Patent Application
20220062062
The following is a tabulation of some prior art references that appear relevant.
Note also; Inventor of “Healing Tape”, Arthur Krugler discussed using tape to heal cuts (only) at his website seek-ask-knock.com. This application covers more information for potential users.
The idea of using bandages to protect a wound has been known for hundreds of years. More recently the use of an adhesive tape that includes a non-stick pad to allow easy removal and replacement has been popular. It is sold for commercial purchase at pharmacies and drug stores under the brandname “BAND AID”, or other names. Hospitals use a gauze (cotton) dressing held in place with “Surgical Tape” to cover the wound and absorb blood and wound emissions when a cut or wound is bleeding. The blood can seep into and be captured by the gauze.
During healing of an open wound or cut, the body forms a solid red ‘scab’ of clotted blood and lymph. Subsequent to scab formation, the body is able to heal the wound beneath the scab where the scab is in essence the bodies natural healing barrier to block ingress of pathogens. Unfortunately for wounds and cuts, the scab heals leaving a near permanent white scar and the larger, deeper, or longer the cut the larger will typically be the scab and as well, the scar. It would be an advantage to devise a superior method to 1) protect a wound during healing, 2) that would reduce the size of, or eliminate the resulting scar. and 3) it would also be an advantage to devise a superior method to reduce pain during healing and also 4) that would reduce the healing time.
One reason for this is that common adhesive BAND_AIDS and bandages with a gauze for fluid absorption successfully provide a covering over the wound, but they do not block bodily fluid flow out through the surface of the wounded skin. Further, for cuts, they do not compress opposing sides of the cut into one another. If flesh is cut, even deeply, and then it is compressed into itself, the flesh and skin surface will re-bond within minutes of the skin being cut. However, the tensile strength of the growing bond is initially almost zero. It takes several days for the bond strength to grow so that the wound is as strong as the skin was prior to the cut being made into the skin.
For cuts, especially for deep and or long cuts, another common practice is to suture, or stitch, the wound together. Sutures are better than an adhesive bandage because they compress the skin on one side of a cut line into the skin on the other side of a cut line. The suture forces the cut skin to close where the suture pressure is applied. Compared to just putting a gauze bandage over the cut line, a suture will achieve a superior closure including a much smaller scar.
Unfortunately, the scar formed, especially for large cuts such as are common during surgery, include a scar along the cut line and also scar dots where the suture and needle penetrated the skin to hold the opposite sides of the cut skin together. It would be advantageous if a new method for securely holding the skin on opposite sides of a wound could be devised to hold the skin on opposing sides of a cut into one another and to immobilize the opposing sides of a cut line in a proximal condition throughout the healing process.
Another benefit of sutures over band-aids is that they significantly close the wound for cuts, whether from surgery or from an accident. Closing the opposing sides of a wound reduces the area of internal body exposed to infectious microbes. But even sutures only compress the skin into itself at the locations of the stitches. Between the stitches, the flesh and skin pucker open and where each suture penetrates the skin twice to pull the cut together, the suture penetration provides another path into the interior of the body that microbes can follow.
It would be advantageous if there could be created a new technology that could entirely block the passage of microbes into the wound in part due to blocking access to the wound site, but also because the new technology could compress opposite sides of a cut line into one another without penetrating sutures. In this manner, one can imagine that a new technology might be able to do a superior job of compressing opposite sides of a cut into one another and at the same time, do so without requiring the addition of sutures and the resulting skin penetration holes where the suture penetrates into the body.
In another application, elderly people have thin and fragile skin. Often, sutures will cause the thin skin to tear, preventing their use. Applying band-aids do not promote rapid healing or avoid scars. It would be an advantage if a new method were devised that could more gently hold onto the fragile skin of elderly people and yet compress the opposing sides of a cut into one another.
In another application, people have sores that cover a small area of skin. These can come from for example, diabetes, or they could result from a fall to the ground where a knee becomes scraped and the skin over a larger area than a typical cut is grated and raw. Such a wound requires a protective barrier to block microbes from entering the wounded skin and to protect the sensitive area.
Washing and bathing can re-open sores and wounds and reverse the healing that was previously achieved. This can in some circumstances result in a situation where a sore on the skin persists virtually indefinitely. Sutures cannot close such a sore and typical bandages and band aids do not provide rapid healing.
A common problem with original adhesive bandages is that the tape material was not water vapor permeable. This resulted in the skin becoming overly hydrated, white, puffy and would not heal. When one has been in water for a long period of time, the skin becomes like dried “prunes”, all moist and wrinkly. Many adhesive bandages get around this problem by punching a number of holes through the water vapor impermeable tape. The water vapor coming from the body/skin can pass out through the holes in the tape and if there are sufficient holes, then the skin will not accumulate the water vapor and won't become overly hydrated and “prune” like. Applying this type of tape with holes directly over the cut or wound provides a path for blood to escape and microbes to enter. Rather than holes in the tape it would be advantageous if a tape that simply allowed water vapor to pass through were used.
With various bandages, a healing agent can often be applied to the wound and then the gauze covering can be applied over the wound with the healing agent and a surgical tape can hold the gauze with healing agent over the wound during healing. Various kinds of bandages are used and Band Aid is but one brand of numerous styles of adhesive bandages.
Most often, the healing agent is applied to the wound separately of the bandage. For a few bandage types, various healing agents including honey, and other typically anti microbial agents can be applied to the gauze that is then placed over the wound with the surgical tape holding the gauze impregnated with the healing agent, in place over the wound during the healing process. Unfortunately, this method fails to hold opposing sides of a cut together allowing for a larger scar to result. Antibacterial agents can be applied to the surface of “Healing Tape” as a thin stripe which will be over the cut or skin problem while healing.
In the case of open sores, it would be advantageous if a new healing tape could be created that would at once, provide a barrier to infectious microbes, a pathway for water vapor, and a healing agent that could persistently treat a chronic sore. In essence, it would be advantageous if a new sort of tape could be developed where the tape is in essence, a temporary replacement for skin that can remain in place for a week or two while a wound heals.
For this to work the tape would need to be somewhat liquid water resistant. In other words, if a cut is on the tip of a finger, then when the hands are washed whatever bandage is on the tip of the finger is going to get wet. Typical “Band Aid” style adhesive bandages wind up with the gauze becoming soaked with water and requiring replacement. Having a skin like tape that is sufficiently flexible and yet water resistant and water vapor permeable and able to remain affixed to the skin to protect a wound for a week during healing is an object of the present invention. This water resistant aspect is important for the device whether the wound happens to be a cut, tear, scrape, sore or other problem.
The healing tape is comprised of two components to heal cuts and incisions as well as other wounds and sores.
In
For comparison
Present treatment of cuts and incisions with suturing is described using
In the Plan View, item 201 is the outside edge of a typical wound with typical sutures item 202 in place along the two edges of the cut and some distance from the edge of the cut. Section BB shows the suture thread as item 203 on the surface and 204, the same suture within or under the surface of the skin. Item 205 shows the required surgeons knot. Each suture is a separate unit and between any two sutures the skin, which is “rubbery”, is free to create an opening for blood escape and formation of scab materials, Item 207. Item 206 indicates the two openings in the surface of the skin for each suture created by the needle and pulled ‘open’ by tension in the suture thread. Scabs and scar tissue forms in each place the needle enters or exits, 206. Section C-C, item 207 shows the scab material which forms between each pair of sutures.
Item 301 is the surface of surrounding skin, 302 is the tape backing, 303 is the adhesive layer or adhesive surface. The healing tape composite, including tape backing, item 302, and adhesive 303, are applied directly to and over the cut while the two sides are pressed together.
Application of the tape is performed in three steps.
For a short cut:
Step one, a length healing tape approximately 6 centimeters long, is placed on the skin on one side of the cut as shown in
Step two requires applying pressure, arrows 305 on the cut using the adhered tape on one side and at the same time, pressure a short distance from the cut as shown by arrows 306 to force the two sides of the cut into intimate contact along its full length. Light finger pressure is adequate.
Step three requires the free end of the tape to be brought into contact with the skin while the two sides of the cut remain in intimate contact.
A longer cut, item 404, is addressed in similar fashion, the difference being the application of force and the need for the tape to be approximately 6 cm longer than the cut.
Step one—The tape is applied to the skin beyond one end of the cut.
Step two—force is applied to both sides of the cut, arrows items 405 before the tape is brought into contact with the skin where the two sides of the cut are in intimate contact. If the cut is quite long, the force and application of the tape is done in a series of identical steps.
Step three—the free end of the tape is brought into contact with the skin; a distance of about two centimeters.
The adhesive layer has sufficient bonding strength to hold opposite sides of the cut in intimate contact and to remain in place during the time required for healing. Small amounts of blood may initially escape the cut and accumulate under the healing tape. Initial bonding time for the two sides of the cut has been found to be approximately an hour or slightly more. Bond strength increases with time. Leaving the healing tape in place for a week to 10 days is recommended.
During this time the tape and the cut do not require any attention. Washing the area, including the tape is permissible. Heavy force or pressure on the tape are to be avoided for at least several days.
