JPH0783756B2 - Low pressure air pad for pressure ulcer prevention - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a pressure ulcer-preventing low-pressure air pad effective for preventing bed sores which are apt to occur due to long-term bed life.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For example, bedsores, ie, so-called bed sores, are likely to occur in bedridden elderly people and patients undergoing long-term treatment. Pressure ulcers are said to occur due to a synergistic effect of moisture, body dirt, etc. on the part of the back skin to which weight is particularly applied due to congestion when the patient is supine in the same posture for a long time. That is, when the pressure at the portion where the body weight is particularly applied exceeds the blood flow inhibition pressure of the peripheral capillaries at that portion, congestion occurs, necrosis of the tissue occurs, and pressure ulcer occurs.

According to the research, the body pressure applied to the back when sleeping on the mattress, for example, the body pressure applied to the vicinity of the sacrum,
At about 55 mmHg, the limit of pressure at which the peripheral capillaries on the back are occluded (peripheral capillary blood flow inhibition pressure) is approximately 32 mm.
It is Hg, and therefore, it will be appreciated that if it is left as it is, it exceeds the blood flow inhibition pressure of the peripheral capillaries, leading to tissue destruction and pressure ulcer. To prevent such pressure ulcers, it is effective to turn over from time to time to relieve body pressure and eliminate congestion on the skin on the back, but the caregiver's lack of hands is a major burden. Moreover, depending on the patient's illness, it may not be possible to turn over, which is not realistic. So, in the past,
The floor-sized pad is composed of two sets of a large number of vacuoles communicating with each other, and air is supplied to the two sets of a large number of vacuoles by an air supply means, respectively, and is fixed. An air pad (APP type) in which two sets of vacuoles are alternately inflated every hour to disperse the body pressure applied to the back is commercialized.

[0004]

However, although the above-mentioned APP type air pad is active, it is always any one set of a large number of vacuoles that supports the body. The contact area is smaller than that of a flat pad, and the body pressure is applied to the supporting part, and the body pressure is unevenly distributed depending on the body position. If you do not inflate with, you may sink. From such a background, the present invention does not inflate two sets of vacuoles alternately at regular time intervals, but makes the body pressure applied to the back lower than the blood flow inhibition pressure of the peripheral capillaries described above, while constantly supplying air. An object of the present invention is to provide a low-pressure air pad for pressure ulcer prevention, which is designed to be blown out to adjust the humidity when the patient is lying on the bed.

[0005]

In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the present invention provides a flexible sheet having a first bag-shaped body having a smaller surface area than that of the first bag-shaped body. A second bag-shaped body made of a flexible sheet is built in, and the second bag-shaped body is adhered to the inner surface of the first bag-shaped body at predetermined intervals, while the second bag-shaped body itself has a plurality of two surfaces. The first bag-shaped body and the second bag-shaped body are bonded to each other at several points, and fine holes for ejecting the air in the second bag-shaped body are provided at some of the bonding positions of the first bag-shaped body and the second bag-shaped body. An air supply pipe is connected to each of the two bag-like bodies so as to supply air of a predetermined pressure from an air supply means, and the first bag-like body is kept within a predetermined air pressure while the second bag-like body is provided. It is characterized in that the air is continuously supplied to the nozzles and the air is ejected from the fine holes.
In the above-described configuration, the air pressure in the first bag-shaped body can be less than the blood flow inhibition pressure of the peripheral capillaries.

[0006]

There is a bonding portion between the first bag-shaped body and the second bag-shaped body at a predetermined interval, and the back surface of the patient is slightly adhered to the first bag-shaped body without contacting the entire surface of the back of the patient. A gap is introduced. Since the first bag-like body supports the patient at a low pressure equal to or lower than the blood flow inhibition pressure of peripheral capillaries, blood flow is not inhibited, tissue destruction does not occur, and pressure ulcer can be prevented. In addition, air is constantly blown out from the fine holes in the bonding portion between the first bag-shaped body and the second bag-shaped body, so that the humidity when the patient sleeps can be adjusted.

[0007]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A low pressure air pad for pressure ulcer prevention according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Fig. 1 shows low pressure pad 1 for pressure ulcer prevention
This low pressure air pad 1 for pressure ulcer prevention is provided in a first bag-shaped body 2 made of a flexible sheet, and a second flexible sheet made of a flexible sheet having a smaller surface area than that of the first bag-shaped body 2. Of the second bag-shaped body 3 is built in, and the second bag-shaped body 3 is welded to the inner surface of the first bag-shaped body 2 at predetermined intervals, while the two surfaces of the second bag-shaped body 3 itself are welded at a plurality of positions. It was formed. Fine holes 4 for ejecting air in the second bag-shaped body 3 are formed at nine places in the center of the welded portions of the first bag-shaped body 2 and the second bag-shaped body 3. ing. The place where the fine hole 4 is provided corresponds to the support position from the back to the waist of the patient's body. In addition, these first
Air supply pipes 5 and 6 are connected to the bag-shaped body 2 and the second bag-shaped body 3, respectively, and air having a predetermined pressure is supplied from an air supply means (described later).

The first bag-shaped body 2 and the second bag-shaped body 3 are
It has an area corresponding to the shape of the bed floor, and can be formed of, for example, a synthetic resin (vinyl chloride or the like). As shown in the figure, the welded portions a of the first bag-shaped body 2 and the second bag-shaped body 3 are formed vertically and horizontally at appropriate intervals.
On the other hand, the welding location b of the second bag-shaped body 3 itself is located between the welding locations a adjacent to each other in the longitudinal direction. With these welding points a and b, as shown in FIG. 2, the XX cross-sectional outer shape shown in FIG. 1 has the welding points a as valleys, and
The second bag-shaped body 3 has a corrugated shape having a valley at the welded portion b. The first bag-shaped body 2 and the second bag-shaped body 3 are
The YY cross-sectional outer shape shown in FIG. 1 is separated from each other (see FIG. 3), and further, ZZ shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 4, the cross-sectional outer shape is in a state where the second bag-shaped body 3 is separated from the first bag-shaped body 2.

Next, an example of the air supply means for the pressure ulcer prevention low pressure air pad 1 having such a configuration will be described.
FIG. 5 shows an air pump device 7 which is an air supply means. The air pump device 7 includes a pump unit 8, a control unit 9 that controls the operation of the pump unit 8, a display unit 10, an air supply pipe 5 in the first bag-shaped body 2 and the second bag-shaped body 3.
6 and an air supply circuit 11 for supplying air. The air supply circuit 11 has a path from the pump unit 8 to the branch pipe 12, the check valve 13 and the first supply tube 14, and a pump unit 8 to the branch pipe 12 and the check valve 15 for the second supply. And through the tube 16. Also, the first supply tube 1
4. The second supply tube 16 is branched and connected with leak valves 17 and 18 for letting air escape when the pressure exceeds a predetermined value.

Check valve 13 in the branch pipe 12,
The check valve 15 is of a variable pressure type, and has a tubular case 19 having an inflow port 20 at one end and a discharge port 21 at the pipe wall, and a ball valve 22 at the other end as shown in FIG. The spring member 2 is housed in the valve chamber 23 so as to cover the inflow port 20.
The adjusting knob 25 is screwed in through 4.
By rotating the adjusting knob 25, the spring member 24 is compressed to change the pressing force that closes the inlet of the ball valve 22 from the inflow port 20 to the valve chamber 23. Only when the inflow pressure of air becomes larger than this pressing force, the ball-shaped valve 22 moves against the pressing force of the spring member 24 and the inlet opens,
The air is sent out from the discharge port 21.

The leak valves 17 and 18 release air when the air pressure in the first bag 2 and the second bag 3 exceeds the blood flow inhibition pressure (about 32 mmHg) in the peripheral capillaries. It is like this.

In the air pump device 7 having the above structure,
In the first supply tube 14 in the air supply circuit 11,
A pressure sensor 26 for detecting the air pressure in the tube is provided, and the control unit 9 is configured to operate the pump unit 8 based on a detection signal from the pressure sensor 26.

In addition to the air pump device 7 as described above, the low pressure air pad 1 for pressure ulcer prevention may use an auxiliary pump 27 as shown in FIG. This auxiliary pump 27
Is for the user to inject air into the first bag-shaped body 2 prior to use. The auxiliary pump 27 has a bellows-shaped cylindrical pump body 28 made of a synthetic resin and having resilience, and an intake port 29 and an exhaust port 30 formed at the bottom. A check valve 31 is provided in each of the intake port 29 and the exhaust port 30, and air is allowed to flow into the intake port 29 while the exhaust port 3 is provided.
In the structure of 0, ventilation is allowed only in the direction of discharging air.

The low pressure air pad 1 for pressure ulcer prevention according to the present invention is constructed as described above, and its operation will be described below. Initially, when using the air pad 1,
The exhaust port 30 of the auxiliary pump 27 is connected to the air supply pipe 5 of the first bag-shaped body 2 to inject air. When the injection of air is completed, the air supply pipes 5 of the first bag-like body 2 and the second bag-like body 3,
The first supply tube 14 and the second supply tube 16 of the air pump device 7 are connected to 6 and the air pump device 7 is started. The air pressure of the first bag-shaped body 2 can be detected by the pressure sensor 26, and the blood flow inhibition pressure of the peripheral capillaries (about 3
2 mmHg). For example, when the air pressure of the first bag-shaped body 2 temporarily rises due to the impact when the patient rides on the air pad 1, the inside of the first supply tube 14 of the air pump device 7 that communicates with the first bag-shaped body 2. Also increases the air pressure. Then, air is released from the leak valve 17 and the air pressure can be returned.

On the other hand, since air is not injected into the second bag-shaped body 3, air is supplied from the pump unit 8 to the air supply pipe 6 via the branch pipe 12, the check valve 15 and the second supply tube 16. Try to inject. At this time, air is always injected so that the air pressure is in the range of 0 to 30 mmHg. That is, the injected air is spread over the second bag-shaped body 3 and is ejected from the fine holes 4 in the welding portion a of the first bag-shaped body 2 and the second bag-shaped body 3. The position where the fine holes 4 are provided corresponds to the back to the waist of the patient, and the welded portion a between the first bag-shaped body 2 and the second bag-shaped body 3 becomes a recess to secure an air passage. Humidity is adjusted from the back to the waist by the air blown out. Also, the second
By adjusting the air pressure of the bag-shaped body 3 in the range of 0 to 30 mmHg, the air ejection amount can be changed.

As described above, the air pad 1 can basically support the patient with the first bag-shaped body 2.
Since air is constantly supplied to the second bag-shaped body 3, it has a function of cushioning together with the first bag-shaped body 2 as well as humidity adjustment, and can stably support the patient. Also,
Since the first bag-shaped body 2 has a blood flow inhibition pressure of peripheral capillaries or less, blood flow is not inhibited, tissue destruction does not occur, and pressure ulcers can be prevented.

[0017]

As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to support a patient under the blood flow inhibition pressure of peripheral capillaries, and moreover,
While the welded portion of the first bag-shaped body and the second bag-shaped body becomes a concave portion to secure an air passage, the humidity is adjusted and the blood flow is obstructed by constantly ejecting air. No tissue destruction occurs and pressure ulcers can be prevented.

[0018]

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall plan view showing a low pressure air pad for pressure ulcer prevention according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a low pressure air pad XX for pressure ulcer prevention shown in FIG.
It is sectional explanatory drawing corresponding to a line.

FIG. 3 is a Y-Y of the low pressure air pad for pressure ulcer prevention shown in FIG.
It is sectional explanatory drawing corresponding to a line.

FIG. 4 is a low-pressure air pad ZZ for pressure ulcer prevention shown in FIG.
It is sectional explanatory drawing corresponding to a line.

FIG. 5 is a structural explanatory view showing an example of an air pump device applied to the low pressure air pad for pressure ulcer prevention according to the present invention.

6 is an enlarged cross-sectional explanatory view of a check valve in the air pump device shown in FIG.

FIG. 7 is an external perspective view showing an example of an auxiliary pump applied to the pressure ulcer prevention low pressure air pad according to the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a plan view of the auxiliary pump shown in FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Low pressure air pad for pressure ulcer prevention 2 1st bag-shaped body 3 2nd bag-shaped body 4 Micropores 5, 6 Air supply pipe 7 Air pump device 8 Pump 9 Control part 10 Display part 11 Air supply circuit 12 Branch pipe 13, 15 Non-return Valve 14 First supply tube 16 Second supply tube 17, 18 Leak valve 19 Case 20 Inlet port 21 Discharge port 22 Ball valve 23 Valve chamber 24 Spring member 25 Adjusting knob 26 Pressure sensor 27 Auxiliary pump 28 Pump body 29 Intake port 30 Exhaust port 31 Check valve

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A first bag-shaped body made of a flexible sheet,
A second bag-shaped body made of a flexible sheet having a smaller surface area than that of the first bag-shaped body is incorporated, and the second bag-shaped body is bonded to the inner surface of the first bag-shaped body at predetermined intervals. On the other hand, the second
The two sides of the bag-shaped body itself are adhered at a plurality of points to form the first
The second part is attached to some of the bonding parts of the bag-shaped body and the second bag-shaped body.
The micropores for ejecting the air in the bag-like body are provided, and these first
An air supply pipe is connected to each of the bag-shaped body and the second bag-shaped body to supply air of a predetermined pressure from an air supply means, and the first bag-shaped body is kept within a predetermined air pressure, A low-pressure air pad for pressure ulcer prevention, characterized in that air is continuously supplied to the second bag-like body to eject air from the fine holes. 2. A low-pressure air pad for pressure ulcer prevention, wherein the air pressure in the first bag-shaped body according to claim 1 is less than the blood flow inhibition pressure of peripheral capillaries.