The NTE2A Thermal Probe is a sophisticated, non-invasive device for the clinical evaluation of neuropathy and the assessment of short fiber neurological function. Individual thresholds are compared to normals that can then be used to track nerve function over time. It can also be used for pain studies and in any application where a variable, accurately controlled temperature stimulus is required. 
 
The equipment comprises a hand held pen-shaped probe with a smooth flat tip 13mm in diameter on a 5 foot lead, a digitally set temperature control unit and a recirculating pump with a combined water reservoir, which is required to cool the probe during operation. 
 
The thermal probe, or thermode, utilizes a Peltier semiconductor heat pump to provide temperature stimuli above and below room temperature. The temperature range of the thermode extends from 0 to 50 degrees Centigrade and the response time to a step change in temperature is extremely fast , less than 4 seconds in the heating or cooling mode. 
 
The digital control unit incorporates proportional feedback to maintain accurate temperature control to within 0.1 degrees Centigrade. Setting of the control temperature is accomplished using three rotary switches providing switched steps of 5, 1 and 0.1 degrees covering a range of plus and minus 20 degrees about a base temperature that may be preset between 20 and 30 degrees Centigrade absolute. A digital display on the front panel indicates the temperature at the probe tip with a resolution of 0.1 degrees. 
 
An accessory D/A card and software program, the TPC-WIN Thermal Profile Controller, is available to provide the user with the ability to change the temperature of the probe under software control via a PC and create complex temperature profiles that can be recalled from file. The software will run under Windows '95 or 3.1. 
The equipment can be supplied for 110-120 or 200-240V AC operation.