Patent Application
20070282391
1: waveform shaper
2: direct current high negative voltage generator
3: direct current power source
4: relay
5: sequence controller
6: current sensor
7: protective resistor
8: program controller
9: director electrode plate
10: counter electrode plate
11: counter electrode plate
12: subject
20: ground terminal
31: casing
32: inner lid
33: inorganic insulator powder
35, 36: electrode
37: adhesive
38, 39: lead
The present inventors have discovered, as already disclosed, that an electrotherapeutic device using a special waveform shaper filled with pumice blocks or inorganic insulator powder and a predetermined amount of moisture improves the efficiency in generating negative ions or reducing ions and intensifies human immunity. The present inventors have provided an electrotherapeutic device in accordance with the present invention, which will provide a reliable treatment effect and be easy to operate, through profound studies.
The electrotherapeutic device in accordance with the present invention will be described more fully hereinafter in conjunction with an embodiment.
The electrotherapeutic device in accordance with the present embodiment includes as major components a direct current power source 1, a direct current high negative voltage generator 2, a waveform shaper 3, a relay 4, a sequence controller 5, a current sensor 6, a protective resistor 7, and a program controller 8. A director electrode plate 9, and counter electrode plates 10 and 11 are connected to the electrotherapeutic device via terminals, and attached to a patient. A greater treatment effect is expected when the electrode plates are attached to the patient's left hand and left foot and the patient's right hand and right foot at the same time. Therefore, an electrotherapeutic device including two sets of electrode units may be used to attach the electrode plates to both the right hand and foot and the left hand and foot, simultaneously.
The direct current power source 1 is an AC-DC converter that converts an AC 100 V into a DC 12 V. A 0 V output terminal is grounded.
The direct current high negative voltage generator 2 is realized with a booster that includes electromagnetic coils and rectifiers. A high-frequency chopping circuit produces an alternating current voltage from a direct current voltage of 12 V supplied from the direct current power source 1 via the relay 4. The generator steps up the alternating current voltage by the coils and fully rectify the current. The voltage is smoothed by a capacitor. Consequently, a high voltage direct current of −9 kV at most is transmitted via an output terminal.
The output voltage can be regulated by the supplied direct current voltage. For example, assuming that the input voltage is varied by 10 mV, the output voltage varies by 105 V.
The relay 4 controls connection and disconnection of input voltage to the direct current high negative voltage generator 2 according to a signal sent from the sequence controller 5.
The high negative voltage terminal of the direct current high negative voltage generator 2 is connected to the input terminal of the waveform shaper 3. The waveform shaper 3 is a capacitive distributed constant circuit element offering a high resistance, which shapes up a high direct current voltage signal so that a current will flow intermittently.
The waveform shaper 3 is, for example as shown in
A pair of electrode plates 35 and 36 is abutted on the opposite walls of the casing 31 with the inorganic insulator powder 33 between them. One of the electrode plates, that is, the electrode 35 is connected to the high negative voltage terminal of the direct current high negative voltage generator 2 via a lead 38. The other electrode 36 is connected to a director electrode plate output terminal 40 via a lead 39. The inner lid 32 is bonded to the casing 31 using an adhesive, whereby the waveform shaper 3 is kept airtight.
The moistened inorganic insulator is not a full insulator. When the space filled with the inorganic insulator in a close-packed state between the electrodes is applied with a high voltage, a phenomenon similar to dielectric breakdown occurs. Consequently, a current slightly flows. After a voltage drops, an insulated state is restored. The waveform shaper exhibiting such a nonlinear characteristic superimposes a special pulsating waveform on a high negative voltage as shown in
As for the inorganic insulator powder 33, finely granular pumice blocks may be adopted.
The director electrode plate 9 is connected to the output terminal 40 of the waveform shaper 3. The ground terminal of the direct current high negative voltage generator 2 is connected to a counter electrode plate output terminal 20 via the protective resistor 7 and the current sensor 8. Two counter electrode plates 10 and 11 are connected to the counter electrode plate output terminal 20.
Conventionally, two pairs of a director electrode plate and a counter electrode plate are used to attach to the right and left palms for the treatment. Experiments demonstrate that when another counter electrode plate is also attached to each of the right and left insteps, a treatment effect markedly improves, though the mechanism is unknown. Consequently, the electrotherapeutic device in accordance with the present embodiment adopts a cable terminated with two of parallel-connected counter electrode plate pads.
For the treatment, as shown in
After the electrodes are attached, a treatment time is set, and a start switch of the electrotherapeutic device is turned on. Consequently, a special waveform output produced by the waveform shaper 3 is applied to the subject and the treatment is initiated. The treatment time can be selected in units of 1 min and is normally set to about 20 min.
The conditions of dryness of a subject's skin, the insulation resistance of electrode pads, and so on, vary depending on the nature or condition of the individual subject, and the climate or weather such as the temperature or humidity. Even if an applied electric waveform remains unchanged, a current flowing through a subject's body varies every time.
Investigation on a degree of improvement in cellular immune function achieved by the electrotherapeutic device demonstrates that the immune function improves less in winter and summer but improves more in spring and autumn. Even when the same voltage is applied, a treatment current decreases in winter but increases in summer and remains intermediate in spring and autumn.
Moreover, a subject's temperature rises or a body portion to which an electrode pad is attached is sweated during the treatment. Normally, as the treatment progresses, the electric resistance tends to decrease and the treatment current increase.
An output of an appropriate initial applied voltage is set and applied in order to commence the treatment. Generally, a treatment current gradually increases. However, unless danger is foreseen, the treatment current is kept increasing until an appropriate time elapses. The time may be set to about ten min and be considered as an acclimatization time required for a patient's body to get acclimatized to the treatment current.
When the treatment current is too small, no treatment effect is exerted. However, a large treatment current does not always lead to an excellent treatment effect. An appropriate range of the treatment current values exists.
An experiment was conducted on twenty-five sound persons, who are subjects in order to detect a range of the treatment current values bringing about an excellent treatment effect.
Herein, the treatment current value is substituted by a value detected at the end of the treatment time.
From the results of the experiment, although the relationship between the treatment current and the improvement in immunity varies greatly, it can be understood that the indices are improved in a range from 1.5 μA to 4.5 μA of the treatment current detected at the end of the treatment. The distributions of values of the rate of change in the number of lymphocytes, the number of subsets of NK cells, and the activity of NK cells exhibit the same tendency. The rate of change has a peak around the treatment current value of 3 μA. When the treatment current exceeds 6 μA, the improvement in the treatment effect is not observed. The positive values of the rate of change are distributed in a range of the treatment current values from 2 μA to 4 μA. In particular, when the treatment current ranges from 2.5 μA to 3.8 μA, the indices are observed much improved. Moreover, when the treatment current ranges from 2.5 μA to 3 μA and from 3.5 μA to 5.5 μA, the rate of change in the number of cytotoxic T cells (CTLs) has a peak.
Assuming that the treatment current is held nearly constant during the treatment, the immune indices are not improved markedly.
Consequently, for a good effect of treatment, the treatment current should be confined within an appropriate range of the control current values, e.g. from 2 μA to 4 μA. Moreover, the treatment current should not be held constant but should be varied appropriately.
In the electrotherapeutic device according to the present embodiment, the range of the control current values is set from 1.5 μA to 4.5 μA, and the range of the target current values within which the treatment current should reach finally in the treatment is set from 2.0 μA to 4.0 μA, or more precisely, from 2.5 μA to 3.8 μA. Needless to say, the other range of current values may be selected for adapting to other conditions.
The range of the target current values is relatively fixed but is not varied depending on a season and so on. And also, the range of the target current values is not affected by patient's conditions. The same values can be utilized as the target current values. Consequently, set values may be written in a program in advance for fear an operator may easily change the values.
During the treatment time, the program controller 8 autonomously controls the treatment current. The contents of the control will be described below in conjunction with the logical flowchart of
When the initiation of the treatment is instructed (S00), an initial applied voltage of, e.g. −6 kV, is applied to a subject, and a built-in timer is started. The electrotherapeutic device is left intact for the acclimatization time of, e.g. ten min (S01). After the acclimatization time elapses, the treatment current is checked to see if it falls outside the range of the control current values (S02). The treatment current is detected by the current sensor 6 and the measured value is transferred to the program controller 8.
The treatment current is compared with the lower limit of the range of the control current values (S03). If the treatment current falls below the lower limit similarly to case 1 shown in
Incidentally, when the treatment current falls within the range of the control current values, the applied voltage is treated repeatedly as it is previously (S07). Namely, if the applied voltage is raised by one step previously, it is raised by one step. If the applied voltage is dropped by one step previously, it is dropped by one step.
The applied voltage is regulated by controlling a direct current voltage provided to the direct current high negative voltage generator 2 serving as a high voltage power source for the waveform shaper 3. A result of computation performed by the program controller 8 is converted into an analog form, and the resultant voltage is supplied to a 12 V input terminal of the direct current high negative voltage generator 2. For example, when the input voltage of the direct current high negative voltage generator 2 is varied by 10 mV, the output voltage varies by 105 V.
Determinations are made on whether the treatment current exceeds or falls below the range of the control current values with every elapse of a certain predetermined time of, e.g. 5 sec (S08), until the initially set treatment time of, e.g. 20 min, elapses (S09). The applied voltage is thus regulated (S03 to S07).
Incidentally, if the treatment current is about to fall outside the range of the control current values, the treatment current may be controlled to fall within the range of the control current values according to the same logic.
Owing to the operation of the program controller 8, during the treatment time succeeding the acclimatization time, while the applied voltage is gradually varied, the treatment current can be slowly changed to fall within the range of the target current values finally.
The treatment current most greatly stimulating immunity is possibly different depending on the immune mechanism. Therefore, the treatment current may be varied so that it goes up and down within the range of the target current values. For this purpose, the voltage step by which the applied voltage is changed is increased or the interval between the steps is shortened so that the treatment current will go up and down to reach the lower and the upper limits of the range of the control current values.
The electrotherapeutic device in accordance with the present embodiment comprises the program controller. The program controller autonomously controls the treatment current. After the treatment current reaches the range of the control current values, the program controller regulates the input voltage of the waveform shaper so that the treatment current will gradually vary within the range of the control current values and finally reach the target current value. Consequently, even when an operator does not handle the device during the treatment, the most preferable pattern of the treatment current is automatically applied to the patient.
As mentioned above, the input voltage of the waveform shaper is regulated so that the treatment current will be confined to the range of the target current values at the end of the treatment irrespective of the temperature, humidity, or patient's temperature. Consequently, the immunity can be properly improved.
The electrotherapeutic device in accordance with the present embodiment comprises a counter electrode plate cable which is diverged into two leads from a lead connected to the counter electrode plate output terminal, and which is provided with the first counter electrode plate pad 10 to be attached to a palm at the end of the first lead and the second counter electrode plate pad 11 to be attached to an instep at the end of the second lead.
For applying the electrotherapeutic device according to the present embodiment, a palm of the patient 12 is sandwiched between the director electrode plate 9 that is negative electrode and the first counter electrode plate 10 as conventional. A negative potential having ripples of the special waveform superimposed thereon is applied to the electrodes for use.
In the electrotherapeutic device according to the present embodiment, preferably, the second counter electrode plate 11 may also be attached to an instep for the treatment.
When the counter electrode plates are attached to a hand and a foot respectively, it is observed in experiments that the immunity is improved, though the mechanism of improvement is unknown.
For example, when the counter electrode plates were attached to a hand and a foot respectively of each of two patients suffering from the type C chronic hepatitis, the number of viral particles of the type C hepatitis was reduced in the two patients. At this time, all of the cellular immunity was improved, except the activity of NK cells.
In the case of a patient having interferon administered thereto, the number of cytotoxic T cells was improved more apparently than the other indices of cellular immunity. For suppression of a type C hepatitis virus, increasing the number of cytotoxic T cells is thought to be more significant than stimulation of the activity of NK cells. Consequently, when the diverged counter electrode plate is additionally attached to an instep, a treatment effect on a patient suffering from type C chronic hepatitis is expected.
The present inventors conducted an experiment to check the effect of the second counter electrode plate 11 attached to a foot. In the experiment, at first, the palm was sandwiched between the director electrode plate 9 and the first counter electrode plate of the electrotherapeutic device, for the treatment. The rates of change in the number of lymphocytes, the number of subsets of NK cells, the activity of NK cells, the number of cytotoxic T cells (CTLs), and the number of CDE4 T lymphocytes occurring from the start of the treatment to the end thereof were measured. In addition, the rates of change in the above indices were measured with the second counter electrode plate additionally attached to the instep. The results of measurements in both cases were compared with each other.
Seven sound persons were selected as subjects and measured for each case.
Among the group of subjects, the improvement of the cellular immunity could be seen apparently as follows. For the subjects each having the counter electrode plate attached to the palm alone, the three indices, that is, the number of lymphocytes, the number of subsets of NK cells, and the number of CD4 T lymphocytes were improved.
For the subjects each having the counter electrode plate attached also to the instep, the three indices, that is, the number of lymphocytes, the number of cytotoxic T cells (CTLs), and the number of CD4 T lymphocytes were improved.
The rate of change in two indices, that is, the number of lymphocytes, and the number of cytotoxic T cells (CTLs) was understood to be larger for the subjects having the counter electrode plates attached to a palm and an instep respectively than for the subjects having the counter electrode plate attached to a palm alone.
Consequently, it was confirmed that applying the diverged counter electrode plates attached to a palm and an instep respectively would be effective for the patient suffering from the type C chronic hepatitis, e.g., to whom the increasing of the number of cytotoxic T cells (CTLs) would presumably be effective.
For comparison, the immune indices of other group of subjects were measured by sandwiching a palm between the director electrode plate and the counter electrode plate and grounding another counter electrode plate attached to an instep, and by sandwiching only an instep between the director electrode plate 9 and the first counter electrode plate 10.
When the instep was sandwiched between the director electrode plate and the counter electrode plate, any of the indices were not statistically significantly improved. And, when the counter electrode plate attached to the instep was grounded, the activity of NK cells alone was significantly improved but the other indices were not significantly improved.
Consequently, grounding the counter electrode plate attached to an instep did not prove effective. Moreover, attaching the counter electrode plate to an instep did not prove effective. It was confirmed that applying the director electrode plate 9 and the first counter electrode plate 10 attached to a palm and also applying the second counter electrode plate connected in parallel with the first counter electrode plate attached to an instep would be effective for the improvement of the cellular immunity.
The electrotherapeutic device according to the present invention comprising the waveform shaper regulates a treatment current to fall within a specific range of the current values without the operator's labor. Thereby reducing ions or an effect of reducing ions is generated in a living body. The number of intracorporeal immunocompetent cells is markedly increased. The large number of immunocompetent cells attacks virus-infected cells so as to eliminate or decrease the number of viral particles. Consequently, the electrotherapeutic device is effective in treating a virus-infected patient whose immunity is decreased.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| JP2006-152099 | May 2006 | JP | national |
