Surgery: splint – brace – or bandage – Orthopedic bandage – Splint or brace
Reexamination Certificate
2000-07-17
2001-11-13
Brown, Michael A. (Department: 3764)
Surgery: splint, brace, or bandage
Orthopedic bandage
Splint or brace
C602S030000, C128S882000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06315749
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a foot supporter formed of knit fabric, and more particularly to a foot supporter which is fitted on a foot in order to restore distorted arches on the sole of the foot to their original shapes to thereby recover the normal functions of the foot, as well as to correction of deformation of the first toe (hallux, the big toe) such as hallux valgus.
2. Description of the Related Art
Recently, due to changes in lifestyles and cultures, an increasing number of persons have suffered foot problems such as distortion of arches on the sole of the foot and hallux valgus. As shown in
FIGS. 10A
,
10
B, and
10
C, arches on the sole of the foot include a longitudinal arch
50
on the inner side of the foot, a longitudinal arch
52
on the outer side of the foot, a metatarsal arch
54
on the front side of the foot, and a lateral arch
56
on the root side of the foot. These arches on the sole of the foot are necessary for proper functioning of the foot. Therefore, a person having a distorted arch on the sole of his foot may find difficulty in walking, running, or exercising.
Hallux valgus is a type of deformation of the foot. As shown in
FIG. 11
, the lateral metatarsal ligament
62
is loosened and metatarsal joints
64
spread, thereby causing varus (deformation toward the inner side of the foot) of the first metatarsal bone
66
, resulting in valgus (deformation toward the outer side of the foot) of the first toe
68
.
Conventionally, various kinds of foot supporters have been proposed for correcting the above-mentioned hallux valgus. For example, supporters for correcting hallux valgus are disclosed in JP-B-1990-12094, JU-A-1994-7714, JU-A-1994-7715, JU-A-1994-13814 and JU-A-1994-13815. The basic function of these supporters for correction of hallux valgus is to return spread metatarsal joints and metatarsal bones to their original positions and fix them in place and to bring the first toe back to the proper orientation, so that hallux valgus is corrected.
However, there has not been proposed a foot supporter which is fitted on the foot in order to restore distorted arches on the sole of the foot to their original shapes.
As described above, various kinds of conventional supporters for correction of hallux valgus have been proposed. These supporters are formed of relatively thick and strong fabric which is substantially non-stretchable. Therefore, the conventional supporter for correction of hallux valgus provides an unfavorable sensation upon being placed on the foot, and makes it difficult to wear a sock or a shoe over the supporter.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
An object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned problems, and to provide a foot supporter which enables recovery of a distorted arch on the sole of the foot so as to recover the proper function of the foot, as well as correction of deformation of the first toe such as hallux valgus, which can be comfortably fitted on the foot, and over which a sock or a shoe can be put on smoothly.
To achieve the above object, the present invention provides a foot supporter comprising a tubular body and a first-toe receiving portion. The tubular body is formed of knit fabric and is stretchable in the transverse direction of the foot. The tubular body is adapted to receive the tread portion of the foot and compress root portions of metatarsal bones in the tread portion. The first-toe receiving portion is formed of knit fabric and is stretchable in the longitudinal direction of the foot. The first-toe receiving portion is attached to the front end of the tubular body end to be located on the inner side of the foot. The first-toe receiving portion includes a sack portion at the tip end thereof and an opening at the base end thereof such that the opening is opened toward the second toe.
When a user wears the foot supporter according to the present invention, the user inserts the tread portion of the foot into the tubular body, such that the first toe is inserted into the sack portion of the first-toe receiving portion, and the second to the fifth toe are projected from the front opening of the tubular body. Thus, the foot supporter compresses the root portions of the metatarsal bones in the tread portion of the foot by means of forces in directions toward the widthwise center of the foot to thereby assist the function of the lateral metatarsal ligament and to thereby restore the shapes of flattened arches on the sole of the foot in order to recover the proper functions of the foot.
Further, since the tubular body compresses the root portions of the metatarsal bones in the tread portion of the foot, spread metatarsal joints and metatarsal bones can be brought back to their original positions and fixed in place. In addition, the first-toe receiving portion produces a contraction force in the longitudinal direction in order to pull the first toe towards the inner side of the foot to thereby return the bent first toe to its normal posture and fix it in place. In other words, since the opening is formed at the base portion of the first-toe receiving portion to face the second toe, the contraction force that the first-toe receiving portion produces in the longitudinal direction of the foot produces a component force for pulling the first toe towards the inner side of the foot. Thus, the foot supporter according to the present invention corrects hallux valgus.
In the foot supporter according to the present invention, since the tubular body compresses the root portions of the metatarsal bones in the tread portion of the foot, the foot supporter can restore distorted arches on the foot sole and correct hallux valgus without providing pain to the user. That is, in the above-described conventional supporter for correction of hallux valgus is designed to compress portions of the metatarsal bones located on the front side with respect to their root portions. In this case, the user may feel pain. By contrast, the foot supporter of the present invention does not have such a drawback.
Moreover, in the foot supporter of the present invention, since the tubular body and the first-toe receiving portion are formed separately, and connected with each other, the position of the tubular body on the tread portion of the foot can be changed with ease. Therefore, through a change in the position of the tubular body on the tread portion of the foot, the force that pulls the first toe towards the inner side of the foot can be adjusted in order to cope with various symptoms caused by deformation of the foot.
Although no specific limitation is imposed on the structure of the foot supporter according to the present invention, the following structures (1) and (2) are preferred.
(1) The first-toe receiving portion is formed from two leaf-shaped pieces of fabric, which are sewn together along their edges in an inner-side region extending from a base end to a tip end corner on the second-toe side. The base portions of the two pieces of fabric are sewn to the tubular body such that the first-toe receiving portion is attached to the front end of the tubular body to be located at the widthwise inner end of the tubular body.
(2) The first-toe receiving portion is formed from two substantially rectangular pieces of fabric, which are sewn together at their tip end portions. The base end portion of one piece of fabric is sewn to the tubular body with the piece of fabric being twisted 360°, and the base end portion of the other piece of fabric is sewn to the tubular body without the piece of fabric being twisted. Thus, the first-toe receiving portion is attached to the front end of the tubular body to be located at the widthwise inner end thereof.
In the present invention, the compression force (pressure) that the tubular body applies to the root portions of the metatarsal bones in the tread portion of the foot is preferably 24 mh or greater, more preferably from 24 to 34 mh, in order to improve effectiveness in restoring arches on the sole of the foot and correcting hallux valgus.
In
Brown Michael A.
Sughrue Mion Zinn Macpeak & Seas, PLLC
Tokyo Hosiery Co., Ltd.
LandOfFree
Foot supporter does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this patent.
If you have personal experience with Foot supporter, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Foot supporter will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFUS-PAI-O-2569373