Patent Application
20180256385
This invention relates in general to ileostomy bags, and more particularly, to protective supports for ileostomy bags.
An ileostomy is a surgical opening on the abdomen (also called a stoma) and is created by bringing a portion of the small intestine outside of the skin. Urine passes out of the ileostomy and is collected in an external, flexible plastic pouch adhered to the skin. Ileostomies are usually positioned above the groin on the right hand side of the abdomen and are fastened to the stoma by means of an adhesive wafer disc. Ileostomy pouches have been in existence since the late 1960s and doctors recommend that those who have an ileostomy not wear pant belts to limit pressure on the pouch. Many inventors have developed ways to protect these pouches and keep them properly in place during normal everyday activities.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,026,362A granted to Willett disclosed a support pocket for an ileostomy pouch that is disposed on a belt worn around a user's waist to minimize tension on the stoma connection and preventing leaks. International Patent No. WO 2004062537B1 granted to May et al. disclosed a rigid flange fitted around a stoma to improve support and minimize leaking. U.S. Pat. No. D3,696,625 granted to Kuentz disclosed a pocket for an ileostomy pouch having tabs on the top to encase the pouch. U.S. Patent No. 20100249734A1 granted to Melnick disclosed a fabric pocket with shoulder straps to support an ileostomy pouch. U.S. Pat. No. 8,226,621B2 granted to Timmons disclosed a rear belt system to hold external urine pouches outside the body for users who have undergone a nephrostomy. U.S. Pat. No. 5,643,236 granted to Hadley disclosed an under-pant fluid collection system that clips to a waistband. Several, commercial ileostomy pouch support products are currently on the market and include the Stomashield (a pouch support having an elastic waist belt), Ostomy Armor (a protective shield with nylon waist strap) and the Stealth Belt (a horizontally-orientated pouch bag within a fabric waist wrap). While many of these inventions enhance protection and support ileostomy pouches, they tend to rely on bulky, waist and shoulder straps that may leave a pouch vulnerable when clothing bunches and shifts during unusual activity such as carrying heavy loads or excessive twisting. In addition, none of the aforementioned apparatus take advantage of the support that existing articles of clothing can provide—such as from pant waist bands.
The invention disclosed in this specification is a protective support member for an ileostomy pouch that allows stoma fluids (such as urine) to flow unimpeded into the pouch at all times. Rather than depending upon bulky, straps worn around the shoulders and waist, the invention takes advantage of trouser waistbands to keep the apparatus in position. The band is comprised of a rigid, yet slightly flexible plastic, curved to conform to a user's torso and having two clips on each end of the member that grip the pant waist firmly. Once in position, a concave shape on the inner facing creates a cradle and allows a pouch to remain undisturbed during rigorous activities and fill to its intended volume. The invention also allows articles of clothing to move laterally across the torso while keeping the pouch in tact. An objective of this invention is to protect the ileostomy pouch from excessive movement and exterior loads and minimize stoma wafer disruption in an effort to minimize leakage. Another objective is to allow users the option to wear a normal belt. Users can adjust a belt as much as needed (or tighter) to keep pants up without applying any pressure to the pouch. Another objective of this disclosure is to allow users greater freedom when using the toilet during a bowel movement. When undressing, the front clip slips off one side of the pants while the aft clip anchors the band to the other half of the pants with grips. This setup allows the band to be swung easily out of the way and then quickly re-installed.
For the purpose of illustrating the invention, the drawings show a form of the invention which is presently preferred. However, it should be understood that this invention is not limited to the precise arrangements and instrumentalities shown in the drawings.
Embodiments and examples are described below with reference to the drawings, wherein like reference numerals are used to refer to like elements throughout. In the following description, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details in the form of examples are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the various embodiments. It will be evident, however, that these specific details are not necessary to the practice of such embodiments. In other instances, well-known structures and devices are shown in block diagram form in order to facilitate description of the various embodiments. Reference throughout this specification to “one embodiment,” or “an embodiment,” means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment. Thus, the appearances of the phrase “in one embodiment,” or “in an embodiment,” in various places throughout this specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment. Furthermore, the particular features, structures, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments.
Referring now to the drawings wherein like reference characters identify corresponding or similar elements throughout several views,
Although the disclosure has been shown and described with respect to one or more implementations, equivalent alterations and modifications will occur to others skilled in the art based upon a reading and understanding of this specification and the annexed drawings. The disclosure includes all such modifications and alterations and is limited only by the scope of the following claims. In particular regard to the various functions performed by the above described components (e.g., elements, resources, etc.), the terms used to describe such components are intended to correspond, unless otherwise indicated, to any component which performs the specified function of the described component (e.g., that is functionally equivalent), even though not structurally equivalent to the disclosed structure which performs the function in the herein illustrated exemplary implementations of the disclosure. In addition, while a particular feature of the disclosure may have been disclosed with respect to only one of several implementations, such feature may be combined with one or more other features of the other implementations as may be desired and advantageous for any given or particular application. Furthermore, to the extent that the terms “includes”, “having”, “has”, “with”, or variants thereof are used in either the detailed description or the claims, such terms are intended to be inclusive in a manner similar to the term “comprising.”
The present application is related to provisional patent application Ser. No. 62/470,285, filed on Mar. 12, 2017, and titled “ILEOSTOMY FLOW BAND”. The entire disclosure of the above patent application is hereby incorporated by reference.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 62470285 | Mar 2017 | US |
