RESUMEN
Standard laparoscopes, which are widely used in minimally invasive surgery, have significant handling limitations due to their rigid design. This paper presents an approach for a bending section for laparoscopes based on a standard semi-finished tube made of Nitinol with laser-cut flexure hinges. Flexure hinges simply created from a semi-finished product are a key element for realizing low-cost compliant structures with minimal design space. Superelastic materials such as Nitinol allow the reversible strain required for this purpose while maintaining sufficient strength in abuse load cases. This paper focuses on the development of a bending section for single use laparoscopic devices (OD 10 mm) with a bending angle of 100°, which enables the application of 100 µm diameter Nitinol actuator wires. For this purpose, constructive measures to realise a required bending curvature and Finite Element Analysis for determining the strain distribution in the flexural region are applied and described for the design of the flexure hinges. In parallel, the influence of the laser-based manufacturing process on the microstructure is investigated and evaluated using micrographs. The deformation behavior of the bending section is experimentally determined using Digital Image Correlation. The required actuation forces and the failure load of the monolithic bending section is measured and compared to a state of the art riveted bending section made of stainless steel. With the developed monolothic bending section the actuation force could be reduced by 50% and the available inner diameter could be increased by 10% while avoiding the need of any assembly step.
RESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Endoscopic and laparoscopic electrosurgical devices (ED) are of great importance in modern medicine but can cause adverse events such as tissue injuries and burns from residual heat. While laparoscopic tools are well investigated, detailed insights about the temperature profile of endoscopic knives are lacking. Our aim is to investigate the temperature and the residual heat of laparoscopic and endoscopic monopolar instruments to increase the safety in handling ED. METHODS: An infrared camera was used to measure the temperature of laparoscopic and endoscopic instruments during energy application and to determine the cooling time to below 50 °C at a porcine stomach. Different power levels and cutting intervals were studied to investigate their impact on the temperature profile. RESULTS: During activation, the laparoscopic hook exceeded 120 °C regularly for an up to 10 mm shaft length. With regards to endoknives, only the Dual Tip Knife showed a shaft temperature of above 50 °C. The residual heat of the laparoscopic hook remained above 50 °C for at least 15 s after activation. Endoknives cooled to below 50 °C in 4 s. A higher power level and longer cutting duration significantly increased the shaft temperature and prolonged the cooling time (p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: Residual heat and maximum temperature during energy application depend strongly on the chosen effect and cutting duration. To avoid potential injuries, the user should not touch any tissue with the laparoscopic hook for at least 15 s and with the endoknives for at least 4 s after energy application. As the shaft also heats up to over 120 °C, the user should be careful to avoid tissue contact during activation with the shaft. These results should be strongly considered for safety reasons when handling monopolar ED.
