Surgery – Means and methods for collecting body fluids or waste material – Absorbent pad for external or internal application and...
Patent
1993-05-03
1995-02-21
Kruter, Jerome L.
Surgery
Means and methods for collecting body fluids or waste material
Absorbent pad for external or internal application and...
604387, A61F 1315
Patent
active
053911628
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an absorbent product, such as a sanitary napkin or an incontinence guard, which comprises an essentially elongated absorbent pad which is enclosed casing material, and flexible side-flaps which are disposed on the long side edges of the elongated absorbent pad and, when the article is worn, are intended to be folded around the crotch of the wearer's underpants or like garment and fastened to the outside of said pants.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Articles of this kind are intended to be worn by menstruating women or by persons who suffer from relatively light incontinence, and who require the articles to afford protection against leakage but still be unnoticeable when worn beneath conventional clothing. Since the amount of fluid discharged with menstruation and with light incontinence is relatively small, the articles can be designed in a manner which enables them to be accommodated essentially completely in the crotch region of the wearer, between the wearer's thighs. The requirement that such articles shall be discrete when worn is satisfied almost to the full by said articles.
However, it has been found difficult to produce articles of this kind which are sufficiently proof against leakage. The main reason for this is that, when worn, the articles are highly deformed by the forces that are generated as the wearer moves. The greatest deformation normally occurs within that part of the article which, in use, is located in the narrowest space between the wearer's thighs. Unfortunately, this part of the article is also the part which is intended to receive the discharged body fluid first and to absorb said fluid. As a result of this pronounced deformation of the article, the surface area of the article available for direct absorption is, of course, greatly reduced. This increases the risk of body fluid leaking past the side edges of the article and soiling the user's underpants.
THE KNOWN PRIOR ART
A number of different solutions have been proposed with the intention of reducing the risk of this lateral leakage of body fluids. For example, SE 455 668, U.S. Pat. No. 4,285,343, EP 130 848, EP 134 086 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,608,047 teach methods of providing sanitary napkins with flexible side-flaps, or wings, which project outwardly from the absorbent pad. When fitting the article for wear, these side-flaps are intended to be folded around the edges of the leg openings of the wearer's underpants or like garment, and fastened to the outside thereof. The side-flaps form a guard against side-edge leakage and against soiling of the wearer's underpants. In addition, the side-flaps also, to some extent, counteract deformation of the absorbent pad, since the napkin is anchored to the leg edges of the underpants and is held stretched between the leg edges during use.
One serious drawback with the known so-called winged napkins, however, is that menstruation fluid often passes outside the absorbent pad and onto the flexible side-flaps. This can occur, for instance, when the napkin becomes wrinkled or folded, or when the napkin is positioned crookedly, such that menstruation fluid will pass outside the absorbent pad of the napkin from the very beginning and soils one of the side-flaps. Even though menstruation fluid has originally been absorbed by the absorbent pad, the fluid may be transported out to the side-flaps in the event of the absorbent pad becoming saturated with fluid, or should transverse fluid-conducting folds form in the absorbent pad during use.
Since the side-flaps are primarily intended to form liquid barriers, they seldom contain a large amount of absorbent material. Consequently, any liquid which reaches the side-flaps will be spread over a large area of the flaps. When this occurs, the known winged napkins become warm, dirty and unpleasant to wear, since they quickly obtain a large moist surface which lies in close contact with the wearer's body. Furthermore, there is a risk that liquid will spread past the side-flaps in the longitudinal dir
REFERENCES:
patent: 4608047 (1986-08-01), Mattingly
patent: 4735316 (1988-04-01), Froidh et al.
patent: 4808177 (1989-02-01), DesMarais et al.
patent: 5062839 (1991-11-01), Anderson
Engqvist Helena
Thoren Agneta
Widlund Urban
Kruter Jerome L.
Molnlycke AB
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