JP2007007336A - Thermotherapeutic appliance - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a thermotherapeutic appliance used for the wrist or ankle of a user, capable of retaining the temperature suitable for the thermotherapy for a long period of time and holding a heating part at an appropriate region without being displaced with the motion of the joint part and without causing congestion by the pressure. <P>SOLUTION: The thermotherapeutic appliance is composed of a cylindrical holder made of an elastic material and a chemical pocket warmer held in the holder. The holder is composed of a wrist or ankle area and a hand-back or instep area, and has a storage part in the wrist or ankle area in which the chemical pocket warmer can be taken in/out or attached. The thermotherapeutic appliance is characterized by a locking means disposed in the hand-back or instep area of the holder for locking the hand or foot of the user. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a thermal treatment device using a chemical warmer used for thermal treatment of wrists and ankles.

  Chemical warmers that use the heat of oxidation of metals such as iron, so-called disposable warmers, have been developed mainly for the purpose of easily obtaining heating. Various types are put on the market and have been proposed depending on the application site, such as a type to be applied to clothes and skin, a type to be laid on the sole, a type to be applied to the back of the foot (sock), and a type to be wound in the form of a belt.

  Thus, the conventional chemical body warmers are assumed to be used in a stationary state, and therefore the conventional form is not suitable for heating the knee or elbow, wrist, or ankle, which are movable parts (joint parts).

  Recently, a type in which a chemical warmer itself is wound in a band shape has been proposed (Patent Document 1). However, in this case, the fixing device itself is a heating device, which covers a wide area other than a specific affected part, and becomes too hot, and can be used only in limited seasons and places. Furthermore, further improvement is required in that it cannot follow a large rotational movement of a joint, or bends or expands and contracts, resulting in deviation.

  Under such circumstances, conventionally, a chemical warmer applied to a wrist or an ankle and its fixture have not been known.

  In addition, as described above, since the conventional chemical warmers are intended for heating, they have aimed at long-term heat generation at a relatively high temperature with a view to preventing low-temperature burns.

  Therefore, when diverting conventional chemical warmers to thermotherapy, which mainly involves treatment at relatively low temperatures, the temperature may exceed the temperature required for the intended treatment, and the risk of low-temperature burns due to easy diversion There are concerns. Although there have been proposals so far (Patent Document 2), further research is required for practical use.

JP 2002-146612 A Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 1-62820

  The present invention provides a thermotherapy device used for a wrist or an ankle that can maintain a temperature suitable for a thermotherapy for a long time and can hold a heat generating part at an appropriate site without being displaced with respect to movement of a joint part. Objective.

  That is, the present invention comprises a cylindrical holder made of a stretchable material and a chemical warmer held by the holder, and the holder comprises a wrist region, a palm and a back region of the palm, and the holder, for example, the wrist region. The present invention relates to a thermal treatment device to be attached to a wrist, characterized in that it has a storage part that can be put in and out of a chemical warmer and has an opening through which a finger of a hand is inserted into the palm and back of the hand.

  Further, the present invention comprises a cylindrical holder made of a stretchable material and a chemical warmer held by the holder, and the holder comprises an ankle region, an instep and a heel region, and the holder, for example, The present invention also relates to a thermal treatment device to be attached to the ankle, characterized in that the ankle region has a storage portion in which a chemical body warmer can be put in and out.

  In order to prevent the wrist or ankle from being over-compressed by the holder, it is preferable to set the pressing force on the skin of the holder to 80 hPa or less when the chemical body is stored in the wrist or ankle.

  The holder may be made of a single stretchable fiber product. However, when the holder has a multi-layered bag shape, the chemical warmer storage portion can be formed in the bag.

  The chemical warmer storage part may be formed without providing a partition in the bag-shaped holder, or may be a pocket formed by partitioning the inside of the bag-shaped holder. When forming without a partition in the bag-shaped holder, the position of the chemical warmer can be freely changed and adjusted, which is convenient.

  On the other hand, the chemical warmer serving as the heat generating part may be composed of an inner bag having air permeability only on one surface, or may be composed of an inner bag having air permeability on both surfaces.

  According to the thermotherapy device for a wrist and ankle of the present invention, a temperature suitable for the thermotherapy can be maintained for a long time, and it does not deviate from the movement of the joint part. A heat generating part can be held at the site.

  A preferred embodiment of the wrist thermal treatment device of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4, but the present invention is not limited to this embodiment, and various modifications are possible. Of course, it can also be implemented as a thermal treatment device for an ankle by making the following modifications.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a thermal treatment device for wrist according to the present invention, FIG. 2 is a schematic explanatory view when the thermal treatment device of FIG. 1 is attached to a wrist, and FIG. 3 is a diagram of another embodiment. FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view, and FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA of FIG.

  The thermotherapy device includes a cylindrical holder 1 and a chemical body 2, and the holder 1 includes a wrist region 3 and a palm and a palm region (hereinafter referred to as a “back region”) 4.

  The wrist region 3 of the holder 1 is provided with a bag-shaped storage portion 5 in which the chemical warmer 2 can be taken in and out. In the present embodiment, the chemical warmer storage part 5 is provided with one opening 6 for taking in and out the chemical warmer 2, and the chemical warmer 2 stored in the storage part 5 is stored in the storage part 5. It can be positioned freely.

  The back region 4 of the hand of the holder 1 has insertion openings 7 and 8 through which fingers of the hand are inserted. The insertion port 7 is an opening for inserting the thumb of the left hand when the left wrist is treated with heat (see FIG. 2), and the insertion port 8 is an opening for inserting the thumb of the right hand when applied to the right hand. In addition, the finger to insert is not specifically limited, Therefore, the position and number of the insertion openings 7 and 8 are not limited.

  The holder 1 is made of a stretchable material so that it can follow the bending and stretching of the wrist joint. In the present invention, a tightening region 9 for facilitating fixing of the holder 1 is provided in the wrist region of the holder 1 (see FIG. 1). The storage part 5 for the chemical body 2 is preferably formed in the tightening region 9. However, as shown in FIG. 3, the tightening region may be a ring-shaped region 9 a, and one to several, for example, one to three may be provided to narrow the region actually used for tightening.

  As described above, when the wrist is tightened too tightly, the holder 1 may stop blood flow and cause congestion. Therefore, the holder 1 is attached to the wrist or ankle while the chemical warmer 2 is stored in the storage unit 5. It is preferable to set the pressure of 1 to the skin to 80 hPa or less. When congestion occurs, heat may accumulate in the affected area and low-temperature burns may occur. Therefore, it is desirable that the compression force be 40 hPa or less, particularly 35 hPa or less. Further, the lower limit is 10 hPa, further 20 hPa, especially 30 hPa, because if it becomes loose, the followability to the affected area is lost and it becomes easy to move and it is difficult to position the treatment site.

  In this embodiment, the holder 1 has a shape in which one stretchable fiber product (woven fabric, knitted fabric, non-woven fabric, etc.) is folded and doubled to close the open portion, that is, a multi-structure bag. And the opening part 6 is provided at the time of a knitting process. Although the opening part 6 may be one place like this embodiment, 1-6 places, Preferably 1-3 places are arrange | positioned according to the range and position to treat. The arrangement of the opening 6 is not particularly limited.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the opening 6 is knitted with the outer cloth 10a of the bag-like holder 1 partially opened. In this case, the storage unit 5 is a space between the outer cloth 10a and the inner cloth 10b constituting the holder 1, and the chemical warmer 2 is stored therein.

  Although not shown, the bag-like holder 1 may be appropriately sewn to provide individual storage portions (pockets). In this case, if the pocket is placed in the direction of bending of the joint, there is a feeling of pressure when the joint is bent, so the pocket does not obstruct the movement of the joint (the back of the hand) (for the ankle, the back of the foot) Is preferred. However, depending on the treatment site, it may be arranged so as to surround the wrist and / or in a vertical direction.

  Although not shown in the figure, the storage section may be prepared separately and sewn or pasted on the holder 1. When affixing, an adhesive may be used, or the position may be removably changed with a hook-and-loop fastener or the like.

  Moreover, a lid or a cover may be attached to the opening 6, or a button or a fastener (linear or hook-and-loop fastener) may be attached from the viewpoint of preventing the drop.

The holder 1 is made of a stretchable material, but it is made of synthetic fibers alone, and also natural fibers such as plant fibers, animal fibers, and mineral fibers. May be selected as appropriate in consideration of properties, wear resistance, chemical resistance, and the like. Preferred examples of the fiber material include polyamide, polyurethane, and polyester. Moreover, although not limited, the thickness of a fiber may be 3-100 micrometers, Preferably it may be 10-50 micrometers. The mechanical properties of the fibers, 10~300kg / mm ² in tensile strength, preferably 10~100kg / mm ^2, 1~50% elongation, preferably 5-30%.

  Stretchability is also related to the material of the fiber, but can be controlled by the fabric production method. A knitted fabric is preferable, and a circular knitted fabric, a horizontal knitted fabric, a flat knitted fabric, a rubber knitted fabric, a pearl knitted fabric, a double-sided knitted fabric and the like are particularly preferable because a fabric knitted with a circular knitted fabric can be formed into a cylindrical shape without sewing.

  The holder 1 is manufactured with this stretchable material, but the fabrication method is not limited to the one sheet or bag shape as described above, but any method that does not impair the stretchability and flexibility. May be.

  What is necessary is just to enable the dimension of the holder 1 to select the thing of various sizes suitably according to the to-be-treated person's physique.

  Next, the chemical warmer which is the other component of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

  In the chemical warmer 2 used in the present invention, for example, as shown in FIG. 5, a heat generation composition 12 that generates oxidation heat in the presence of air is enclosed in a flat bag (hereinafter referred to as an inner bag) 11. The flat bag 11 is accommodated in an airtight bag (hereinafter referred to as an outer bag) 13.

  The exothermic composition 12 is preferably dispersed in the inner bag 11 at a basis weight of 0.1 to 1 g per 10 mm square in order to achieve uniform and gentle heat generation.

  The outer bag 13 is preferably made of a non-porous film such as polyethylene, polypropylene, silica-deposited film, and vinylidene chloride coated film. Among these, a vinylidene chloride coated film is preferable from the viewpoint of impermeability of oxygen and water vapor and appropriate permeability of hydrogen. The thickness of the nonporous film is preferably 30 to 300 μm.

  A conventional exothermic composition may be used as the exothermic composition 12 enclosed in the flat bag 11 and oxidatively generates heat in the presence of air. For example, metal powder such as iron powder, activated carbon, water, water retention agent (wood powder, vermiculite, diatomaceous earth, perlite, silica gel, alumina, water absorbent resin, etc.), salt, etc. can be used. It is not limited.

  The inner bag 11 is at least partly breathable and has vent holes or groups of micro holes. That is, one surface 14 may be a breathable surface and the other surface 15 may be a non-breathable surface, or both surfaces may be breathable surfaces. Furthermore, a part of one side may be a breathable surface and the rest may be a non-breathable surface.

  When a non-venting surface is provided, a synthetic resin such as nylon, polyethylene, or polypropylene is preferably used as the resin constituting the non-venting surface.

  The breathable surface is formed of a conventionally used material such as a woven fabric, a nonwoven fabric, a knitted fabric, a film perforated in the non-breathable material, or a combination thereof.

  The size of the inner bag 11 is not particularly limited in the present invention, and may be appropriately selected according to the shape, size, etc. of the chemical warmer storage (or pocket). In addition, the shape is not limited to a rectangle, and other shapes such as a circle, an ellipse, a tongue piece shape, and a heart shape can also be adopted. The thickness is 1 to 15 mm, preferably 2 to 8 mm from the viewpoint that the feeling of wearing is good and the movement of the joint is not easily hindered. Further, regarding the thickness, in addition to the uniform thickness, it is also possible to change the feeling of pressure by adding unevenness to the thickness of the inner bag 11.

  The air permeability of the inner bag 11 may be determined in consideration of the skin surface temperature and time at which a so-called low temperature burn can occur. For example, the skin temperature and time that may cause low temperature burns are 6 hours at a skin temperature of 42 ° C, 3 hours at 43 ° C, 1.5 hours at 44 ° C, and 45 minutes at 45 ° C. It may be controlled in consideration of the composition of the exothermic composition so as not to exceed the threshold value. However, if the treatment is performed for a short time, the heat may be generated at a higher temperature (for example, 60 ° C. or 70 ° C.).

The air permeability of the inner bag 11 as a whole is preferably 100 to 2000 g / m ² · 24 h in terms of water vapor permeability measured by the A method (humidity sensor method) defined in JIS K7129. 200 to 800 g / m ² · 24 h is more preferable. If the water vapor permeability is greater than 2000 g / m ² · 24 h, the exothermic composition may generate excessive heat, and if it is less than 100 g / m ² · 24 h, the exothermic composition may not generate sufficient heat.

  The heat generation temperature and the duration can also be controlled by the structure of the chemical body warmer 2 and the storage part 5, in particular, the inner cloth 10b and the outer cloth 10a of the storage part 5.

  For example, there are the following combinations, but the present invention is not limited to these.

(1) When the inner fabric has a breathable structure and the chemical warmer has a double-sided breathability In this case, a relatively high heat generation temperature can be obtained, but attention should be paid to low-temperature burns and the like.

(2) When the inner cloth has a breathable structure and the chemical warmer is breathable only on one side In this case, put the chemical warmer into the storage part 5 so that the ventilated surface of the chemical warmer is on the opposite side (outside) of the body Then, the intake of air becomes easy, and the heat generation temperature becomes relatively high (about 38 to about 42 ° C.). On the other hand, when the chemical warmer is placed in the storage part 5 so that the ventilation surface of the chemical warmer is on the body side (inside), the intake of air is restricted and the heat generation temperature becomes relatively low (about 36 to about 40 ° C.).

  That is, it can be adjusted to the temperature required for the thermotherapy depending on the direction in which the chemical warmer 2 is inserted.

(3) When the inner fabric has a non-breathable or non-breathable structure and the chemical warmer is double-sided breathable In this case, a relatively high heat generation temperature can be obtained. It can be controlled by selectively setting the thermal conductivity.

(4) When the inner cloth has a non-breathable or hardly breathable structure and the chemical warmer is breathable only on one side. In this case, the chemical warmer as described in (2) above is taken into consideration, taking into account the thermal conductivity of the inner cloth. Depending on the direction in which 2 is inserted, it can be adjusted to a temperature required for the thermal treatment.

(5) When both the inner cloth and the outer cloth are impermeable, and a means for putting in and out the chemical warmer is provided in the storage section In this case, the temperature adjustment necessary for the thermal treatment can be performed by the function of the storage section.

  In order to make the inner layer non-breathable or hardly breathable, for example, a non-breathable film may be attached to the body side of the storage portion.

  Moreover, the storage part of a chemical warmer can be made into the form which only locks (attaches) a chemical warmer instead of the bag shape (or pocket) as mentioned above. In this case, the chemical warmer is mounted on the outer surface or inner surface of the holder. Examples of means for attaching the chemical warmer include sticking with an adhesive, fixing with a hook-and-loop fastener, fixing with a button, and the like.

  When the chemical warmer is attached to the holder, an adhesive layer made of a normal adhesive substance is formed on one surface of the inner bag 11 (for example, the surface 15 in FIG. 5), and peeled off from the adhesive layer. Paper or a release film may be provided.

  The pressure-sensitive adhesive layer may be provided on one entire surface of the inner bag 11 or may be partially provided so as to form an appropriate pattern such as a striped pattern, a lattice pattern, or a polka dot pattern. Moreover, you may provide in a non-breathable surface and may provide in a breathable surface.

  Although the type of thermotherapy device used for the wrist has been described above, the shape and size may be adjusted according to the ankle when used for the ankle.

  The present invention also includes a cylindrical holder made of a stretchable material and a chemical warmer held by the holder. The holder is composed of an ankle region, an instep and a heel region, and a chemical warmer is formed in the ankle region. The present invention also relates to a thermal treatment device attached to the ankle, characterized in that it has a storage portion that can be taken in and out or attached.

  A preferred embodiment of a thermal treatment device for an ankle according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 6 to 7, but the present invention is not limited to this embodiment, and various modifications are possible.

  FIG. 6 is a schematic plan view of the ankle heat treatment device of the present invention, and FIG. 7 is a schematic explanatory view when the heat treatment device of FIG. 6 is attached to the ankle.

  The ankle thermotherapy device includes a cylindrical holder 21 and a chemical warmer 22, and the holder 21 includes an ankle region 23 and an instep and heel region 24.

  The ankle region 23 of the holder 21 is provided with a bag-shaped storage portion 25 in which the chemical warmer 22 can be taken in and out. The storage unit 25 is provided with an opening 26 for loading and unloading warmers. In FIG. 6, one opening 26 is shown on the side of the ankle, but one more may be provided on the opposite side, or 1 to 6 may be provided as appropriate depending on the location requiring treatment. Good. Reference numeral 27 denotes a tightening portion.

  The ankle holder 21 is provided with a partial cut 28, and by placing this portion on the heel, stable mounting is possible (see FIG. 7).

  Instead of the cut 28, a sock circular knitting machine or the like may be used to cope with the protrusion of the heel.

  Regarding the material and manufacturing method of the holder 21 and the chemical warmer 22, the items described in the thermal therapy device for the wrist can be applied to the thermal therapy device for the ankle.

  Next, the thermotherapy device of the present invention will be described with reference to examples, but the present invention is not limited to these examples.

Example 1
A holder for a wrist having a bag-shaped chemical warmer storage portion provided with one opening portion shown in FIG. 1 using a spandex cloth having a thickness of 0.5 mm obtained by circular knitting of polyamide fibers (a peripheral diameter of a joint portion is 140 mm, 130 mm in length) was produced.

  This holder was attached to the wrist of an adult male in the same manner as the supporter. At that time, a thermocouple was affixed on the skin where the chemical warmer hits the inner cloth and set so that the change in the skin surface temperature could be recorded.

  As the chemical body warmer, a body warmer having a length of 95 mm, a width of 70 mm, a thickness of 3 mm and a non-breathable inner bag on one side was used. The inner bag was taken out from the outer bag, and the non-breathable surface was placed downward from the opening to the storage portion (the breathable surface was upward), and the change in skin temperature with time (8 hours) was examined. The results are shown in FIG.

Example 2
In Example 1, the change over time in the skin temperature (8 hours) was examined in the same manner except that the chemical body was placed in the storage part with the non-breathable surface facing upward (breathable surface facing downward). The results are shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the temperature of the skin can be adjusted depending on whether the non-breathable surface is upward or downward.

  In addition, although the test subject carried out daily life with wearing for 8 hours, the thermotherapy device of the present invention did not greatly deviate, and the chemical warmer did not fall off. Also, there was no sense of incongruity in wrist rotation and bending, and there were no obstacles such as congestion.

1 is a schematic perspective view of a preferred embodiment for a wrist of a thermal treatment device of the present invention. FIG. It is a schematic explanatory drawing when the wrist thermotherapy device shown in FIG. 1 is attached to the wrist. It is a schematic perspective view of another embodiment for wrists of the thermal treatment device of the present invention. It is the sectional view on the AA line of FIG. It is a schematic sectional drawing of one Embodiment of the chemical warmer which can be used for this invention. 1 is a schematic plan view of a preferred embodiment for an ankle of the thermal treatment device of the present invention. FIG. FIG. 7 is a schematic explanatory diagram when the ankle thermotherapy device shown in FIG. 6 is attached to the ankle. It is a graph which shows the change of the skin temperature measured in Example 1 and 2.

Explanation of symbols

1,21 Holder 2,22 Chemical body warmer
3 wrist area
4 Back area 5, 25 Chemical body storage 6, 26 Opening 7, 8 Insert 9, 9a, 27 Tightening area
10a outer cloth
10b Inner cloth
11 Inner bag
12 Exothermic composition
13 Outer bag
23 Ankle area
24 Instep area
28 notches

Claims (8)

It consists of a cylindrical holder made of a stretchable material and a chemical warmer held by the holder. The holder consists of a wrist area, a palm area, and a back area of the palm. A thermal treatment device to be attached to a wrist having a storage portion and having an opening through which a finger of a hand is inserted in the palm and back of the hand. A cylindrical holder made of a stretchable material and a chemical warmer held by the holder. The holder is composed of an ankle region, an instep and a heel region, and a chemical warmer can be put in and out of the holder. A thermal treatment device to be attached to an ankle characterized by having a storage portion capable of being attached. The thermotherapy device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the pressure of the holder against the skin when the chemical body is stored in a wrist or ankle is 80 hPa or less. The thermotherapy device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the holder has a bag-like multiple structure, and the chemical warmer storage portion is formed of the bag. The thermotherapy device according to claim 4, wherein the chemical warmer storage part is formed without providing a partition in the holder. The thermal treatment device according to claim 4, wherein the chemical warmer storage portion is a pocket formed by partitioning a bag-shaped holder. The thermotherapy device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the chemical body warmer comprises an inner bag having air permeability only on one side. The thermotherapy device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the chemical body warmer comprises an inner bag having air permeability on both sides.

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