Surgical Device

Abstract

This invention is directed to devices and methods for surgical access to the body, and particularly to surgical drills for accessing a body cavity and methods therefor. In general, a surgical drill is utilized to gain access to a body cavity or part, such as where bone and/or other hard tissues need to be pierced. For example, the skull and other bones with internal cavities may require surgical access to treat body portions contained within the bone. Further in general, it may be generally desirable to create access holes or openings which may be as small as possible and at a particular direction and/or trajectory. In this manner the access hole or opening may be utilized to guide another device, such as a treatment device, to a particular target along the established trajectory of the access hole or opening.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A stereotactic surgical drill comprising:
 a main body having a mounting feature adapted for reversibly mounting a drill bit towards one end of the main body; and   a channel inside said main body, said channel extends partially through said inside of said main body;   wherein said channel is adapted to receive a navigation device in a fixed orientation relative to said drill bit.   
     
     
         2 . A stereotactic surgical drill comprising:
 a disposable main body having a drill bit mounted permanently thereon; and   a channel extending partially through said main body;   
       wherein said channel is adapted for receiving a navigation device in a fixed orientation relative to said drill bit. 
     
     
         3 . The stereotactic surgical drill according to  claim 1 , wherein said navigation device is adapted for stereotactically tracking and controlling the trajectory of the surgical drill during use. 
     
     
         4 . The stereotactic surgical drill according to  claim 1 , further comprising a motor permanently coupled to said drill bit. 
     
     
         5 . A stereotactic surgical drill comprising:
 a body having a hollow interior, a handle portion substantially towards one end of said body and a drill bit towards the other end of the body;   a motor disposed in said hollow interior;   the drill bit mounted permanently to said motor;   a power source disposed within said hollow interior;   an actuator disposed on said handle portion and being adapted to actuate said motor; and   a mounting channel in said hollow interior, said mounting channel being partially through said body and being adapted to receive a navigation device in a fixed orientation relative to said drill bit.   
     
     
         6 . The stereotactic surgical drill according to  claim 1 , wherein said channel comprises at least one section of varying diameter. 
     
     
         7 . The stereotactic surgical drill according to  claim 6 , wherein said at least one section of varying diameter is selected from the group consisting of a stepped section, a tapering section, and a combination of both. 
     
     
         8 . The stereotactic surgical drill according to  claim 1 , further comprising a sealing ring in the channel. 
     
     
         9 . The stereotactic surgical drill according to  claim 1 , further comprising a power source within said body. 
     
     
         10 . The stereotactic surgical drill according to  claim 9 , wherein said power source is a non-removable power source. 
     
     
         11 . The stereotactic surgical drill according to  claim 9 , wherein said power source is a rechargeable power source. 
     
     
         12 . The stereotactic surgical drill according to  claim 1 , further comprising an access cap in said body for inserting a power source, said access cap being adapted to close permanently after said inserting of said power source. 
     
     
         13 . The stereotactic surgical drill according to  claim 1 , wherein said body comprises non-autoclavable materials. 
     
     
         14 . The stereotactic surgical drill according to  claim 1 , further comprising an actuator for driving, said drill bit. 
     
     
         15 . The stereotactic surgical drill according to  claim 1 , further comprising a forward/reverse switch being adapted to alternate the rotating direction of said drill bit. 
     
     
         16 . The stereotactic surgical drill according to  claim 1 , wherein said channel is disposed on a common axis with said drill bit. 
     
     
         17 . A method for stereotactic access to a body cavity comprising:
 aligning a drill bit of a surgical drill along a predetermined trajectory into a body cavity using a navigation device received at least partially into said surgical drill, said navigation device being tracked by a frameless navigation system;   holding said drill bit at said predetermined trajectory; and   drilling an access hole into said body cavity with said drill bit.   
     
     
         18 . A system for stereotactic access to a body cavity comprising:
 a surgical drill comprising:
 a main body having a drill bit mounted permanently thereon; and 
 a channel in said body, said channel being partially through said body and in a fixed orientation relative to said drill bit; and 
   a stereotactic access device comprising a movable guide channel and a plurality of mounting features adapted to attach said stereotactic access device to a surface.   
     
     
         19 . The system according to  claim 18  further comprising a navigation device adapted to be received in said channel in a fixed orientation relative to said drill bit. 
     
     
         20 . The stereotactic surgical drill according to  claim 2 , wherein said channel comprises at least one section of varying diameters.