Patent Application
20160067022
This is an original U.S. patent application.
The invention relates to devices and systems for the treatment of either natural or artificial teeth. More specifically, the invention relates to oral-care apparatus including a nozzle at which a low pressure is created to draw air or material through or around a nozzle.
The mouth, teeth and gums are an important and sensitive area of the body, with surprisingly diverse and significant relationships to other bodily systems and to overall health. Tools, equipment, materials and techniques for promoting dental hygiene have improved continually over the years, but new relationships between oral and overall health are regularly discovered, and new threats to oral health are recognized.
Current products and services address oral-care needs ranging from the purely cosmetic to the medically necessary, and the aggregate industry size is substantial. Thus, new techniques and apparatus to improve oral care may have significant benefits both in terms of patient-health outcomes and in economic value.
Embodiments of the invention are oral-care systems that facilitate the focused application of vacuum or suction and tactile stimulation to portions of the mouth, teeth and/or gums. Embodiments can also be used for cleaning, care and maintenance of dental prosthetics such as dentures.
Embodiments of the invention are illustrated by way of example and not by way of limitation in the figures of the accompanying drawings in which like references indicate similar elements. It should be noted that references to “an” or “one” embodiment in this disclosure are not necessarily to the same embodiment, and such references mean “at least one.”
Embodiments of the invention are oral-care systems suitable for home or professional/medical use. They facilitate the application of negative pressure (vacuum, suction) over portions of a user's (or patient's) teeth and gums. Many implementations apply pulsed or variable-strength suction to the areas treated, and the mouthpiece may be configured to provide a mechanical stimulation or massage function as well as the vacuum application. Application of suction and massage may be effective to disrupt bacterial colony growth at the treated sites.
Pump 120 may be electrically operated, and may have user adjustments 121, 122 to alter the vacuum strength and variable-suction characteristics such as the duty cycle, period, and pressure profile. These characteristics are shown in the graph of
The pump and vacuum lines of an embodiment are relatively unexceptional; any commercially-available products of suitable size and pressure capability may be used. For example, an automatic dairy pump and associated suction lines may function acceptably. Connections among components may be made by mechanically interlocking fittings, hose-barb connections, or permanent (e.g., glued or ultrasonically welded) connections. It is preferred that the tubing be inexpensive (and thus easily replaceable) or easy to disassemble for cleaning and sterilization.
The optional liquid exclusion device helps protect the pump from drawing in liquid such as saliva or cleaning solution. It is preferable that the liquid exclusion device be easy to disassemble and clean. (Alternatively, the device may be a consumable supply, and configured to be easily replaced when soiled or filled.) The liquid exclusion device has an intake that carries gases (e.g., air) and liquid (e.g., water or saliva) from the mouthpiece, and an exhaust that preferentially allows only gases to continue through the device to the pump. Liquids are trapped in the exclusion device so that they are less likely to enter and damage the pump.
Mouthpieces for use with an embodiment may be constructed in a variety of forms, and from a variety of materials. The horseshoe-shaped mouthpiece of
A section through the channel at A-A, 360, shows how the soft, flexible channel sides 363, 366 may be positioned alongside the patient's teeth and gums, 370. A vacuum channel 380 formed in the bottom of the channel may transmit suction from the pump, via hose barb connection 390, to the treatment site near the teeth and gums. Alternatively, a single vacuum orifice just inside the channel behind the hose connection may be provided. In this arrangement, an embodiment relies on the flexibility and conformance of the channel walls to create a seal between the mouthpiece and gums so that the teeth and gums are exposed to the treatment suction.
Treatment is facilitated by manual manipulation of the mouthpiece in the mouth (or on dentures removed from the mouth). For example, the user may pinch the sides of the mouthpiece against the teeth and gums, causing the channel sides to seal against the gums. When so sealed, the vacuum pump develops suction at and around the teeth sealed into the mouthpiece channel.
Front view 330 shows the overall mouthpiece width 340, which may be about 50 mm, and the overall mouthpiece height 350, which may be about 20 mm.
To operate the mouthpiece of
Mouthpieces generally have a concave portion sized and shaped to fit relatively closely over and around a portion of one or more teeth or gums (or similar dental structures) to be treated. For focused treatment of a small number of teeth (or of a dental prosthetic attachment point embedded into the patient's bone and exposed within the mouth) a small, flexible shroud may be used.
Each mouthpiece has at least one vacuum connection (e.g., a hose barb or a simple friction-fit opening), to be joined to the pump by a suitable hose or tube. Outer surfaces of the mouthpiece may be textured to improve the user's grip, or may have loops or cups for securing to the user's fingers.
The mouthpiece may be cast or formed of a flexible, biocompatible material such as silicone or polycarbonate. A portion of the mouthpiece may be stiffer, while sides or “wings” may be more compliant so that they conform to and press against adjacent tooth and gum surfaces during treatment. I.e., when the pump applies suction, portions of the mouthpiece are drawn against the patient's teeth and/or gums. The suction (and preferably the pulsating or variable suction) may help disrupt bacterial growth in and around the treated areas. Some mouthpieces may be formed of a heat-moldable polymer which can be customized to a user's mouth by heating (e.g., by immersion in boiling water), then carefully holding the mouthpiece in position against the teeth and gums until it cools. Some materials may be repeatedly shaped in this manner.
Mouthpieces may include textured surfaces in areas adjacent the teeth and gums. For example, the sides or wings of a mouthpiece may have ribs, bumps or protrusions that are pressed against the teeth and gums by the force of the vacuum pump. In addition, the user may squeeze, press or agitate the mouthpiece against the teeth and gums during treatment. This may improve the function of an embodiment by mechanically disturbing bacterial colonies, as well as disrupting them through the suction function.
An embodiment may use a constant-vacuum pump, but be provided with a user-controllable port so that the effective suction applied to the treatment site can be varied. For example, a simple hole or opening in the vacuum tube, which can be partly or completely covered by the user's finger, can adjust the suction applied from the full pump vacuum (when the hole is occluded) to zero vacuum (i.e., atmospheric pressure, when the hole is uncovered).
The applications of the present invention have been described largely by reference to specific examples and in terms of particular allocations of functionality to certain device and system features. However, those of skill in the art will recognize that a variable suction treatment can also be developed and applied to a patient's teeth and/or gums by sets of components that distribute the functions of embodiments of this invention differently than herein described. Such variations and implementations are understood to be captured according to the following claims.
