Surgery: splint – brace – or bandage – Orthopedic bandage – Splint or brace
Reexamination Certificate
1999-08-04
2001-05-29
Brown, Michael A. (Department: 3764)
Surgery: splint, brace, or bandage
Orthopedic bandage
Splint or brace
C036S043000, C036S071000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06238359
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to corrective appliances and more particularly corrective insoles and to the manufacture of corrective insoles or insole inserts constructed to give effective support and relief of the ailment or infirmity known as shin splints.
Shin splints are located in the lower leg on the medial side of the tibia, in the area of the interosseous membrane, which is between the tibia and fibula. Each time the foot makes contact with the ground, the body must absorb a “load.” This load is generally the athlete's own body weight. This loading places strenuous demands upon the foot and leg, including the bones in the feet and leg. If measures can be taken to reduce these stresses, then the shoe or an appropriate insole has functioned properly and potential injury can be avoided to the lower leg.
Biomechanics evaluate the demands of a particular injury avoidance. Each activity has its own unique movement, and different stresses on the lower extremities. When running, regardless of the runner's foot fall pattern, the foot is angled slightly inward from the vertical (or “supinated” in biomechanical terms) at touchdown, causing an initial landing on the outside or valgus portion, or lateral aspect, of the heel. Impact results in the foot being rapidly forced on the running surface, causing a bending, or flexion, phase in the knee and hip. Further loading upon initial impact causes the bottom of the foot to be turned away from the body's midline—a phase biomechanics call pronation. The ankle is rolled toward the midline and the whole foot is turned out from the body's midline. This causes the ankle to appear to move in toward the center of the body as the foot lands flat on the ground. After reaching maximum pronation, a propulsion phase begins and all the foregoing actions are reversed.
Pronation or inversion, where the bottom of the foot is turned toward the body's midline is described as abnormal. Pronation during walking and running allows the impact forces to be absorbed over a greater time period. Thus, reducing the effective magnitude of the force without pronation causes excessive stress that would exit on the supporting leg structures. Excessive pronation may be injurious to the walker or runner, and is generally associated with complications of the knee, ankle and lower leg, as in the shin splint. Based on knowledge of the foot function during walking or running, it is desirable to protect the foot and lower leg form excessive forces which will cause injury or irritated membrane in the lower leg.
Since shin splints are located in the lower leg on the medial side of the tibia, when the membrane in the area of the interosseous membrane gets irritated, inflamed and very sore, the condition is known as shin splints. This irritation is common to joggers and walkers as an ailment which comes from running or walking on a hard or uneven surface or sometimes just from walking or running on any surface.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART
The prior art is devoid of a specific corrective appliance, insert of insole which is uniquely useful for correcting the pain or cause of shin splints or interosseous membrane inflammation.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,180,924 discloses a wedged insert which extends from the heel to a point beyond the arch of the wearer's foot and immediately to the rear of the first metatarsal head of the foot. The wedge portion is canted upward its entire length from the outer side of the shoe to the inner side of the shoe. Also, the sole is constructed to be thicker at portions adjacent to the heel than at portions adjacent to the toe.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,317,293 relates to a foot-supporting insole extending from the heel up to a front position of the foot in front of the ball of the little toe at the outside and behind the ball of the big toe on the inside of the foot. Said foot-supporting insole has a substantially constant thickness over its entire area and is curved upwardly at the inside of the foot for support of the arch.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,742,627 relates to an external metatarsal pad for a woman's high heel shoe. The pad is flexible resilient material having a uniform maximum thickness in the rear portion of the pad and gradually tapered at its forward most end. The pad is secured to the outer lower surface of the sole of the shoe.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,095,658 relates to light insoles which are flexible in the forepart, thin but rigid toe area with a strong rear and central shank portion which taper in graduated contours from the full thickness to relatively fine edges at the side. Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 3,080,589 relates to the method of forming a laminated insole of varying thickness using a multi-ply sheet of a thin layer and a thicker layer of rigid material. An insole blank is cut therefrom leaving a perimeter of rigid material and tapering the thickness of the layer of rigid material in the shank portion from the longitudinal center to the side edges and toward the ball of the foot.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,623,307 describes an orthopedic insole to treat foot and arch disorders in human feet adapted to compensate for shortness or laxity of the metatarsal and a weight-diffusing cushion member and underlying the shafts of all the metatarsal bones from a point immediately back of the heads of all the metatarsals and adapted to diffuse pressure over an area extending laterally across the insole full width.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,190,568 describes an orthopedic shoe or insole with slits extending almost across the entire width of the outer ball portion and an outer wedge tapering from the waist transition to the outer ball. The novel construction of the insole with the slit thin wedge a high degree of flexibility is imparted to the insole and the front portion of the foot is given an inclined position from the outer side toward the inner side.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,884,719 relates to a device, a therapeutic appliance for relief and prevention of metatarsalgia. The device is designed and is used to underlie the great toe and first metatarsal head of the wearer and specifically to relieve the weight load on the second metatarsal head.
DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
It has been found that the improved insole design of this invention can be used as an insert or sole construction to evert the foot with a raised area at the first metatarsal area with support in the region of the ball of the foot and the first metatarsal head. The raised squared portion of the insole is intended to evert or support the foot by raising the ball of the foot, thereby causing the foot to rotate outwardly, and relieving, reducing and diminishing irritation, inflammation and pain associated with the lower leg ailment commonly known as shin splints. The sloped or beveled edges on the front edge and back edge and on the inside edge of the raised portion promotes the desired eversion.
An object of this invention is to provide an insole of a corrective character for shin splints embodying an insole adapted to fit beneath the foot and provide increased eversion and supination of the foot and thereby relieve the ailment known as shin splints.
Another object of this invention is to provide an insole with an improved wedge or insert to the rear of the first metatarsal head of the foot with an upward inclined slopes on the front, back and inside edges of an insole insert to promote eversion of the foot.
Although an insole or pair of insoles would normally form a separate article of commerce from, and be intended for insertion in, a pair of boot or shoes. It also could be integral with such footwear and form a part thereof. It is a further object of the instant invention to provide an insole construction which causes the ball of the foot to be raised and the foot to be rotated outwardly, decreasing pronation and increasing eversion or supination.
Other objects of the invention will be understood and become apparent from the following description and claims, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings.
REFERENCES:
patent: 1867431 (1932-07-01), Wood
patent: 2190568 (1
Brown Michael A.
Hamilton Lalita M
Pacini Harry A.
Smith Charles A.
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