Patent ID: 6366802
Filing Date: 2002-04-02
Classification: A61N

Abstract:
An apparatus for treating a human patient for pain, said apparatus comprising:a hand-held infrared illuminator for positioning over a selected site of the patient's body and for illuminating the selected site with infrared radiation having wavelengths of around 950 nanometers, said infrared radiation at around 950 nanometers penetrating a distance into the patient's body without damaging the patient's skin and sufficient to be absorbed by a primary nerve therein to cause regeneration of dysfunctional nerves and increase blood flow to thereby reduce pain in an area of the patient's body that is affected by the primary nerve, said illuminator having controls for setting a duration and level of radiation; a thermograph for providing thermal images of an area of the patient's body that include the primary nerve that is being illuminated or a corresponding nerve on a contralateral side of the patient's body, the thermal images changing in response to increased blood flow through the primary nerve; means detecting the changes in the thermal images; and means for terminating the illumination upon detection of the changes in the thermal images.