Surgery – Body protecting or restraining devices for patients or infants – Restrainers and immobilizers
Reexamination Certificate
1999-09-13
2001-09-04
Brown, Michael A. (Department: 3764)
Surgery
Body protecting or restraining devices for patients or infants
Restrainers and immobilizers
C128S879000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06283126
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to hand shields of the type worn by a patient to prevent unintended removal of needles or catheters from the patient, scratching of wounds or removal of bandages
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Many bed patients are not alert and do not have full command of their facilities due to a variety of causes including among others process of recovery from anesthesia, trauma, sedation, age etc. Such patients often involuntarily attempt to remove bandages, scratch wounds remove catheters or intravenous needles or make other detrimental use of their hands.
Various hand shields or guards have been proposed to prevent one or more of these activities. For the most part known hand shields for bed patients attempt to immobile the hands and fingers and completely enclose the hand and only permit limited, if any, air circulation over the skin. This leads to detrimental skin conditions. With patients prone to perspiration constant moisture on the hands leads to maceration of the skin. In some other patients the lack of air circulation over the skin cause dryness, cracking, scaling and eventual peeling of the skin.
Accordingly the present invention provides a new and improve patient hand shield very simplified construction which prevents involuntary scratching, removal of bandages and removal of inserted catheters and needles.
The present invention provides a hand shield which is light in weight and does not interfere with normal movement of fingers within the shield yet prevents use of the hands and fingers to scratch, remove bandages or inserted catheters and needles. A hand shield embodying the invention is not restrictive to the patient and permits the grasping and squeezing of objects within the shield, such as a rubber ball, to exercise the hand
An object of this invention is to provide a new and improved hand shield for a bed patient to prevent involuntary removal of bandages, scratching of wounds or sores and removal of catheters and tubes such as gastric and nasal.
A further object of this invention is to provide such a hand shield which does not prevent air circulation over and around a patient's hands.
A further object of this invention is to provide a such new and improved hand shield which is light in weight which permits patients to normally move their fingers but prevents use of the hand fingers for detrimental purposes.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Briefly stated, the invention, comprises a hand shield for a bed patient which is frustro-conical in shape with the smaller end secured about a patient's wrist. The larger end is open and extends beyond the fingers of the patient. The large open end permits air to circulate about the patient's hand and fingers and thus protects the skin from any adverse effects of lack of circulation. A hand shield embodying the invention, in one form thereof, comprises an element of flexible but stiff material of generally modified trapezoidal shape adapted to be rolled into an open ended fustro-conical configuration. The element of modified trapezoidal shape has bases formed on radii, and has wrist wrap at the smaller base thereof. Cooperative releasable fastening means along the edges of the element arranged to hold the element in the generally fustro-conical shape when it is to be used. A strap is provided for fastening the wrist wrap about the wrist of a patient, and an aperture is defined in the element intermediate the ends and sides thereof and positioned to permit access therethrough to the back of a hand of a patient.
The features of the invention which are believed to be novel are particularly pointed out and distinctly claimed in the concluding portion of this specification. The invention, however, together with further objects and advantages thereof, may best be appreciated by reference to the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the drawings.
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patent: 4893372 (1990-01-01), Nenzel
patent: 4982745 (1991-01-01), Shields
patent: 5063919 (1991-11-01), Silverberg
patent: 5279574 (1994-01-01), Forren
patent: 5761746 (1998-09-01), Brown
Brown Michael A.
Montgomery Robert H.
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