WO2015136425A1

WO2015136425A1 - Disposable diaper with diuresis indicator

Info

Publication number: WO2015136425A1
Application number: PCT/IB2015/051686
Authority: WO
Inventors: Giulio D'INCÀ
Original assignee: CARLOS, Richer
Priority date: 2014-03-10
Filing date: 2015-03-08
Publication date: 2015-09-17

Abstract

The invention refers to a disposable diaper with a self-contained diuresis indicator used for the measurement of the volume of urine collected in the diaper.

Description

DISPOSABLE DIAPER WITH DIURESIS INDICATOR

The invention refers to a disposable diaper with a diuresis indicator used for the measurement of the volume of urine collected in the diaper.

People with good health have a perfect balance between the intake and the outtake of fluids in their bodies. Unfortunately not all people are healthy, and in many cases their health can be correlated to how they manage their fluids. There are many instances where a doctor may want to know the amount of urine collected from a patient. In the case of people with limited mobility or bedridden, urine is by far the biggest indicator of fluid outtake. Most of these patients have no option but to wear a diaper.

It is in particular with this kind of patients, where doctors may request close monitoring of the volume of urine that they generate each day, to check their urine production also called diuresis. This information can help the doctor confirm if the patient is having a fluid unbalance that may result in a disease. Nurses and caregivershave to monitor the amount of urine in soiled diapers by weighing each diaper individually and subtracting the original weight of the diaper when it was dry.

Measuring the amount of urine in a diaperis a problem. Many times the caregiver needs to transport the soiled diaper to another room where there is a scale; and handling a soiled diaper is not something most people enjoy doing. Other times, diapers are collected for the whole day in a large plastic bag or several bags (as opening and closing the same bag to collect an extra diaper produces a bad smell) . Other times, a large tray with a lid is used, which needs to be frequently disinfected. This activity, in addition to requiring plenty of space for the inventory, is not hygienic or even ecologic in terms of the additional plastic needed, and it is also possible to mix the soiled diapers by human error if they are not properly identified. In addition, it is needed to note down the original weight of the dry diaper in order to calculate the net weight of urine or one would end up with an error of as much as 100 ml (like the original weight of the dry diaper) .

A very critical problem is the use of catheters that are connected directly on the urethra, and are used to measure patient's diuresis. This is known to be the number-one cause for infection and for the need of antibiotics to treat urinary tract infections in hospitals everywhere. In many cases, the cost of these antibiotics exceeds the cost of the diapers; in addition, they may end up having a negative effect in patient's health as with time the patients become more resistant to the antibiotics and may require heavier dosages or stronger antibiotics. Many doctors will agree that it is better to sacrifice some of the precision of the measurement for diuresis instead of accepting the risk of infection associated with the use of the catheter.

Of course, it is also possible to use a simple spring scale, like those sold online for a low price, but after using one with a soiled diaper it may need to be washed and disinfected; and unless it is made of all stainless steel materials, it will oxidize from the salts in the urine.

Object of the present invention is to solve some of these problems. It accomplishes so e.g. by incorporating a simple elastic cord that is attached into each diaper and has been already calibrated to show the net volume of urine in the diaper. One only needs to hold the soiled diaper using the attached elastic, and by looking at the scale printed on the cord using visual inspection at a point of reference, the approximate amount of urine collected in the diaper will be known.

Another object of the present invention it to solve the problem to record the total amount of urine collected by a diaper (diuresis). Instead of

- having to weigh the soiled diaper in a scale and then subtract the weight of the dry diaper, with all the inconveniences of having to manipulate the diaper and store a value on the memory of the scale as a tare; and

- having to move the soiled diaper around or to another room; and also of having to connect a catheter into the urethra known to be the number one cause of urinary tract infection and the need for antibiotics;

the diaper comprises a built-in scale made with an elastic component or cord that is firmly attached at one end to the diaper.

In order to know the net volume of urine collected in the diaper, one only needs

to hold the diaper by an elastic cord, a cord that is designed to move freely inside a pouch or inside the diaper itself, and

to pull the cord up slowly until one is able to lift the weight of the diaper against gravity so that it is hanging in the air.

This way the elastic cord is subjected to the full weight of the soiled diaper, which includes the weight of the dry diaper plus the weight of the collected urine. The elastic cord can be pre-calibrated in factory so the markings printed on the cord that one can read visually will tell the volume of urine collected in the diaper, without the need to subtract the weight of the dry diaper and without the need to use a laboratory scale.

This method for measuring diuresis occurred inside a disposable diaper is not only fast and safe, as it makes data collection easier to the caregiver, but also it avoids the need

- to wash or disinfect the scale, and

- for a catheter which may end up in a bad infection, and

it also reduces the handling of the soiled diaper around the hospital or the rest home.

The elastic cord used in the diaper for this weighing purpose can be made according to different requirements of precision, using different types of natural or synthetic rubbers, spandex, or any other stretchy material. It is also possible to use different deniers of the same elastic materials, a combination of different elastic lengths, and maybe even multi-component materials, all in order to achieve improved precisions at different weight ranges. Considering the typical amount of urine collected in a day and the number of diapers used by an average patient, an elastic cord can be designed within different specifications; for example, with a maximum error of 25 ml, with an error of 50 ml, or whatever amount which can be considered still acceptable by most doctors. The typical range of an adult diaper brief before full saturation is usually less than 600 ml, so a good range for measurement for the scale of the elastic cord could be between 50 to 750 ml. Since the density of urine is almost identical to the density of water, it means that the volume in ml is very close to the grams of urine.

Temperature has an effect on all elastic materials, so the temperature range to meet the required precision can also be defined as part of the specs, but it is also possible to suggest a simple adjustment in case the room temperature is higher or lower than the suggested range. At this time, however, we believe the latter is not going to be really needed. Typically, the measurement for diuresis does not need to be very precise in order to require any additional corrections. For most cases a 10% error in the volume of the collected urine can be still considered very acceptable for all practical applications.

The advantages of the invention will be clearer from the following description of preferred embodiments, illustrated in the accompanying drawing wherein

Fig. 1 shows a preferred embodiment for the diuresis indicator using a wrap and an elastic cord.

Fig. 2 shows an alternative way on how to build the elastic cord for easier measurement.

Fig. 3 shows one ways how to attach the diuresis indicator into an adult brief under the frontal tape.

Fig. 4 shows one way to attach the diuresis indicator into an adult brief using the lateral tape.

Fig. 5 shows an alternative way on how to attach the elastic cord without the need of any wrapping.

With reference now to the drawings a disposable diuresis- indicating diaper is presented. To simplify with the explanation, the complete diuresis indicator will be described in the context of an adult disposable brief. The re-application of the same principles to other products such as disposable underwear or an adult pant will then be straightforward for a skilled person.

The system or diaper comprises an "elastic cord" that has been printed with or comprises "calibration marks" for the indication of the different volumes of diuresis;

a "wrapping pouch" adapted to allows the elastic cord to stretch freely; and

a fixing means adapted to hold the lower end (or the most inserted end deeper into the diaper) of the elastic cord securely in place, as well as to attach the pouch to the diaper. The other end of the elastic cord should be longer than the wrapping pouch and extend in order to facilitate the measurement by holding the free end of the cord with the fingers, lifting the product with the cord so that all of the weight of the soiled diaper is in the air; this way the calibrated marks on the elastic cord will show the amount of urine in the diaper (the patient diuresis). The amount that the elastic cord has to extend outside of the wrapping pouch is just long enough to make it comfortable for the fingers to hold, a few centimeters should be enough. Fig. 1 shows a simple way to manufacture this diuresis indicator using a plastic wrapping 11, an elastic cord 12 inside the wrapping, and a mechanical attachment means 13. The mechanical means is used to hold the end of the elastic in place so it can be stretched. On the left side of Fig.1, the diuresis indicator is shown in a relaxed state, while on the right side the same system is under tension while being pulled by the fingers of the nurse, caretaker, or other individual (henceforth referred to as nurse). When this system is attached to a diaper, the nurse has an easy way to read the volume of urine collected in a diaper directly from the markings printed on the elastic cord.

Fig.2 shows an alternative for building the diuresis indicator using a folded piece of elastic material inserted into a wrapping pouch, in this case, it is easier for the nurse to insert a finger into the extended end of the cord outside the wrapping pouch to measure diuresis as shown in the drawing without risking slippery fingers and with a lower chance of dropping the soiled diaper.

There are many more ways to build the diuresis indicator, for example, it is possible to use two composite materials that allow a higher sensitivity under low weights, by using a lower modulus of stretchability, but once one of the components is fully stretched, then the modulus of elasticity is increased allowing it to measure the heavier weights.

It is also possible to use two independent elastic cords under the same pouch, one used for higher sensitivity while measuring lower weights, and the other one for the heavy loads.

Another alternative is using a combination of different deniers or even different lengths of cords allowing one of them to stretch first for greater sensitivity, and once this is fully stretched, the longer cord starts to act together enabling it to measure the heavier loads.

Figure 3 shows an alternative on how to attach the diuresis indicator under the frontal tape of a diaper 90, this is of course only possible on those briefs that have such a system; not all adult briefs sold today are equipped with a frontal tape.

Figure 4 shows how to attach the diuresis indicator into a diaper 92 (shown partially) using the lateral adhesive tape that is used to fasten the diaper. The diuresis indicator can be just a few millimeters wide, so it does not need to cover much of the adhesive of the tape as shown on Fig. 4; however it can also be attached under the release tape in the same machine direction to avoid any negative effect on the fastening system related to reducing the adhesive area of the fastening tape or the release tape.

Another interesting possibility that can even save the cost of the wrapping pouch is to attach the diuresis indicator directly inside the diaper, indicated with 94, between the plastic backsheet and the nonwoven topsheet as shown in Fig. 5. This is possible when the construction glue has open channels that allow the elastic cord to stretch freely, so the wrapping is not needed, for example: by taking advantage of the tack down hot melt glue used to secure the leg cuffs down at the ends of the diaper, or using a special hot melt dot for this purpose, using a mechanical thermo sealing device, or an ultrasonic system to attach and hold the elastic cord in place. It is also possible to use glue to attach the diuresis indicator to the plastic backsheet outside of the diaper in any location as desired.

Finally, it is also possible to include a small pouch with the diuresis indicator inside or outside each diaper as a separate item; in this case the nurse removes the diuresis kit by hand and uses its self- adhesive to attach the indicator by hand into the diaper.

OPERATION

When the nurse or caregiver wants to know the amount of collected urine in a diaper, they wait until the diaper needs to be changed, and then they only need to lift the soiled diaper using the provided elastic cord and read the marking printed on the cord at the position indicated on the pouch. Once the data is recorded in the report, the diaper can be disposed.

Claims

1. A disposable diaper (90; 92; 04) comprising a diuresis indicator, the indicator comprising:

- an elastic cord ( 12) with printed calibrated markings for the measuring of diuresis,

- means ( 15) for attaching the cord to the diaper,

so that by pulling the elastic cord at the free end one can hold the weight of the soiled diaper and use the markings on the stretched cord to measure diuresis.

2. Diaper according to claim 1, comprising a protective wrapping ( 1 1) for the elastic cord able to be attached to the diaper, the cord being placed inside the protective wrapping and fixed at one end therein so as to be able to stretch freely and to extend in length outside of the protective wrapping on the other end.

3. Diaper according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the elastic cord comprises multiple elastic cords with different modulus of elasticity.

4. Diaper according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the elastic cord comprises a folded elastic ( 12) that ends on a closed loop able to hold the weight of the diaper.

5. Diaper according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the elastic cord comprises elastic cords with different lengths to increase weight sensitivity at lower weights.

6. Diaper according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the elastic cord comprises an elastic made of rubber, synthetic rubber, or spandex.

7. Diuresis indicator for attachment to a disposable diaper comprising: - an elastic cord ( 12) with printed calibrated markings for the measuring of diuresis,

- means ( 13; 15) for attaching the wrapping to the diaper, so that by pulling the elastic cord at the free end one can hold the weight of the soiled diaper and use the markings on the stretched cord to measure diuresis.

8. Indicator according to claim 7, comprising a protective wrapping ( 1 1) for the elastic cord able to be attached to the diaper, the cord being placed inside the protective wrapping and fixed at one end therein so as to be able to stretch freely and to extend in length outside of the protective wrapping on the other end.

9. Indicator according to claim 7 or 8, wherein the elastic cord comprises multiple elastic cords with different modulus of elasticity.

10. Indicator according to claim 7 or 8, wherein the elastic cord comprises a folded elastic that ends on a closed loop able to hold the weight of the diaper.

1 1. Indicator according to claim 7 or 8, wherein the elastic cord comprises elastic cords with different lengths to increase weight sensitivity at lower weights.

12. Indicator according to claim 7 or 8, wherein the elastic cord comprises an elastic made of rubber, synthetic rubber, or spandex.

13. Method for measuring diuresis occurred inside a disposable diaper (90; 92; 94), comprising:

holding the weight of a soiled diaper (90; 92; 94) by an elastic cord or member ( 12) attached to the diaper,

the cord comprising printed calibrated markings for the measuring of diuresis, so that by suspending the diaper by holding it at the free end of the elastic cord the weight of the diaper makes the elastic cord stretch and the markings on the stretched cord can be inspected to derive the diuresis value.