WO2002054995A1

WO2002054995A1 - Traction device

Info

Publication number: WO2002054995A1
Application number: PCT/SE2002/000018
Authority: WO
Inventors: Lennart Olsson
Original assignee: Lennart Olsson
Priority date: 2001-01-12
Filing date: 2002-01-09
Publication date: 2002-07-18
Also published as: SE0100088D0; EP1353615A1; SE0100088L

Abstract

The present invention relates to an orthopaedic means for traction, for instance for traction of a shoulder dislocation. The orthopaedic device comprises a sleeve (3) for application around an extremity by a dislocated joint. The sleeve (3) is fabricated of a flexible fibre material and provided with horizontal and vertical elongated resilient elements (10a, 10b). A fixed grip of the arm is obtained by a detachable inner surface of silicon. The sleeve preferably has a self-locking fastening, e.g. Velcro hooks and loops (7), for quick and simple attachment, as well as a variable connecting member (8) with a loop (5) for holding weights. The invention also concerns use of the sleeve (3) for shoulder traction, where the sleeve is attached to the upper arm of a patient lying on his belly.

Description

TRACTION DEVICE

Technical field

The present invention relates to an orthopaedic aiding means, for traction of a shoulder dislocation or a similar body damage.

State of the art

Human joint dislocations, such as shoulder dislocations, are typically associated with severe pain and discomfort. A common way to exercise shoulder repositioning (shoulder dislocation traction) with accessible aiding means involves one person putting his weight firmly against the body of the patient and another person pulling a traction belt, applied around the damaged shoulder of the patient, see e.g. PCT/US97/22926. An alternative disclosed in US 4,844,056 is to attach a traction belt going around the patient to a fixed point, whereafter one assistant pulls a sleeve applied to the arm of the damaged shoulder for pulling the shoulder joint straight back.

According to an old paper from MEDICAL RECORD, March 3, 1900 a patient with a shoulder dislocation is put onto a cot having a round hole in the middle and near an end of the canvas. The patient is placed on his side with the arm of the damaged shoulder hanging down through the hole. A weight is generally attached to the wrist of the arm to prevent the patient to grasp the legs of the cot with the free hand and thereby interfere with the action of the weight. However, it is pointed out that theoretically it would be better to attach the weight to the arm close above the elbow, but for this a suitable aiding means would be needed. If a cot presenting the necessary hole is not available, it is suggested to use two tables instead with the patient's head resting on one table and the rest of the body resting on the other. Hereby, the lack of support of the damaged shoulder will considerably increase the discomfort of the patient by increased pain.

To our knowledge no means has been disclosed in the prior art, which quickly provides adequate repositioning of dislocated shoulders and is simple to use as well as to adapt to various situations. Hence, there is still a strong demand in connection with joint dislocations for a more simple and effective equipment to be used in modern health care.

Summary of the invention

A general object of the present invention is to provide an improved orthopaedic means for joint traction. A specific object of the present invention is to provide means for shoulder traction, which facilitates an effective treatment and is easily adaptable to different situations.

These objects are achieved in accordance with the appended claims.

An orthopaedic device comprising a sleeve for application around an arm or another extremity in connection to a dislocated joint is provided. The sleeve is very flexible, since it is fabricated of a flexible fibre material and provided with elongated resilient elements. There are preferably both horizontal and vertical plastic resilient elements, which are sewn into the fibre material. To obtain a fixed grip of the arm a detachable inner surface of silicon may be provided. The silicon member is flexible and associated with a minimum of inconvenience for the patient. Furthermore, the sleeve preferably has a self- locking fastening for quick and simple attachment, e.g. obtained by means of Velcro hooks and loops, as well as a variable connecting member with a loop for holding weights. The present device presents a simple and effective aiding means for quick repositioning of for instance a shoulder dislocation with a minimum of suffering for the patient.

The invention also concerns use of the sleeve for shoulder traction, where it is attached to the upper arm of a patient lying on his belly. A substantially vertical downward directed force is thereby applied to the damaged arm by means of a weight hanging in the loop. Although it is preferred to have one assistant present when exercising the treatment, in some cases the weight may even bring about the reposition by itself. The device according to the present invention is set forth by the independent claim 1 and additional features as well as a use of the device are set forth by the dependent claims 2-10.

Description of the drawings

The invention, together with further objects and advantages thereof, may best be understood by making reference to the following description taken together with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 illustrates the outer side of a flexible sleeve in accordance with the present invention;

Fig. 2 illustrates the inner side of a flexible sleeve with a silicon member in accordance with the present invention;

Fig. 3 illustrates the sleeve of Fig. 2 with the silicon member removed; and

Fig. 4 demonstrates the principle of an orthopaedic treatment using a sleeve in accordance with the present invention.

Description of a preferred embodiment of the invention

In the following text, the same reference numbers will be used for the same or similar objects. Furthermore, the side of a sleeve facing the arm during usage will be referred to as "inner side", while "outer side" denotes the opposite side of the sleeve.

Fig. 1 illustrates the outer side of a flexible sleeve in accordance with the present invention. The main body 6 of the sleeve 3 is made of a fibre material, such as beaver nylon or the like. The sleeve 3 is preferably fastened around an extremity of a patient by means of a self-locking fastening, e.g. Velcro hooks and loops 7. Thereby, quick fastening and removal is achieved implying minimum inconvenience for the patient. The sleeve 3 comprises a connecting member 8, which interconnects the main body 6 of the sleeve and a loop 5 for weight attachment. The connecting member 8 is in a preferred embodiment fabricated of a flexible fibre material, whereas the loop 5 can be made of a strong plastic or metal material. Preferably adjusting means 9, such as a plastic clasp, is provided at the connecting member 8 for adjusting the length thereof. In this way, different types of weights can be used together with the invention.

Another advantageous feature of the orthopaedic device illustrated in Fig. 1 relates to a number of plastic resilient elements 10a, 10b, which may be sewn into the main body 6 of the sleeve 3. The resilient elements 10a, 10b considerably improve the stability as well as the flexibility of the sleeve 3. The result is a more efficient traction device, since the force of weights hanging in the loop 5 is applied to a greater surface. Preferably, there are both vertical 10a and horizontal 10b resilient elements arranged in the vicinity of the connecting member attachment, resulting in a maximum flexibility.

Fig. 2 and Fig. 3 illustrate the inner side of a flexible sleeve in accordance with the present invention. In Fig. 2 the sleeve 3 is provided with a silicon member 11, which provides structural support to the sleeve 3 while still preserving the flexibility thereof. By the silicon inner surface of the sleeve 3 a fixed grip of the extremity is obtained while a minimum of inconvenience for the patient is introduced. In a preferred embodiment the silicon member 11 is a plate having a thickness in the order of 1.5-4mm. It is preferably fastened onto the main part of the sleeve by means of Velcro hooks and loops. The silicon member 11 is hence easily removed from the sleeve 3, whereby the inner side illustrated in Fig. 3 is obtained. Two Velcro members 12 for attachment of the silicon member 11 are shown. Naturally the number and shape of Velcro members may vary within the scope of the invention and there may also be embodiments which disclose other attachment means or even a non-removable silicon surface. Fig. 4 demonstrates the principle of an orthopaedic treatment using a sleeve in accordance with the present invention. A head 1 and a body 2 of a patient with a dislocated shoulder are shown. The patient lies on his belly on a bed 14 with his damaged arm 4 hanging downward in a substantially vertical direction. Around the upper part of the damaged arm 4 the flexible sleeve 3 is applied. A weight 15 hangs in the loop 5 at the lower portion of the connecting member 8 of the sleeve 3. The purpose of the weight 15 is to exercise a pulling of the damaged arm 4. As illustrated by Fig. 4 the shoulder joint of the damaged arm 4 thereby experiences a downward directed force. There may be cases where the patient manages to achieve reposition using the present invention without assistance. However, an assistant (not shown) is preferably present during treatment. The fact that no more than one assistant is needed during shoulder repositioning constitutes a considerable advantage of the present invention.

A typical treatment takes place in such way that the patient is placed on a bed lying on his belly with the damaged shoulder projecting outside the bed, whereafter the sleeve is applied to the patient's upper arm and a weight is applied to the variable connecting member. Preferably the patient has been given a local anaesthesia for instance with 20 ml of carbocain. Waiting a few minutes after the appliance of the weight, e.g. 4.3 kilos, the muscles at the damaged shoulder will be stretched, whereafter the scapula may be lifted or slightly rotated at the axilla. Generally the shoulder will then jump back, eventually after an additional traction of the arm. The treatment is effective and associated with relatively limited inconvenience for the patient particularly in combination with anaesthesia.

It is evident from the above that a major advantage of the present invention is that the described sleeve provides means for very efficient shoulder traction in a simple way. Treatments using a sleeve according to the invention also imply a minimum of suffering, especially since the self-locking fastening enables veiy fast attachment of the device. Furthermore, a device according to the invention is flexible in the sense that it easily can be adapted to various treatment situations, e.g. by means of the variable connecting member, and easily be transported to the injured patient even in remote areas. Finally, the fact that one assistant is sufficient for an adequate treatment constitutes another advantageous feature of the proposed device.

It will be understood by those skilled in the art that various modifications and changes may be made to the present invention without departure from the spirit and scope thereof, which is defined by the appended claims.

Claims

1. Device for traction treatment of a human joint dislocation comprising a sleeve (3) to be attached to an extremity in connection to the dislocated joint, characterised in that said sleeve (3) is fabricated of a flexible material and provided with at least one elongated resilient element (10a, 10b) for increased flexibility and efficiency.

2. Device according to claim 1, characterised in that said at least one resilient element (10a, 10b) comprises at least one vertical resilient element (10a) and at least one horizontal resilient element (10b).

3. Device according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that said resilient elements (10a, 10b) are sewn into a main body (6) of said sleeve (3).

4. Device according to any of preceding claims, characterised in that said sleeve (3) is provided with an inner surface of silicon or a similar material to obtain a fixed grip to the extremity with a minimum inconvenience for the patient, said silicon surface at least partly covering the inner side of said sleeve (3).

5. Device according to claim 4, characterised in that said silicon surface is obtained by means of a detachable silicon member (11).

6. Device according to any of preceding claims, characterised in that said sleeve (3) is provided with a closing arrangement using a self-locking fastening for quick attachment.

7. Device according to claim 6, characterised in that said self-locking fastening is obtained by Velcro hooks and loops (7).

8. Device according to any of preceding claims, characterised in that said sleeve (3) is fabricated from a flexible fibre material.

9. Device according to any of preceding claims, characterised by a loop (5) for holding weights (15), said loop (5) being hangingly attached to said sleeve (3) by means of an elongated connecting member (8).

10. Use of a sleeve (3) according to any of preceding claims for repositioning of a shoulder dislocation, said sleeve (3) being attached to the upper arm of a patient lying on his belly.