Proctologic device for the therapeutic treatment of hemorrhoids

A proctologic device for the therapeutic treatment of external and/or internal hemorrhoids projecting from the wall of a patient's anal canal which extends from the anus to the rectum and is surrounded by sphincter muscles;

• comprising:
• an anal canal appliance for insertion into the anal canal through the anus;
• said appliance having an elongated cylindrical body with an external heat transfer surface extending from a front end to a rear end for intimately contacting the anal canal wall and the projecting hemorrhoids;
• said external heat transfer surface having a diameter sufficient to effectively transfer heat from the heat transfer surface to the anal canal wall and the hemorrhoids without painfully stretching the sphincter muscles;
• said appliance having an electrical resistor heating element mounted internally within the cylindrical body for converting electrical energy to thermal energy to heat the heat transfer surface;
• a source of electrical energy;
• cable means extending between the source and the appliance for operatively connecting the source to the electrical resistor heating element;
• a temperature transducer mounted in the appliance for sensing the temperature of the external heat transfer surface and for producing an electrical temperature signal corresponding to the temperature of the external heat transfer surface;
• control means operatively connected to the source and responsive to the electrical temperature signal for automatically regulating the amount of electrical energy applied to the electrical resistor heating element to heat the external heat transfer surface and to maintain the external heat transfer surface at preset temperature above body temperature;
• safety network means independent of said control means with a high temperature circuit responsive to the electrical temperature signal for automatically terminating the application of electrical energy to the electrical resistor heating element should the temperature sensed by the temperature transducer exceed a preset elevated temperature;
• wherein the high temperature circuit includes a voltage comparator for receiving the electrical temperature signal and in comparing the voltage of the electrical temperature signal with a preset voltage of a reference signal corresponding to the preset elevated temperature to terminate the application of electrical energy to the electrical resistor heating element when the differential voltage between the electrical temperature signal and the reference signal reaches a preset value.