Apparatus and Method for Treatment of Microbial Infection

Abstract

A method and apparatus for treatment of skin or other tissue, using a source of thermal, electromagnetic radiation, electrical current, ultrasonic, mechanical or other type of energy, to cause minimally-invasive thermally-mediated effects in skin or other tissue which stimulates a wound-healing response, in conjunction with topical agents or other wound healing compositions, for application on the skin or other tissue which accelerate collagenesis, such as in response to wound healing. The dosage and time period of application of the compositions are adjusted to prevent external or surface tissue damage.

We claim: 
     
         1 . A method for treatment of microbial infection of human toenails, the method comprising the steps of:
 hydrating the site of infection prior to irradiating with infrared radiation;   applying an anti-microbial agent directly to the upper surface of the nail; and   treating a subsurface layer of skin with a source of electromagnetic energy sufficient to cause stimulation of an immune response without thermal damage to the surface layer.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising the steps of using a vacuum attachment over the infection site thereby reduce the effective boiling temperature of water located in the surrounding tissue, thereby improving treatment efficiency and/or reducing associated patient pain. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the treatment with electromagnetic energy is repeated serially with more than one day between any successive treatments. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising the steps of sequentially and repeatedly irradiating the infected portion with infrared radiation and cooling the infected portion such that heat and cold alternatingly penetrates to the site of the infection in order to inactivate the pathogen. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 4 , further comprising the step of using non-contact thermal measurement of the infected site to automatically control either or both the heating and the cooling of the site. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising the step of using a vacuum attachment over the infection site to reduce the pressure around the infected site and thereby reduce the effective boiling temperature of water located in the surrounding tissue, thereby improving treatment efficiency and/or reducing associated patient pain. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising the step of treating the site of infection with GNP or other particle seeds to create a rapid and violent thermoelastic expansion or cavitation of the tissue surrounding the microbial infection during infrared radiation exposure, thereby improving treatment efficiency. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising the step of using temporary modification of the optical properties of the toe skin, thereby reducing or increasing the incidence of back scattering/absorption. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising the step of hydrating the nail with a mixture of warm water and an anti-microbial agent. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising the step of hydrating the nail with warm water. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the step of irradiating the infected portion with infrared radiation is performed using laser energy having a wavelength between about 1200 nm and about 2000 nm. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the step of irradiating the infected portion with infrared radiation is performed using laser energy having a wavelength of about 1320 nm. 
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the step of irradiating the infected portion with infrared radiation is performed using laser energy having a wavelength between about 1450 nm and about 1550 nm. 
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the step of irradiating the infected portion with infrared radiation is performed using laser energy having a wavelength of about 1470 nm. 
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising the step of cooling with a liquid or gas applied directly to the target. 
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising the step of applying liquid or gas directly to the infected portion, the liquid or gas containing one of more of the following: pain reducing agent, antifungal agent, anti-irritant agent, antimicrobial agent, antibiotic agent, antiseptic agent, disinfectant agent. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising the steps of inducing mechanical damage to the site of the microbial infection by applying low pressures and temperatures below the threshold for photothermal damage. 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 1 , further including the step of using pulsed radiation with a wavelength that is selectively absorbed by the microbes and with a pulse length that is chosen to match the thermal diffusion properties of the microbe. 
     
     
         19 . A method for treatment of microbial infection of human toenails, the method comprising the steps treating a subsurface layer of skin with a source of electromagnetic energy sufficient to cause stimulation of an immune response without thermal damage to the surface layer in conjunction with applying a hydrating, anti-microbial agent directly to the upper surface of the skin, thereby improving treatment efficiency. 
     
     
         20 . A method for treatment of microbial infection of human skin, the method comprising the steps treating a subsurface layer of skin with a source of electromagnetic energy sufficient to cause stimulation of an immune response without thermal damage to the surface layer in conjunction with applying a hydrating, anti-microbial agent directly to the upper surface of the skin, thereby improving treatment efficiency. 
     
     
         21 . A method for treatment of microbial infection of human skin, the method comprising:
 Treating a subsurface layer of infected skin with a source of electromagnetic energy sufficient to cause stimulation of an immune response without thermal damage to the epidermis; and   Using a vacuum attachment over the infection site to reduce the pressure around the infected site and thereby reduce the effective boiling temperature of water located in the surrounding tissue, thereby improving treatment efficiency and/or reducing associated patient pain.   
     
     
         22 . The method of  claim 21  further comprising the step of applying an anti-microbial agent directly to the upper surface of the dermis, thereby improving treatment efficiency. 
     
     
         23 . The method of  claim 21  where the infection is a viral infection. 
     
     
         24 . The method of  claim 23 , where the viral infection is a wart.