Claims
- 1. A method of making a partial breast prosthesis comprising:
- forming a prosthesis precursor;
- positioning the precursor next to a patient's partial breast; and
- curing the precursor to form the partial breast prosthesis;
- wherein the partial breast prosthesis substantially conforms to the contour of the patient's partial breast.
- 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the prosthesis precursor comprises a bag containing a curable material and a capsule, wherein the capsule encloses a catalyst.
- 3. The method of claim 2, wherein the bag comprises a polyurethane film material.
- 4. The method of claim 2, wherein the curable material comprises one or more silicone polymers.
- 5. The method of claim 2, wherein the catalyst comprises a platinum-containing catalyst.
- 6. The method of claim 1, further comprising positioning the precursor between the patient's partial breast and the patient's bra.
- 7. A partial breast prosthesis formed by a method comprising:
- forming a prosthesis precursor;
- positioning the precursor next to a patient's partial breast; and
- curing the precursor to form the partial breast prosthesis; wherein the partial breast prosthesis substantially conforms to the contour of the patient's partial breast.
- 8. A partial breast prosthesis precursor comprising:
- a bag formed from a polymeric film material;
- a curable material within the bag;
- a capsule within the bag; and
- a catalyst enclosed by the capsule.
- 9. The partial breast prosthesis precursor of claim 8, wherein the polymeric film material comprises a polyurethane film.
- 10. The partial breast prosthesis precursor of claim 8, wherein the polymeric film material has a film thickness of up to about 5 mil.
- 11. The partial breast prosthesis precursor of claim 8, wherein the curable material comprises one or more silicone polymers.
- 12. The partial breast prosthesis precursor of claim 8, wherein the catalyst comprises a platinum-containing catalyst.
- 13. A partial breast prosthesis formed by curing the partial breast prosthesis precursor of claim 8.
- 14. A cured partial breast prosthesis comprising:
- an outer shell of polymeric film; and
- a cured gel material and a broken capsule enclosed by the outer shell.
- 15. A cured partial breast prosthesis comprising an outer shell of polymeric film and a cured gel material enclosed by the outer shell; wherein the cured partial breast prosthesis substantially conforms to a patient's partial breast and is formed by a method comprising:
- forming a prosthesis precursor;
- positioning the precursor next to a patient's partial breast; and
- curing the precursor to form the partial breast prosthesis.
- 16. The cured partial breast prosthesis of claim 13, further comprising a broken capsule within the outer shell.
- 17. The cured partial breast prosthesis of claim 13, wherein the cured gel material comprises a product resulting from the curing of one or more silicone polymers.
- 18. The method of claim 4, wherein the one or more silicone polymers comprises one or more polydimethylsiloxanes, vinyldimethylsiloxy terminated polydimethylsiloxanes, methylhydrosiloxane-dimethylsiloxane copolymers, or a combination thereof.
- 19. The partial breast prosthesis precursor of claim 11, wherein the one or more silicone polymers comprises one or more polydimethylsiloxanes, vinyldimethylsiloxy terminated polydimethylsiloxanes, methylhydrosiloxane-dimethylsiloxane copolymers, or a combination thereof.
- 20. The cured partial breast prosthesis of claim 17, wherein the one or more silicone polymers comprises one or more polydimethylsiloxanes, vinyldimethylsiloxy terminated polydimethylsiloxanes, methylhydrosiloxane-dimethylsiloxane copolymers, or a combination thereof.
- 21. The method of claim 1, further comprising adhering one or more attachment means to a surface of the prosthetic precursor.
- 22. The method of claim 21, wherein the attachment means comprises hook-and-loop fasteners.
- 23. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of forming the prosthetic precursor comprises:
- forming a bag having at least one opening;
- inserting a capsule into the at least one opening; and
- heat sealing the at least one opening.
- 24. The method of claim 23, wherein the step of forming the bag comprises:
- positioning a first film having a first peripheral edge adjacent to a second film having a second peripheral edge; and
- heat sealing the first peripheral edge of the first film to the second peripheral edge of the second film.
- 25. The method of claim 23, further comprising inserting a curable material into the at least one opening prior to heat sealing the at least one opening.
- 26. The partial breast prosthesis precursor of claim 8, wherein the polymeric film material comprises a polyurethane film; the curable material comprises one or more silicone polymers selected from polydimethylsiloxanes, vinyldimethylsiloxy terminated polydimethylsiloxanes, and methylhydrosiloxane-dimethylsiloxane copolymers; and the catalyst comprises a platinum-containing catalyst.
- 27. The partial breast prosthesis precursor of claim 8, further comprising one or more attachment means.
- 28. The partial breast prosthesis precursor of claim 27, wherein the attachment means comprises hook-and-loop fasteners.
- 29. The cured partial breast prosthesis of claim 14, wherein the polymeric film comprises a polyurethane film; and the cured gel material comprises one or more cured silicone polymers selected from polydimethylsiloxanes, vinyldimethylsiloxy terminated polydimethylsiloxanes, and methylhydrosiloxane-dimethylsiloxane copolymers.
- 30. The cured partial breast prosthesis of claim 14, further comprising one or more attachment means.
- 31. The cured partial breast prosthesis of claim 30, wherein the attachment means comprises hook-and-loop fasteners.
- 32. The method of claim 1, further comprising attaching an outermost pre-cured prosthetic layer to the prosthesis precursor.
- 33. The method of claim 32, wherein the outermost pre-cured prosthetic layer comprises one or more preformed breast components.
- 34. The partial breast prosthesis precursor of claim 8, further comprising an outermost pre-cured prosthetic layer attached to the bag.
- 35. The partial breast prosthesis precursor of claim 34, wherein the outermost pre-cured prosthetic layer comprises one or more preformed breast components.
- 36. The cured partial breast prosthesis of claim 14, wherein the cured partial breast prosthesis substantially conforms to a patient's partial breast.
- 37. The cured partial breast prosthesis of claim 14, further comprising an outermost pre-cured prosthetic layer attached to a surface of the outer shell.
- 38. The cured partial breast prosthesis of claim 37, wherein the outermost pre-cured prosthetic layer comprises one or more preformed breast components.
Parent Case Info
This application claims benefit of Provisional Application 60/077,728 filed Mar. 12, 1998.
US Referenced Citations (23)
Foreign Referenced Citations (1)
Number |
Date |
Country |
WO 9945862 |
Sep 1999 |
WOX |