Patent Application
20190261707
This disclosure relates in general to dress shirts, and more particularly to dress shirts with hidden medical access points.
Patients undergoing lengthy medical treatment such as chemotherapy and dialysis may have central venous catheters. Central venous catheters are long, thin flexible catheter tubing surgically inserted beneath the skin with the end of the catheter inserted into a large vein with the catheter tip positioned near the heart to introduce medicines, nutrients, fluids and/or other products into a patient's bloodstream. Two common types of central venous catheters are the port line and the peripherally inserted central catheter (“PICC” line). A port line is a catheter usually inserted in the upper chest area just below the collar bone. In contrast, a picc line is a catheter that extends out of one of the large veins in the upper arm above the elbow. Products are injected into an open end of the tube that is capped off when not in use.
According to one embodiment, a dress shirt having a hidden medical access point, the dress shirt including a collar and a front portion. The front portion includes a first side, a second side, a plurality of buttons, and a first closable aperture. The first side and the second side each including an open edge that overlap with each other and the plurality of buttons being positioned along the open edge of one of the first side or the second side. The first closable aperture is positioned on an upper chest portion of the first side. One or more fasteners are configured to open and close the first closable aperture, the one or more fasteners of the first closable aperture permitting the first closable aperture to be in an open position or a closed position and the first closable aperture, when in the open position, permits passage of a medical instrumentality therethrough.
Certain embodiments may provide one or more technical advantages. For example, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a dress shirt having closable apertures positioned to provide access to one or more medical access points. As another example, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides for a dress shirt with hidden medical access points that is largely indistinguishable from a conventional dress shirt. Other technical advantages will be readily apparent to one skilled in the art from the following figures, descriptions, and claims. Moreover, while specific advantages have been enumerated above, various embodiments may include all, some, or none of the enumerated advantages.
For a more complete understanding of the present disclosure and its advantages, reference is now made to the following description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:
Port and picc lines are generally located either in the upper chest area or near the bend of the arm. Given these specific locations, port and/or picc lines are generally inaccessible in traditional clothing. As a result, some companies have designed clothing to accommodate such catheters. For example, RonWear designs functional, comfort clothing marketed to “keep you warm during your treatments and eliminate the hassle of changing into a hospital gown or modifying your wardrobe to meet your needs.” See RONWEAR, https://www.ronwear.com/features. Although RonWear might be appropriate apparel for some medical patients, it may be inappropriate apparel for others. For example, some medical patients continue to work while undergoing treatment and as such may require clothing that is functional and meets the dress code requirements of their places of business. As such, medical patients may desire clothing that is catheter accessible but is largely indistinguishable from a dress shirt.
As used herein, front portion 120 refers to the front-side of dress shirt 100 as perceived by a wearer of dress shirt 100. In some embodiments, front portion 120 extends from a base of collar 13 to at least a natural waist of the medical patient. Front portion 120 may, in some embodiments, extend further than the natural waist such that dress shirt 100 could be tucked into pants or a skirt also worn by the medical patient (about 0.5-6 inches). In some other embodiments, dress shirt 100 may extend even further such that dress shirt 100 is dress-length. As an example, dress shirt 100 may extend about 6-10.5 inches from the natural waist of medical patient to be of micro-mini length. As another example, dress shirt 100 may extend about 10.5-18 inches from the natural waist of medical patient to be of mini-length. This disclosure recognizes that front portion 120 may extend as far as desirable, including to/around the knees and/or ankles of medical patient.
Front portion 120 includes a left side 120a and a right side 120b. The left side 120a and the right side 120b may each have an open edge 122 configured to overlap with the other when the two sides are coupled together (e.g. when the dress shirt is worn by a patient). As depicted in
In some embodiments, buttons 140 are functional and provide a mechanism for coupling left side 120a to right side 120b. As an example, open edge 122a may include a plurality of apertures (not depicted) to accommodate buttons 140 arranged on open edge 122b. In such example, left side 120a and right side 120b may be coupled together when dress shirt 100 is fully buttoned.
In other embodiments, buttons 140 are merely decorative and dress shirt 100 includes another mechanism for coupling left side 120a and right side 120b. For example, as illustrated in
Closable apertures 110 may be configured to open to reveal a medical access point (e.g., a port and/or picc line) of the medical patient. As such, this disclosure recognizes that dress shirt 100 include one or more fasteners 115 configured to facilitate the opening and closing of closable aperture 110. As depicted in
When a closable aperture 110 is in a closed configuration (e.g. when the associated fastener 115 is in the closed position), the visibility of the closable aperture 110 may be reduced. Thus, when each of the closable apertures 110 are in a closed configuration, the dress shirt 100 may visually resemble a conventional dress shirt that does not include medical access points. In some embodiments, the closable apertures 110 of dress shirt 100 may include one or more visibility reducing features in order to further decrease the visual impact of the closable apertures and thereby make the dress shirt 100 more closely resemble a conventional dress shirt. As an example, fasteners 115 of dress shirt 100 may be the same or a similar color as the fabric of dress shirt 100. As another example, fasteners 115 may be covered by a fastener cover portion. Fastener cover portion may, in some embodiments, be an extension of fabric over all or a portion of fastener 115. The fabric cover portion may be made of the same material as the dress shirt in order to reduce the visibility of the fastener 115 and its associated closable aperture 110.
This disclosure also recognizes that each closable aperture 110, when in the open configuration (e.g. when the associated fastener 115 is in the open position), may permit the passage of one or more medical instrumentalities therethrough. As used herein, medical instrumentalities may refer to, for example, needles, tubing, and/or any other suitable apparatuses or devices used in the medical treatment of a patient.
As mentioned above, dress shirt 100 may include left sleeve 150a and right sleeve 150b in some embodiments. As illustrated in
As illustrated in
Due to the nature of injections, dress shirt 100 may become stained with blood and/or other products. As such, it may be desirable that dress shirt 100 be made from a material that is machine-washable. Dress shirt 100 may be made out of any suitable material. Preferably, dress shirt 100 is either made from a material that stains can be easily lifted from or is treated with a fabric protector. Examples of materials that stains can be easily lifted from are cotton, polyester, and/or blends thereof.
Herein, “or” is inclusive and not exclusive, unless expressly indicated otherwise or indicated otherwise by context. Therefore, herein, “A or B” means “A, B, or both,” unless expressly indicated otherwise or indicated otherwise by context. Moreover, “and” is both joint and several, unless expressly indicated otherwise or indicated otherwise by context. Therefore, herein, “A and B” means “A and B, jointly or severally,” unless expressly indicated otherwise or indicated otherwise by context. This disclosure may use one or more terms of approximation such as “about” or “substantially.” As used herein, these terms indicate a variance of 10% (e.g., +/−10%).
The scope of this disclosure encompasses all changes, substitutions, variations, alterations, and modifications to the embodiments described or illustrated herein that a person having ordinary skill in the art would comprehend. The scope of this disclosure is not limited to the embodiments described or illustrated herein. Moreover, although this disclosure describes and illustrates respective embodiments herein as including particular components, elements, functions, operations, or steps, any of these embodiments may include any combination or permutation of any of the components, elements, functions, operations, or steps described or illustrated anywhere herein that a person having ordinary skill in the art would comprehend. Furthermore, reference in the appended claims to an apparatus or system or a component of an apparatus or system being adapted to, arranged to, capable of, configured to, enabled to, operable to, or operative to perform a particular function encompasses that apparatus, system, component, whether or not it or that particular function is activated, turned on, or unlocked, as long as that apparatus, system, or component is so adapted, arranged, capable, configured, enabled, operable, or operative.
