GB2292112A

GB2292112A - Mattress or duvet cover

Info

Publication number: GB2292112A
Application number: GB9411368A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Norman John Ball
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1994-06-07
Filing date: 1994-06-07
Publication date: 1996-02-14
Also published as: GB9411368D0

Abstract

A cover, intended for use as a mattress cover or a duvet cover and with three layers of sheeting overlying one another and comprising, respectively, a first - and uppermost in use - sheet of one-way fluid-permeable plastics material; a second, intermediate, sheet of fluid-absorbent material; and a third, base, layer of fluid-impermeable plastics material, the first sheet being so orientated in the cover assembly as to allow fluids to pass through it into the intermediate fluid-absorbent sheet whilst preventing any re-passage of fluids back through the said first sheet.

Description

PATIENT FRIENDLY MATTRESS COVER AND DUVET COVER Field of the Invention The invention is concerned with a multi-layer composite cover which can be used as a cover for mattresses and duvets.

Background to the Invention Bed sores, particularly in elderly patients, are a major problem in hospitals.

They are formed by the patients' skin breaking down to form sores when the skin is sodden from excessive sweat. This same inevitable tendency to sweat to excess whilst in a hospital bed is also responsible for patient discomfort requiring changing of bedding frequently.

In addition, in a hospital environment where patients are constantly being serviced, the frequency of spillage of fluids generally is obviously at its greatest when compared with a normal private purely domestic environment.

Incontinent patients are only one example of the causes of this.

The well-known traditional method of trying to combat absorption of these fluids into mattresses and bedding is to use impermeable plastics sheeting as an underlay, i.e to position such sheeting below the patient and his bed sheet, so that in use the impermeable plastics sheeting protects the mattress. The very impermeability of such sheeting however only increases the tendency of the patient to sweat. And if there is spillage, or leakage, it is clearly not going to evaporate at all readily in these circumstances. The result is that the patients' skin is maximally prone to breaking down to form bed sores unless the sheets are changed with regularity; and treatment of bed sores is expensive.

Summary of the Invention According to the broadest aspect of the invention, a cover, intended for use as a mattress cover or a duvet cover for example, is a composite of three layers of sheeting overlying one another and comprising, respectively, a first and uppermost in use - sheet of one-way fluid-permeable plastics material; a second, intermediate, sheet of fluid-absorbent material; and a third, base, layer of fluid-impermeable plastics material, the first sheet being so orientated in the cover assembly as to allow fluids to pass through it into the intermediate fluid-absorbent sheet whilst preventing any re-passage of fluids back through the said first sheet.

Thus, in use, sweat or other fluids from a patient sitting on the cover will pass through the one-way fluid-permeable sheeting and be absorbed by the intermediate fluid-absorbent layer whilst being prevented, by the third fluidimpermeable sheet layer, from soiling a mattress beneath the cover.

The patients' skin remains dry which greatly increases his comfort and sense of well-being. In addition, because the skin is not sodden, as occurs if there is the commonly used sheet of fluid-impermeable plastics over the mattress, there is much less likelihood of the skin breaking down to form bed sores.

The cover can be left in place until a major spillage occurs or until the bed is changed, either for the next patient or as part of the routine servicing of a continuing-occupancy patient.

Clearly the size of the cover will be variable to allow use on most commonly encountered mattress sizes from a baby cot to a double bed. The most common size will fit a standard hospital bed because it is envisaged that the cover embodying the invention could bring considerable savings to the NHS and to privatised nursing homes and the like.

The cover might also find very widespread use in the hotel industry where matress protection is sometimes desirable.

In the broadest aspect of the invention the cover, comprising its three superimposed sheets, may occupy only a portion - but preferably a major portion - of a mattress sheet or mattress fitted cover. But it is currently envisaged that in practical application of the invention, substantially the entire cover will be made of the composite three-sheet inventive construction.

In further developments of the invention, the cover could be made as a fitted cover, following otherwise conventional format where for example the corners - at least - of a generally "box-shaped" cover are elasticated to be stretched over the top and side surfaces of a mattress.

In a further development of the invention, there is a fourth layer of sheeting which is positioned below the third, base, layer of impermeable plastics sheeting and which is a flexible generally heavy duty layer of material - for example paper, fabric, or combinations of material - and which in use will interpose itself between the mattress surface and the third, base, fluidimpermeable plastics layer of the cover.

A duvet cover embodying the invention comprises the first three layers of the invention within its broadest aspect, and has the same patient-friendly advantages as the mattress cover when compared with the conventional practice of enclosing ordinary duvets in an impermeable plastics envelope.

In this duvet cover construction, two of the composite three-layer covers are superimposed edge-on-edge and are attached firmly along the two opposite longer, and one joining short, common sides to form a sack with the one-way fluid-permeable layers on the outside-facing surfaces of that sack. The innermost, fluid-impermeable plastics, sheets of the sack are fastened together by a self-sealing strip to close the mouth of the sack as required.

And one of the sheets may have an overlap at the sack mouth end so as to fold in envelope fashion over its mate and be sealed by a self-sealing strip if required.

A conventional duvet is placed into this sack/envelope, sealed as just indicated, and the whole is then enclosed by a conventional washable cloth cover. Any sweat, spilled fluids, vomit or the like are absorbed but the duvet within is protected.

Claims

ClAIMS:

1. A cover, intended for use as a mattress cover or a duvet cover and with three layers of sheeting overlying one another and comprising, respectively, a first - and uppermost in use - sheet of one-way fluid-permeable plastics material; a second, intermediate, sheet of fluid-absorbent material; and a third, base, layer of fluid-impermeable plastics material, the first sheet being so orientated in the cover assembly as to allow fluids to pass through it into the intermediate fluid-absorbent sheet whilst preventing any re-passage of fluids back through the said first sheet.

2. A cover substantially as described herein with reference to any appropriate combination of the described examples of the invention