This invention relates to the intrauterine device (IUD) and particularly to an IUD with string. More particularly, the invention relates to an IUD with a knotted string. Still more particularly, the invention relates to prevent curling up of the knotted string of the IUD.
An intrauterine device (IUD) is a birth control device, which is placed in the uterus of a woman. IUDs have been known since several decades, and are popularly known as “Copper-T”. IUDs are of different types viz. copper IUD, hormonal IUD, etc. and are available in various shapes, for example T-shaped, and sized to fit inside the uterus of women.
IUDs currently in the market are generally provided with one or more strings extending from the bottom of the IUD. When the IUD is placed in the uterus, the string(s) extend through the cervix and remain positioned in the vaginal cavity, such that a woman can “feel” the presence of string(s) by her finger.
IUD being a foreign matter in the body, there are possibilities that the IUD gets expelled from the uterus/body of the woman. Such expulsion can happen during menstrual cycle for example. Women are advised to “feel” the presence of the string(s) after every menstrual cycle so as to be assured of presence of the contraceptive device. String(s) are also helpful for pulling the IUD out of the uterus when the IUD is required to be removed. U.S. Pat. No. 3,902,483 describes an intrauterine device having two threads, a locator thread and a reserve thread. If women do not find the string, it makes them anxious that IUD has possibly got expelled and they are without protection.
Besides IUD getting expelled, there are many possible reasons for string not in place. One of the reasons that has lately come to the knowledge is that strings are not in place although the IUD is in situ; because—the strings are curled up and retracted into the endocervical canal or uterine cavity. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,372,302 and 4,561,433 recognize this problem and describe instruments for retrieval of the retracted threads or strings of the IUD. These patents, however, do not address the cause and solution of the problem of curling/retracting.
Patent Publication Number EP0179518A1 describes an IUD extractor thread where an IUD is provided with an extractor thread and such thread is coated with metallic silver which helps in preventing the bacteriological infections which occur due to the normal threads of IUD. Although this invention deals with the IUD threads, but does not address curling.
Patent Publication Number U.S. 20110247630 describes an intrauterine device with string divided into upper, intermediate and lower portion. The upper portion is configured to attach to the stem of IUD. Intermediate portion runs through the endocervical canal and the lower portion follows the contour of the cervix. The disclosure is silent about string curling. The lower portion comprising a curved portion is configured to follow a contour of the external orifice of the cervix; and therefore, this method may prevent up curling of string, however, the procedure is painful, complex and intervening with active life of the women and her partner; and therefore is impractical.
One of the common ways to attach the string to the IUD frame is by having a through-hole at the lower end of the IUD frame and tying the string by way of a knot. Patent application Number U.S. 2013/0298361A1 describes the knotting method. This disclosure is more towards achieving productivity rather than addressing said problem.
As can be easily appreciated, there is no prior invention which addresses the problem related to curling or retraction of knotted strings.
Our invention addresses the cause of curling and or retracting of knotted strings and solves this problem.
The objective of the invention is to provide an intra-uterine device wherein the knotted string does not retract into the cervical canal of the female.
Another objective of the invention is to provide an intra-uterine device which is not unduly different in construction than current devices.
Yet another objective is to invent an intrauterine device with ease of manufacturing and the end product being economical.
Yet another objective of the invention is to provide an intrauterine device which is hygienic, safe and proven for inserting in the uterus of the female as current devices.
Our invention deals with an intrauterine device with restricted undesired curling of the string. T-shaped IUD is considered for disclosure of our invention, however, the shape of the IUD is not a limitation and this invention pertains to IUDs of all shapes and type, whether copper or hormonal or medicinal, with the knotted string.
An intrauterine device described here comprises of a central vertical stem having a pair of arms attached at a proximal end and a spherical bulge at a distal end.
A string is passed through a through-hole provided in the spherical bulge. A knot of the string is tied in the vicinity of the spherical bulge, leaving a hanging portion of the string free. Due to the spherical bulge and the through-hole, a length of the string (S) is invariably longer than a radius (r) of the spherical bulge; and a loop of the string, and therefore the knot is free to pivot around an axis and take an upward position termed as a lateral shift of the knot.
In our invention, there is a region at the distal end of the central vertical stem; the region has passage for the string called a trajectory, which is a defined as a route through and or alongside which the string and the knot is contained. The trajectory is a combination of a plurality of closed channel, a plurality of open channel, a plurality of open recess, a plurality of opening and a plurality of orifice, present in or on the region at the distal end of the IUD. The string is laid through the trajectory and the knot is tied keeping the string taut. Consequent to the region and the trajectory, the knot is restricted from pivoting around the openings(s) and also the lateral shift towards the facilitating opening(s) is constrained.
Due to restricted movement viz. pivoting and lateral shifting of the knot, the tendency of the string to curl up and thereby retract into cervix is prevented.
The hanging portion of the string after knotting remains free. Once the IUD is placed in the uterus, the strings continue to project out of the cervix into the vaginal cavity and remain available for feel and verification of presence, as also to facilitate removal of IUD.
Preferred embodiment of the Intrauterine Device with a restricted movement of a string knot according to present invention will now be described in detail, with reference to the accompanying drawings. The terms and expressions which have been used here are merely for description and not for limitation. A “T-shaped” IUD is considered for disclosure of our invention, however, the shape of the IUD is not a limitation and this invention pertains to IUDs of all shapes and type, whether copper or hormonal or medicinal, provided, the IUD has a string which is knotted.
Consequent to the spherical bulge (7) and the through-hole (8), a length of the string (S) is invariably longer than a radius (r) of the spherical bulge (7); and a loop (15) of the string, and therefore the knot (5) is free to pivot around an axis (14) and take an upward positions (15A), (15B), as shown in
Also, the knot (5) is free to move from a position below the spherical bulge (7) to a side wards as shown in
Consequent to the lateral shift of the knot (5), the hanging portion (9) of the string (4) gets initially pulled and progressively develops tendency to get retracted and thus curl up in the uterus (16) through the cervix (17).
The trajectory is a defined route through and or alongside which the string (4) and the knot (5) is contained, and is a combination of a plurality of closed channel, a plurality of open channel, a plurality of open recess, a plurality of opening and a plurality of orifice, present in or on the region (3) at the distal (12) end of the IUD (20). The string (4) is laid through the trajectory and the knot (5) is tied keeping the string (4) taut. Consequent to the region (3) and the trajectory, the knot (5) is restricted from pivoting around the openings(s) and also the lateral shift towards the facilitating opening(s) is constrained.
Consequent to a shape of the region (3) and a shape of the trajectory, the length of the string (S) is invariably shorter than the distance (r) of the region (3); and the loop (15) of the string, and therefore the knot (5) is unable to pivot and or shift laterally.
Referring to
The string (4) is passed through a first opening (61a) of the channel (6a) and retrieved from a second opening (61b) of the channel and the knot (5) is tied keeping the string (4) taut, immediately below the flat lower surface (311) of the hemisphere (31) and in the middle, leaving the hanging portion (9) of the strings (4) free.
Consequent to a shape of the hemisphere (31) and the shape of the trajectory, the length of the string (S) is shorter than the distance (r) of the region (3); and the loop (15) of the string and therefore the knot (5) is unable to pivot around the axis (14) as shown in
Consequent to the shape of the hemisphere (31), an angle (18) between a plane of the lower surface (311) and a tangent (19) at the end of the hemisphere (31) causes a sharp bend for the string (4) as shown in
Consequent to restricted pivoting and the lateral shift of the knot (5), the hanging portion (9) of the string (4) continue to project downwards and do NOT develop tendency to get retracted and thus do NOT curl up in the uterus (16) through the cervix (17) as earlier shown in
Referring to
The string (4) is passed through a first opening (61a) of the channel (6a) and retrieved from a second opening (61b) of the channel and a knot (5) is tied keeping the string (4) taut immediately below at the flat lower surface (311) of the hemisphere (31) and in the middle, such that the knot (5) rests in the recess (312) provided in the flat lower surface (311) of the hemisphere (31), as shown in
Consequent to a shape of the hemisphere (31) and a shape of the trajectory, the length of the string (S) is shorter than the distance (r) of the region (3); and the loop (15) of the string, and therefore the knot (5) is unable to pivot around the axis (14) as shown in
Consequent to the shape of the hemisphere (311), an angle (18) between a plane of the flat lower surface (311) and a tangent (19) at the end of the hemisphere (31) causes a sharp bend for the string (4). Due to taut tying of the knot while keeping the string (4) taut, and the sharp bend, the knot (5) is NOT free to move from a position below the flat lower surface (311) to the side wards as shown in
Consequent to the restricted pivoting and the lateral shift of the knot (5), the hanging portion (9) of the string (4) continue to project downwards and do NOT develop tendency to get retracted and thus do NOT curl up in the uterus (16) through the cervix (17) as shown in
Referring to
A first end (4a) of the string (4) is passed through the opening (62e) of the triangular closed channel (6b) and retrieved from the opening (62f) of the triangular closed channel (6b). The same first end (4a) of the retrieved string (4) is then passed through the opening (62a) and retrieved from the opening (62b). Finally the same first end (4a) of the retrieved string (4) is passed through the opening (62c) and retrieved from the opening (62d). A knot (5) is tied keeping the string (4) taut immediately in the middle of the opening (62e) and the opening (62d), leaving the hanging portion (9) of the string (4) free.
Consequent to the shape of the sphere (32) and the corresponding trajectory (6b) the length of the string (S) is shorter than the distance (r) of the region (3); and the loop (15) of the string and therefore the knot (5) is unable to pivot around the axis (14) as shown in
Consequent to the shape of the sphere (32), and the corresponding trajectory (6b), the knot (5) is NOT free to move from the position in the middle of the opening (62e) and the opening (62d) to the side wards as shown in
Consequent to the restricted pivoting and the lateral shift of the knot (5), the hanging portion (9) of the string continue to project downwards and do NOT develop tendency to get retracted and thus do NOT curl up in the uterus (16) through the cervix (17).
According to
Consequent to the shape of the cylinder (33) and the corresponding trajectory (6c), the length of the string (S) is shorter than the distance (r) of the region (3); and the loop (15) of the string, and therefore the knot (5) is unable to pivot around the axis (14).
Consequent to the shape of the cylinder (33), and the corresponding trajectory (6c), the knot (5) is NOT free to move from position in the middle of the opening (63b) and the opening (63d) to side wards as shown in
Consequent to restricted pivoting and lateral shift of the knot (5), the hanging portion (9) of the string continue to project downwards and do NOT develop tendency to get retracted and thus do NOT curl up in the uterus (16) through the cervix (17).
In another embodiment, referring to
In another embodiment, the plurality of recess (312) is present on the surface (342) of the region (3) having differed shape and size. The recess provided on the surface of the region (3) retains the knot in the recess and thus restricts the lateral movement of the knot (5) as shown in
In another embodiment, wherever the string (4) is outside closed channels, an open channel is carved in the region.
In another embodiments, one or more recess shown in
In another embodiment, referring to
A first end (4a) of a string (4) is passed through the opening (65a) of the closed channel (6f) and retrieved from the middle opening (65c) of the closed channel (6f). A knot (5a) is tied in the vicinity of the middle opening (65c) keeping the string (4) taut as shown in
Consequent to the shape of the spheroid (35) and the corresponding trajectory (6f) the length of the string (S) is shorter than the distance (r) of the region (3); and the loop (15) of the string and therefore the knot (5) is unable to pivot around the axis (14) as shown in
Consequent to the shape of the spheroid (35), and the corresponding trajectory (6f), the knot (5) is NOT free to move from the position in the middle of the opening (65c) to the side wards as shown in
Consequent to the restricted pivoting and the lateral shift of the knot (5), the hanging portion (9) of the string continue to project downwards and do NOT develop tendency to get retracted and thus do NOT curl up in the uterus (16) through the cervix (17).
In another embodiment, referring to
A first end (4a) of the string (4) is passed through the opening (66a) of the closed channel (6f) and retrieved from the middle opening (65c) of the closed channel (6f), a knot (5a) is tied in the vicinity of the middle opening (66c) keeping the string (4) taut as shown in
Such undesired curling of the string of the IUD can be restricted in a similar manner with different shapes and types of intra uterine devices and different shapes of the region whether copper or hormonal or medicinal as illustrated in
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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3319/MUM/2014 | Oct 2014 | IN | national |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
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PCT/IN2014/000796 | 12/23/2014 | WO | 00 |
Publishing Document | Publishing Date | Country | Kind |
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WO2016/059640 | 4/21/2016 | WO | A |
Number | Date | Country |
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WO-2014023797 | Feb 2014 | WO |
Number | Date | Country | |
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20170231809 A1 | Aug 2017 | US |