Apparel – Guard or protector – Hand or arm
Reexamination Certificate
2001-11-21
2004-10-26
Patel, Tejash (Department: 3765)
Apparel
Guard or protector
Hand or arm
Reexamination Certificate
active
06807681
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to protective guards, and embodiments relate to protective guards for fingers and thumbs that inhibit skin penetration by needles and/or instruments.
2. Description of Related Art
Medical practitioners, including but not limited to doctors, physician assistants, nurses, dentists, and dental assistants may use instruments, implants and/or needles during medical procedures. Medical procedures may include, but are not limited to, surgical procedures and operations; dental procedures and operations; and injection or drawing of fluids using needles. A risk exists that a medical practitioner's skin may be punctured or penetrated during a medical procedure, resulting in a percutaneous injury. A medical practitioner's skin may also be punctured or penetrated during disposal or cleaning of needles or medical instruments previously used in a medical procedure. The medical practitioner and/or patient may be subject to infection or disease including, but not limited to, staphylococcus, hepatitis, and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) due to an inadvertent puncture of the medical practitioner. With or without transmission of a disease or pathogen, a skin puncture or other wound may be traumatic to the medical practitioner. There is a need to protect medical practitioners and patients from the risk of infection and pathogens due to skin punctures or wounds of the medical practitioner during a medical procedure.
Surgical gloves may be used by medical practitioners to lessen the risk of transferring blood-borne and other pathogens during medical procedures. Some medical practitioners use two gloves on each hand to reduce the risk of glove failure and skin punctures during medical procedures. Surgical gloves typically do not provide adequate protection from penetration of skin by sharps. Sharps may include, but are not limited to, hypodermic needles; medical, dental and laboratory instruments; and burs and sharp edges or projections of hard tissue and prostheses. Studies show that puncture wounds of medical practitioners often occur on backs of a medical practitioner's fingers or thumb. Puncture wounds may occur predominantly to the index finger, thumb and middle finger. For example, a medical practitioner may hold a syringe in a dominant hand while retracting, isolating, or palpating tissue with the other hand. A sudden movement by the patient may cause the medical practitioner to accidentally puncture the back of a finger or thumb of the non-dominant hand.
Finger coverings and/or hand protectors may be used to reduce the risk of inadvertent skin punctures in non-medical applications. U.S. Pat. No. 3,228,033 issued to Ames, et al., discloses a finger guard for use while pinning garments. U.S. Pat. No. 4,689,828 issued to Brewer, discloses a finger protector for hair stylists' fingers that includes a wristband joined to a two-finger protector. The two-finger protector has open ends for the fingers to extend through. U.S. Pat. No. 4,858,245 issued to Sullivan, et al., discloses an armored glove finger including a rib knit tubular member having an open end and a closed end.
Finger coverings and/or hand protectors may be used in medical applications. U.S. Pat. No. 4,901,372 issued to Pierce, which is incorporated by reference as if fully set forth herein, discloses a trilaminar glove with inner and outer barrier layers and a central foam layer. The trilaminar construction may reduce the risk of a puncture through the glove. U.S. Pat. No. 4,985,038 issued to Lyell, which is incorporated by reference as if fully set forth herein, discloses a needle stop surgical instrument comprising a finger housing, a needle receiving space, and a handle. The finger housing receives a finger, and the needle receiving space receives and guides a needle. The handle may be grasped between the remaining fingers of the hand and the palm of the hand to allow maneuvering. U.S. Pat. No. 5,070,543 issued to Beck, which is incorporated by reference as if fully set forth herein, discloses surgical gloves having protective pads placed at selected areas of the surgical gloves. The selected areas of the surgical gloves may include the fingertips and the palms.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,450,626 issued to Sorrels, which is incorporated by reference as if fully set forth herein, discloses protective finger coverings that have flexible and puncture resistant construction. A finger covering may include a puncture resistant, protective surface on a dorsal or back side of the covering. As used herein, dorsal in relation to a finger means that portion of the finger opposite the palm of the hand, and ventral means that portion of the finger adjacent the palm of the hand when a fist is formed. The finger guide may also include a retentive or elastic layer that may function to hold the covering on a user's finger or thumb. The retentive layer may be located on a ventral side of the covering. The covering may be open-ended to allow a portion of a user's thumb or finger to extend through the covering. The portion of the user's thumb or finger that extends through the covering may allow the user to retain tactile sense while using the covering. The covering may be rotated during use to change the position of the protective surface.
Finger coverings and hand protectors may have several disadvantages. Finger coverings and/or hand protectors may limit finger and/or hand flexibility of the user. Finger coverings and/or hand protectors may limit a user's sense of touch during a procedure. A user's sense of touch may be import during a medical procedure, especially if palpation of various surfaces of a treatment area is required during the procedure. A medical practitioner may need to retain a tactile sense during a medical procedure to control a patient and to maintain awareness of locations of sharp portions of instruments, inserts, and/or needles. Additionally, the use of finger and/or hand protectors may be limited by the amount of working space available within the patient. For example, a dentist does not have a large amount of working space within a patient's mouth. Also, a doctor typically does not have a large amount of working space within a patient during an invasive medical procedure.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
A protective guard for a digit of a hand may include a flexible and penetration resistant construction. A digit may be a finger or a thumb. The protective guard may inhibit punctures or other wounds of a medical practitioner during a medical procedure. The protective guard may be formed as an elongated tubular member that covers the middle and terminal phalanges of a finger or thumb. When the protective guard is positioned on a finger, the protective guard may extend from just beyond the fingertip to just past the medial finger joint. An end of the protective guard nearest the medial joint may be contoured to allow bending of the medial joint. An end of the protective guard nearest the fingertip may be shaped to avoid covering a large portion of the pad of the fingertip. Leaving a large portion of the pad of the fingertip uncovered may promote retention of a user's tactile sense.
A protective guard may include a ventral (or front) portion and a dorsal (or back) portion. The ventral portion may include elastic material that functions to retain the protective guard on a medical practitioner's finger or thumb. The dorsal portion may include penetration and puncture resistant material. A protective guard may have a ring-shaped cross sectional form. An inner diameter of the protective guard may be smaller than a diameter of a finger or thumb upon which the protective guard is placed. The protective guard may form a seal with a user's hand that inhibits fluid from contacting the portion of a user's hand or finger that is covered by the protective guard. The elastic properties of the material may hold the protective guard on a finger or thumb when the guard is positioned on the finger
Meyertons Eric B.
Meyertons Hood Kivlin Kowert & Goetzel P.C.
Patel Tejash
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