WO1998041173A2

WO1998041173A2 - Splint device

Info

Publication number: WO1998041173A2
Application number: PCT/EP1998/001777
Authority: WO
Inventors: Martin Nsubuga
Original assignee: Martin Nsubuga
Priority date: 1997-03-20
Filing date: 1998-03-19
Publication date: 1998-09-24
Also published as: EP0971654A2; AU8012698A; WO1998041173A3

Abstract

This invention concerns a splint for a limb bone fracture, especially a paediatric femoral fracture. The splint comprises a frame adapted to receive a selectively inflatable member at or near one end thereof, which permits the rotation of pressure points without moving or loosening the splint.

Description

SPLINT DEVICE

This invention relates to a medical device. In

particular, it relates to a splint for bone fractures

or the like, especially femoral fractures.

In paediatric femoral fractures, the splint

conventionally used in the repair procedure is the

Thomas splint . The Thomas splint comprises a substantially U-shaped metal frame supporting a metal

ring which in use is positioned in the perineal area. Although the metal ring is covered with a cushioning

material, it tends to apply considerable pressure to

essentially the same areas of the skin in the perineal

and buttock area. Because the splint must be worn for

a lengthy period, usually about seven weeks, the metal

ring often prevents adequate circulation of blood in

the affected areas, leading to discomfort, pain and

eventually pressure sores. It can also exacerbate

constipation and cause urinary retention and damage to

the urethra and sciatic nerve. It is an object of the invention to avoid or

minimise the disadvantages of the prior art.

According to the present invention there is provided a splint, in particular for a limb bone

fracture, comprising a frame adapted to receive an

inflatable member, the frame having a first end and a

second end, said ends being positioned in use on

opposing sides of the bone fracture and the inflatable

member being disposed in use at or near one of said

ends.

The inflatable member preferably comprises at least two

compartments which can be inflated via an inflation

means to a predetermined level so that a pressure

differential between compartments may be obtained.

The inflatable member preferably has at least five

compartments, more preferably from eight to nineteen

compartments, most preferably nine compartments. The inflatable member is preferably tubular and can be

inflated by the injection of a fluid, preferably a gas,

most preferably air.

The inflation means preferably comprises a valve means,

preferably two valves disposed at a suitable location

on the inflatable member, for example, on an end

compartment of the inflatable member, each valve having

a conduit extending therefrom in the direction of the

remaining compartments and being in fluid communication

with selected compartments, preferably every alternate

compartment. Alternatively, a valve could be disposed

on each of two adjacent central compartments with the

conduits extending bidirectionally therefrom. In such

constructions, every alternate compartment may be

inflated via one of the valves while the remaining

compartments are partially or completely deflated and

vice versa . The conduits may be disposed outside or

inside the inflatable member, or within a wall of the

inflatable member. The first end of the frame of the splint preferably

comprises a base from which a pair of spaced-apart legs

extend towards the second end of the frame. One leg is preferably shorter than the other leg and one or both

legs may be branched at the second end so that the or

each leg is substantially V-shaped at the second end of

the frame. If one leg only is branched, it is

preferably the shorter leg.

The splint of the invention preferably comprises a

retaining means for the inflatable member. The

retaining means preferably comprises a channel having a

base and a side wall, the channel being substantially

C-shaped in plan and arcuate in cross-section.

The frame and channel may be formed from any suitable

material, such as metal, e.g., stainless steel, or a

plastics material, e.g., nylon, or fibreglass or a

resin composite, such as carbon fibre, or a combination

thereof. The channel may be secured to the frame by

any suitable means, for example, by welding where the

frame and channel are both formed from metal or screws where the channel is formed from plastics and the frame

from metal. Alternatively, the frame and channel may

be moulded as a single unit from a plastics or resin composite material.

The inflatable member may be formed from any suitable

inflatable material, such as, for example, rubber.

The channel/inflatable member is preferably disposed at

an angle of from about 10° to 80°, preferably about 20°

to 60°, more preferably about 30° to 50°, especially

about 40° to 45°, relative to the legs of the frame.

The channel preferably comprises apertures through

which the valves may project to allow easy access when

inflation or deflation of selected compartments is

required. The compartments may be inflated by any

suitable means, such as, for example, a hand pump or an

automated airflow exchange unit.

In use, the inflatable member is seated in the channel

with the valves projecting through complementary apertures in the channel. The channel containing the

inflatable member preferably has a cover thereon formed

from a soft, flexible material which is preferably

elasticated in at least a portion thereof. The cover

preferably has a shape complementary to that of the C-

shaped channel . The cover may be secured by any

suitable means, such as, for example, Velcro (Trade

Mark), fasteners or the like.

Preferred embodiments of the invention will now be

described, by way of example only, with reference to

the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a first embodiment of

a splint according to the invention;

Figure 2 is an exploded view of the splint of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is an enlarged view of the inflatable

member and channel of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is an enlarged view of the underside of the inflatable member of Figure 2;

Figure 5 is a front view of a second embodiment of a

splint according to the invention without the

inflatable member;

Figure 6 is a perspective view of the splint of Figure

5 ; and

Figure 7 is a perspective view of a further inflatable

member suitable for use in the splint of the invention.

Referring now to the drawings, there is shown a

splint 10 according to the invention suitable for use

in the repair of paediatric femoral fractures . The

splint 10 comprises a frame 20 and an inflatable member

40 disposed on a retaining means 30 mounted on the

frame 20.

The frame 20 comprises a base 21 having a pair

of spaced-apart, elongate legs 22, 23 extending upwardly and slightly outwardly therefrom. The base 21

is preferably grooved to accommodate a traction cord.

The leg 22 is bifurcated at the end thereof remote from

the base forming two arms 24 and 25 which are

substantially V-shaped. In the embodiments shown, the

leg 22 (including the arms 24, 25) is shorter than the

leg 23. The leg 23 may also be bifurcated as shown in

Figures 5 and 6, forming two substantially V-shaped

arms 26 and 27 which are slightly inwardly inclined in

the direction of the leg 22.

The retaining means 30 is in the form of a channel

having a base and a side wall, the channel 30 being

substantially C-shaped in plan and arcuate in

cross-section. In the embodiment shown in Figures 1-3,

the frame 20 and the support means 30 are formed from

stainless steel. The base of the channel 30 is welded

at its outer surface to the leg 23 and the arms 24, 25,

so that the walls of the channel extend substantially

upwardly in use. In Figures 5 and 6, the frame 20 and

the channel 30 are formed as an integral unit from a

plastics material or a resin composite. Because the leg 23 is longer than the leg 22, the channel 30 is

disposed at an angle relative to the legs 22, 23 of the

frame 20. A preferred angle is from about 40° to 45°.

This inclination permits stable application of the

splint without perineal pressure that arises when using

the conventional Thomas splint.

The inflatable member 40 is formed from a hollow tube

closed at both ends. In the present embodiments,

the inflatable member 40 is formed from rubber. The

inflatable member 40 is divided into a total of nine

discrete compartments designated 41a-e and 42a-d.

As shown in Figure 4, adjacent central compartments 41c

and 42c are each provided with a respective valve 43,

44. Each valve 43, 44 has a respective conduit 45, 46

extending bidirectionally therefrom along an outer

surface of the inflatable member 40, said surface being

uppermost or remote from the channel base in use. The

conduit 45 is in fluid communication with each

compartment 41a-e and the conduit 46 is in fluid

communication with each compartment 42a-d, by means of ports 47 allowing the intake and release of fluid, such

as air, from each compartment. In Figure 4, the

compartments 41a-e are inflated and compartments 42a-d

are substantially deflated.

As shown in Figure 7, the end compartment 41e is

provided with the two valves 43, 44 with the conduits

45, 46 extending therefrom in the direction of the

remaining compartments. In this embodiment, the

conduits 45, 46 are disposed within a wall 48 of the

inflatable member 40, the wall 48 being uppermost or

remote from the channel base in use. The wall 48

incorporating the conduits 45, 46 is formed so that it

is slightly thicker and firmer than the remainder of

the inflatable member 40 but is still flexible.

The inflatable member 40 is seated in the channel 30 in

use. The channel 30 comprises two apertures 31, 32

(see Figure 2) through which the respective valves 43

and 44 project, thus allowing ready access to the

valves 43, 44. The channel 30 with the inflatable member 40 may be

covered in use by a cover 50 formed from a suitable

soft, flexible material, such as polyvinyl chloride

(PVC) . The cover 50 includes a lightly elasticated

cuff 51 of soft material. The cover 50 has a channel

shape complementary to that of the channel 30. It is

placed over the open side of the channel 30 seating the

inflatable member 40 and is secured by means of Velcro

strips 52 extending across the base of the channel 30.

The cover 50 protects the skin from abrasion.

Furthermore, because of its limited elasticity, it

provides counter-pressure for the upper surface, i.e.,

the surface remote from the channel base in use, of the

inflatable member 40 when inflated, thus allowing the

inflated compartments to become rigid and transmit

pressure .

In use, alternate compartments 41a-e or 42a-d are

inflated by pumping air into the respective valve

43 or 44 so that every second compartment 41a-e or

42a-d is inflated and the remaining compartments 42a-d or 41a-e are flat or partially inflated, if

desired. In other words, when each compartment 41a-d

is inflated, each compartment 42a-d is flat or partially inflated and vice versa .

The invention thus provides an improved splint for bone

fractures, especially femoral fractures, which permits

the rotation of pressure points without moving or loosening the splint, thus minimising the problems

associated with conventional splints. It can also be

used in veterinary medicine in the treatment of large

animals with fractured limbs.

The invention is not limited to the embodiments

described herein which may be modified or varied

without departing from the scope of the invention.

Claims

CLAIMS :

1. A splint, in particular for a limb bone fracture,

comprising a frame adapted to receive an inflatable

member, the frame having a first end and a second end,

said ends being positioned in use on opposing sides of

the bone fracture and the inflatable member being

disposed in use at or near one of said ends.

2. A splint according to claim 1, wherein the

inflatable member comprises at least two compartments

which can be inflated via an inflation means to a

predetermined level so that a pressure differential

between compartments may be obtained.

3. A splint according to claim 2, wherein the

inflatable member comprises at least five compartments,

preferably from eight to nineteen compartments, more

preferably nine compartments.

4. A splint according to any preceding claim,

wherein the inflatable member is tubular.

5. A splint according to any preceding claim,

wherein the inflatable member is inflated by the

injection of a fluid, preferably a gas, most preferably air.

6. A splint according to any of claims 2 to 5,

wherein the inflation means comprises a valve means .

7. A splint according to claim 6, wherein the valve

means comprises first and second valves disposed on the

inflatable member, each valve having a conduit

extending therefrom such that each conduit is in fluid

communication with selected compartments, preferably

alternate compartments.

8. A splint according to claim 7, wherein the first

and second valves are disposed on an end compartment of

the inflatable member and/or each conduit is disposed

outside or inside the inflatable member or within a

wall of the inflatable member.

9. A splint according to any preceding claim,

wherein the first end of the frame comprises a base

from which a pair of spaced-apart legs extend towards

the second end of the frame, one of the legs preferably being shorter than the other and at least one of the

legs being branched, preferably bifurcated, at the

second end of the frame, and the inflatable member

being disposed in use on the second end of the frame.

10. A splint according to any preceding claim,

comprising a retaining means for the inflatable member.

11. A splint according to claim 10, wherein the

retaining means comprises a channel having a base and a

side wall, the channel being substantially C-shaped in

plan and arcuate in cross-section; and/or the channel

is disposed at an angle of from about 10┬░ to 80┬░,

especially about 40┬░ to 45┬░, relative to the legs of

the frame .

12. A splint according to any preceding claim,

wherein the frame and channel are formed from a metal, a plastics material or a resin composite or a combination thereof and the inflatable member is formed

from rubber.

13. A splint according to claim 12, wherein the frame

and channel are integral with one another.