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US 5,860,970 AGranted
Cryosurgical instrument
AssigneeSpembly Medical Limited
InventorsRobert William Goddard, Leslie John Penny
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A cryosurgical instrument comprises a metal cooling tip operable to be cooled by a flow of cryogenic fluid within the tip, at least a boiling region of the tip being coated with a heat-insulating coating. The presence of the heat-insulating coating can promote nucleate boiling of the fluid rather than film boiling. Nucleate boiling within the tip provides a greater cooling efficiency of the tip than film boiling.
Claims24
A cryosurgical instrument tip for a cryosurgical instrument cooled by vaporization of liquid cryogen within the tip, the tip comprising:
- a tip casing;
- a boiling region within the tip casing for vaporization of the liquid cryogen;
- and
- a metal heat exchange conduit device located within the tip casing, the heat exchange conduit device defining at least partly one or more first passages for channeling cryogenic fluid between the heat exchange conduit device and the tip casing, the heat exchange conduit device being in thermal contact with the tip casing substantially entirely along the length of the heat exchange conduit device to provide thermal coupling between the tip casing and the cryogenic fluid flowing in said one or more first passages;
- wherein the metal heat exchange conduit device further comprises a second conduit passage within the heat exchange conduit device for allowing cryogenic fluid to flow within the heat exchange conduit device.
2 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.