be introduced therethrough, such that, for example, a hand, a foot, a hoof or the like is it can enter said space below said cover, leaving the rest of the body outside said space. An opening in said wall could also be provided with means to adjust the width and / or height, such that the most appropriate size of said opening can be continuously achieved.

In an advantageous embodiment, the outlet opening connected to the drive unit is sized such that it extends at least by the width of at least said opening in said wall, such that through said opening it is possible to achieve an air flow, during use. This provides a very advantageous protection against contamination.

The direction of the outlet flow opening is preferably such that the air flow from said outlet flow opening is directed downwards, more preferably downwards in a direction away from said wall, in which said opening. This means that an air flow is provided on said cover, during its use, in the direction of the person performing said surgery, which moves away from said wall.

By placing at least said air inlet opening lower than said outlet flow opening, said air flow over said cover is even further improved.

It is preferred that near the floor on which said surgical unit is located, openings are arranged for the connection of an interior space of said unit and the environment of said unit, such that air turbulence is prevented within the interior of said unit.

The walls of said surgical unit are preferably made transparent, at least partially, especially part of the front wall and / or parts of the side walls, such that the person performing the surgery inside said surgical unit has the possibility of visual contact with people surrounding said surgical unit and / or with parts of the patient extending outward from said surgical unit.

When a person is prepared for surgery, it can be placed on a bed, a stretcher, a chair or a similar support structure, so that part of that person's body, on which the surgery should be performed, is displaced through an opening in a wall of the surgical unit, according to the invention, below a cover, for example a fabric. The cover includes an opening that shows an operation zone. A substantially sterile air flow may be provided towards said person, and said air flow may be directed at least from an outlet opening above said opening in the wall, in the downward direction, and be guided over said cover and, at least, on said surgical zone. The air can be recirculated by means of a drive unit that filters said air for sterilization purposes.

In such a method, a person can be prepared for surgery very easily, without the need, for example, of a complete cleaning of the person, change of clothes or the preparation of a complete operating room. Although it is preferred that said method be performed in a substantially clean environment, this is not essential. Since inside the surgical unit, a substantially sterile air flow is guided over a cover that covers the person to be operated, leaving only at least one area of ​​operation of said person free, the surgical site is kept sterile to the extent wanted.

Air can be recirculated inside said unit, for various reasons, using a drive unit to filter said air for sterilization purposes. It should be understood that sterile at least comprises sufficiently clean air in order to have a surgical environment.

This method has the advantage that surgery can be performed without very thorough cleaning activities of both the patient and all the people who help during these operations. Said persons who help in said operation, as well as for example the family or other relatives, may even enter or leave the room in which said unit is located during said surgery, such that the person on whom the Surgery can be comforting, while anesthetists and nurses, for example, can pay attention to various operations at any time.

Additional advantageous embodiments of a surgical unit and methods, according to the present invention, are provided in the dependent claims.

For a better understanding of the present invention, embodiments of a surgical unit, according to the present invention, will be explained with reference to the drawings. They show:

Figure 1, a schematic perspective view of a surgical unit, according to the present invention, in a first embodiment, ready for use;

Figure 2, a schematic side view of a surgical unit, according to Figure 1, in a folded position;

Figure 3, a surgical unit, according to Figure 1, in a rear view, with a rear wall and part of the cover partially in section;

Figure 4, a cross-sectional side view of a surgical unit, according to the present invention, during surgery;

Figure 5, a surgical unit, according to the present invention, in an alternative embodiment, as seen in a cross-sectional side view, available for an operation;

Figure 5A, a surgical unit, according to the invention, comparable to the unit according to Figure 5, with two spaces;

Figure 6, schematically a surgical unit, according to the present invention, in which the air flow is shown, during use;

Figure 7, a schematic cross-section of a further alternative embodiment of a surgical unit, according to the present invention, during surgery;

Figure 8, a view corresponding to Figure 6, of an alternative embodiment of a surgical unit, according to the present invention, which includes an air flow; and

Figure 9, schematically in cross-section along the line -IX-IX-in Figure 8, the surgical unit as shown in Figure 8.

In this description, similar elements have similar reference signs. Surgical unit embodiments are shown by way of example only. It should be evident that variations thereof are possible, especially combinations of features different from the embodiments shown.

Figure 1 shows a surgical unit -1- comprising a front wall -2-, two opposite side walls -4-, connected to said front wall -2-, and an upper wall or a ceiling -6-connected to said front wall -2-and to the side walls -4-. A rear wall -8- is provided, connected to said side walls -4-and to said ceiling -6-. The front wall -2-, the side walls -4-, the roof -6- and the rear wall -8-limit an interior space -10-in said surgical unit -1-, large enough to accommodate at least part of the equipment surgical, a drive unit -12-to be described below and at least one person -14-who performs the surgery, such as an eye surgeon, an orthopedic surgeon or other medical specialist. A surgical unit -1-, according to the present invention, can be, for example, between 2 and 2.5 m high, between 2 and 3 m wide and between 1.5 and 2.5 m deep. These dimensions are provided by way of example only and do not limit, in any way, the scope of the present invention.

In the embodiment of the surgical unit -1-, according to figure 1, the front wall comprises an opening -16- extending from a lower side -18- of said front wall -2-. For example, a hospital bed, a stretcher or the like can be propelled with one of its head or foot parts into said opening -16-in the -P- direction. The opening -16- has a height -H-, for example, between 60 cm and 100 to 120 cm, measured from the ground -20-, and has a width -W-, for example, between 60 cm and 1 m. These dimensions are also provided by way of example only and should not be considered in any way as limiting the invention. A cover -22-is suspended from suspension means -23-such as a series of hooks, a fastening rail, rings or the like, hanging from above said opening -16-and extending through said opening -16-, close to the ground -20- or even above the ground -20-. The width -W1-of the cover -22-is greater than the width -W-of the opening -16-, while the height -H1-of said cover -22-is preferably greater than the height -H-of the opening -16-. When the surgical unit -1- is not used, or at least when a patient is not introduced through said opening -16-, as will be explained below, the cover -22-hangs behind said opening -16- , in said interior space -10-, substantially closing said opening -16-.

The cover 22 is preferably made of cloth or plastic, such as a surgical sheet, and is sufficiently flexible, foldable or similar to be used to cover at least part of a patient to be operated, as will be described below.

The surgical unit -1-, according to Figure 1, comprises a front part -24- which is substantially rigid and comprises said front wall -2-, two side panels -26- and an upper panel -28-. A second side panel -30 is connected to each first side panel -26-by means of -32-or similar joints, while a panel -34-of the ceiling is connected to the top panel -28-by means of additional -32-joints. As shown in Figure 2, when not in use, the roof panel -34-can be folded over the upper part of the upper panel -28-, while the second side panels -30-can be folded against the part rear of the front -24-. The panel -34-of the ceiling can be folded into two parts by means of a fold line -33- to maintain the compactness. As shown in Figure 2, the surgical unit -1-is, in its folded position, relatively small and can be operated, for example, by a door that opens inwardly and outwardly of various rooms. For this purpose, the surgical unit -1-is preferably mounted on wheels -36-.

As can be seen, for example, in Figure 1, the front wall -2-is provided with a transparent part -38 above said opening -16-, for example a window. As shown, for example, in Figures 4 and 7, a person -14-inside said space -10-may have visual contact through said panel -38-with a person -14A-located in the outside of said space -10-, for example a nurse, an anesthetist, the patient -15-or other people. The person -14-may also have eye contact with devices in the area around said surgical unit -1-. The second side panels 30 are also preferably made of transparent material, such as glass or plastic.

To facilitate the folding capacity of the surgical unit -1-, as shown in Figure 2, the rear wall -8- is preferably foldable and can be provided, for example, with a door -17- allowing entry in said space -10-. In a preferred embodiment, however, said rear wall -8- is made, for example, of plastic strips extending from the ceiling -34-, partially overlapping each other, such that a person can easily cross said wall. -8-, while the rear wall -8 provides a closed rear wall, during use. The rear wall may have an opening, for its entire height, 10 to 50 cm wide, to allow air to exit the surgical unit -1-without causing turbulence.

In the space -10-interior of said surgical unit -1-, an air delivery unit -40-comprising a duct -42-extending along parts of the two opposite side walls -4- is provided. , behind the side panels -26- and through the front wall, below said upper panel -28-. The duct -42-is provided, at one end -43-, with an inlet opening -44- for air coming from inside said space -10-, while at an opposite end -45-, the duct -42- it is connected to an air outlet unit -46-which extends along the width of the air unit -1-between the two secondary ducts -47 of the duct -42-substantially U-shaped, below said transparent part - 38-and through the opening -16-. The length -L- of said air outlet unit -46- is greater than the width -W- of said opening -16- and preferably corresponds substantially to the width -W1- of said cover -22- , of which only the right side is shown in Figure 3. To the left of the center line -C-, said cover -22- is shown only by its contour -22-, showing the opening -16-.

The air outlet unit -46- comprises an air outlet opening -48- which extends approximately the entire length -L- of said air outlet unit -46-. The air outlet opening -48- can also be arranged as a series of smaller openings, next to each other. The air outlet opening -48-is preferably configured such that, during use, an air flow is provided leaving said air outlet opening -48-in a downward direction, away from said front wall -2-, as shown schematically by the arrows -F- in Figures 3 to 7.

Figure 6 shows schematically the air flow inside said unit, during its use. This can be understood based on what follows.

Inside the air supply unit -40-, especially inside said duct -42-, pumping means -50- are located to generate an air flow. In addition, filtering means -60-are located inside said duct -42-to filter the air. The filtering means -60-are designed in such a way that the air flowing through said duct in the direction of the arrows -F1-is filtered in such a way that the sterile air leaves the air outlet opening -48 -in the address -F-, during use. In this description, sterile air must be understood to mean that at least it comprises air that is sufficiently clean to be allowed in surgical settings, as described. For this purpose, the prefiltering means may comprise, for example, a G3 or G4 filter, according to EN779, in combination with a prefiltering means of type F7 to F9, according to EN779, above said pumping means for filtering particles of the air, while filtering means of type H14, according to EN 1822, may be arranged below said pumping means -50- for further sterilization of said air -F1-.

During use, the air is drawn through at least said opening -44- by said means of (pre) filtering from said space -10-into the duct -42- by means of pumping -50- , through said filtering means -60- in the direction of the air outlet unit -46-. The air is then forced in the direction -F-down and preferably away from the front wall on the cover -22-in the direction of the ground -20-, and back in the direction of the inlet opening -44- . This leads to the recirculation of the air through the air supply unit -40-, constantly sterilizing the air. As is evident from the drawings, the lower edge -18-of the walls -2-and / or -4-and / or -8-may be located, a little above the ground -20- during use, leaving an opening -19-just above the ground -20-. This substantially prevents unwanted pressure differences between the interior space -10-of the unit -1- and the environment -62-. Therefore, air turbulence is substantially prevented.

Surgical equipment, such as a microscope -64-, can be arranged inside said space -10-, for example on the air outlet unit -46- or on shelves (not shown) on each of the walls - 2-, -4-, -8- or outside the duct -42-.

A surgical unit -1-, according to the present invention, can be used for a method based on the following.

The surgical unit -1-is taken to a surgical site that can be, for example, a clean room, an operating room, a sick room, a recovery room or any other room that has enough space to establish said surgical unit. Under specific circumstances, the -1-surgical unit could be used even outside buildings, for example in a military camp, or in a disaster area. The unit is then set in the position as shown in Figure 1. A patient 15 is prepared for the operation, for example by suitable anesthetics or the like, and is placed, for example, on a surgical table, a stretcher or similar, which supports it properly. Apparatus -66-can be attached to the patient -15-in the area -62 surrounding said unit -1-, which does not have to be sterile. The patient -15-and any person -14A-in said environment -62-may wear ordinary clothes and do not have to perform specific or similar washing activities.

In Figure 4 an operation is shown schematically on the head -15A-of a patient -15-, for example an ocular operation. For this purpose, the end of the head of the surgical bed -68-is pushed in the direction -Pa through the opening -16-, below the cover -22-, such that said cover -22 rests on said head -15A-, covering said head -15A-of the patient -15- and hanging to near the ground -20-. As shown schematically in Figure 3, a surgical opening -70- is made in the cover -22-, such that the place to operate, such as an eye, is accessible to the surgeon -14-through the cover -22-, as is usual in commonly known surgical techniques. The air supply unit -40 is put into operation, in such a way that the air flow -F-is directed downwards on the cover -22-, in the direction of the surgeon -14-, which can be, for example, sitting inside said space -10- in a chair -72-, with its knees against the deck -22-, below the end of the head of the surgical table -68-. Due to the air flow -F- on the cover -22-, the surgical site remains sterile, thus preventing infections. The air is recirculated through the air supply unit -40-, as described above, maintaining sufficient sterility inside said space -10-. Due to the transparency of at least part of the walls -2-, -4-, the surgeon -14- can maintain eye contact with other people -14Ay with the patient -15-.

An alternative embodiment of a surgical unit -1- is shown in Figure 5, in which similar parts have similar reference signs. In this embodiment, the opening -16-is manufactured in such a way that the surgical bed -68-can be introduced laterally into said opening -16-, below said cover -22-, such that, for example, a Surgical site on a patient's stomach -15- may be available through an opening -70- in said cover -22-.

Figure 5A shows an -1-alternative unit, comprising two units -1-, according to Figure 5, placed against each other by the front walls -2-. This provides two spaces -10-, one on each side of the patient -15-, which allows access from both sides. Alternatively, said spaces -10-can be arranged in a unit -1-and / or the output units -46-can be provided with air coming from the same unit -40-to blow it over the cover -22-.

Another additional embodiment of a surgical unit -1-, according to the present invention, whose unit is stationary in this embodiment is shown in Figure 7. The front wall -2-extends between the roof -6- and the floor -20-, an opening -16- being arranged in said wall -2-, behind which a cover -22- is arranged, such as It has been described above. Schematically, fixing means -23- for said cover -22- are shown, comprising hooks in said wall -2-of which the cover -22- may be suspended. It will be evident that any kind of fixing means can be used in this case. A window -38- is provided to allow visual contact between the space -10-inside said unit -1-, on one side of said wall -2- and the environment -62-on the opposite side. An air delivery unit -40- is provided, comprising a duct -42- housing the pumping means -50- and the filtering means -60- (not shown in Figure 7). It is also provided, in this case, an air outlet unit -46-which extends through the opening -16-, with an air outlet opening -48 to direct air -F-down on said cover -22 -. The air can be recirculated again by introducing the air through an air inlet opening -44-, as described above. The surgeon -14- can once again perform operations on a patient -15-, while other people -14A- can remain in this environment -62-.

An additional embodiment of a surgical unit -1-, according to the present invention, in which corresponding parts have corresponding reference numerals is shown in Figure 8. The surgical unit -1 is shown in a view corresponding to Figure 6, which shows the air flow inside it.

In this embodiment, an air flow -F-is generated in a substantially symmetrical manner by providing an air discharge unit -40- comprising two air ducts -42-near both sides of the space -10-, connected to a duct of air -42A-along the top of the unit -1-. Inside said upper duct -42A-are located pumping means -50-, for example a fan having suction holes -51- on both sides. Both ducts -42-are provided, at the lower ends, with air inlet openings -44-, substantially covered by a first filter -60A-. Near the top of the ducts -42-, an ultraviolet lamp -70- may be arranged for airflow treatment. In the upper duct -42A-, on both sides of the fan -50-, a second filter means -60B-are arranged to further filter the air flow -F-. As can be seen especially in Figure 9, between the air outlet unit -46- and the upper duct -42A-, especially the outlet -52-of the fan -50-, two panels -38A- are provided, - 38B-, which extend over the entire width between the ducts -42-, thus providing a connection duct -53-between the fan -50- and the air outlet unit -46-. Said panels -38A-, -38B-are preferably transparent, for visibility. In the air outlet unit -46-and / or near the fan -50-, especially the outlet -52-, partitions or said means may be arranged to guide the air flow -F-such that when leaves the air outlet unit -46-, the air is well divided by the width of the outlet unit -46-, preferably, substantially with a laminar flow. In the air outlet unit -46-, preferably, third filtering means -60C-are arranged to provide sterilized air.

As can be seen especially from Figure 8, in an embodiment of a surgical unit -1-, according to Figures 8 and 9, a substantially symmetrical air flow is generated by said air unit -40-, which It is favorable for air distribution.

In surgical units -1-, according to the present invention, it is preferred that the final filtering means, for example, the filtering means -60C-, are arranged in or near the air outlet unit -46-, finally sterilizing the air just before it leaves the air outlet unit -46-. In the embodiment of Figure 8, secondary air inlet openings -71- are arranged near the top of the surgical unit -1-, for example in the upper part of the air ducts -42-. Said openings are provided with air regulating means such as an articulated lid -72-, which can define the flow of air through said secondary air inlet opening -71-. Fourth filtering means -60D-are arranged near said secondary air inlet opening -71-, to filter the incoming air.

By way of example, it should not be interpreted, in any case, that limits the scope of the present invention, in a unit according to Figure 8, the first filtering means may be a first stage prefilter -60A-, for example a filter G3 or G4, according to EN779, the second filter means could be a second stage filter -60B-, ​​for example a filter F7 to F9, according to EN779, while the third filter means could be an extreme filter, for example a Hepa H14 filter, according to EN1822. The fourth filter media could be a first stage filter similar to the first filter media -60A-. In the air ducts -42- an air velocity is preferably generated according to the specifications of the filtering means, for example between 1 and 2 m / second, especially around 1.5 m / second. The UV lamp -70-is, for example, a lamp of few watts, for example about 8 watts. The distance between the first filter media -60A- and the ultraviolet lamp is, for example, 1 to 2 m, preferably about 1.5 m. Inside the upper duct -42A-, especially near the fan -50-, the air velocity is preferably somewhat lower, for example about 0.5 m / second. It will be evident that for different configurations and for different purposes of using a unit, according to the present invention, said means can be modified.

For a surgical unit, according to the invention, especially in an embodiment as shown in Figure 7, the air delivery unit 40 may obviously also be connected to a sterile air source as is commonly known, for example. , for operating rooms.

Any combination of parts of the various embodiments shown in this description are considered described herein and fall within the scope of the present invention.

The present invention is not limited in any way to the embodiments as shown and described in the figures and description. Many similar embodiments can be contemplated.

For example, a surgical unit, according to the present invention, may have non-folding walls and a ceiling, while the air delivery unit may be suspended inside said unit, instead of being part of its frame, such as it is shown in the drawings, or be placed on the outside of said unit. In addition, a unit, according to the present invention, could be suspended from a ceiling or a roof. The air delivery unit -40-can be of any suitable shape and size to provide an adequate flow of sterile air over said cover -22-during an operation, which can have a different direction. The cover 22 is preferably made of fabric or the like, but it can also be made of another material, for example more rigid. As shown in Figure 3, the unit can be provided with connection means -80-, to connect to an electric current supply, for the drive unit, the surgical means and the like. However, the unit may also be provided with a primary group to provide said electric current, or other means to generate enough energy.

These and other different variants, including any combination of features of the embodiments shown and described, are considered to be within the scope of protection, defined by the appended claims.