Classifications

• • A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
  • A61—MEDICAL OR VETERINARY SCIENCE; HYGIENE
  • A61F—FILTERS IMPLANTABLE INTO BLOOD VESSELS; PROSTHESES; DEVICES PROVIDING PATENCY TO, OR PREVENTING COLLAPSING OF, TUBULAR STRUCTURES OF THE BODY, e.g. STENTS; ORTHOPAEDIC, NURSING OR CONTRACEPTIVE DEVICES; FOMENTATION; TREATMENT OR PROTECTION OF EYES OR EARS; BANDAGES, DRESSINGS OR ABSORBENT PADS; FIRST-AID KITS
  • A61F5/00—Orthopaedic methods or devices for non-surgical treatment of bones or joints; Nursing devices ; Anti-rape devices
  • A61F5/01—Orthopaedic devices, e.g. long-term immobilising or pressure directing devices for treating broken or deformed bones such as splints, casts or braces
  • A61F5/08—Devices for correcting deformities of the nose ; Devices for enlarging the nostril, e.g. for breathing improvement

Definitions

• the invention relates to nasal dilators for preventing the outer wall tissue of the nasal passages of a nose from drawing in during breathing.
• the invention provides an apparatus and method of use for a nasal dilator that has a resilient spring force resulting from multiple filaments.
• Nasal dilators are well known.
• nasal dilators each of which are herein incorporated by reference, disclose nasal dilators.
• These nasal dilators comprise a truss member having a first end region adapted to engage the outer wall tissue of a first nasal passage and a second end region of the truss member is configured to engage the outer wall tissue of a second nasal passage.
• the first and second end regions of the truss member are coupled to one another by an intermediate segment.
• the intermediate segment is configured to traverse a portion of the nose located between the first and second nasal passages.
• a resilient means or spring member extends along the length of the truss member. The spring member, when the truss member is in place, acts to stabilize the outer wall tissue and thereby prevents the outer wall tissue of the first and second nasal passages from drawing in during breathing.
• the spring member consists of a pair of resilient bands.
• the first resilient band is secured to run along the length of the nasal dilator.
• the second resilient band of the spring member is spaced from the first resilient band and also runs along the length of the nasal dilator.
• the first and second resilient bands are relatively stiff and are oriented generally parallel to one another and substantially parallel to the longitudinal extent of the nasal dilator. The resiliency of the first and second resilient bands prevents the outer wall tissue of the first and second nasal passages from drawing in during breathing.
• the truss member further includes an adhesive substance located on a second side of the flexible strip of material.
• the adhesive substance acts to releasably secure the truss member to the outer wall tissue of the first and second nasal passages.
• First and second release liners cover the adhesive substance on the second side of the flexible strip of base material. The first and second release liners are readily removable from the strip of base material to expose the adhesive substance and permit the truss member to be secured to the outer wall tissue of the first and second nasal passages.
• FIG. 1 depicts a prior art nasal dilator in use and having a flexible base strip of material 18 adapted to be adhered to nasal tissue surfaces and a pair of resilient bands 30a , 30b. Additional details of this nasal dilator are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,533,503. Removal of the known nasal dilators is typically performed in a "side-to-side” or “side-to-center” manner wherein the direction of removal is generally aligned with a longitudinal direction of the nasal dilator. Nasal dilators, such as illustrated in FIG. 1, are typically removed by grasping the ends of the dilator and lifting the ends away from the nasal tissue surface and towards he nasal bridge.
• the resilient members are relatively wide (measured in a direction generally transverse to a longitudinal direction of a relaxed nasal dilator) and stiff so that the nasal dilator is most easily removed from the nasal surfaces in this end-to-center approach.
• a user's skin may be damaged as a relatively low peel angle of removal combined with the stiff resilient bands transfers high tensile forces to the skin surfaces during the removal process.
• FIG. 2 depicts an applied nasal dilator having a relatively low peel angle, a.
• the rigidity of the resilient bands results in the peel angle, a, as illustrated in FIG. 2, being typically less than 45°.
• the small peel angle for removing the nasal dilator results in a transferral of a large amount of the peel force directly to the skin of the user, leading to irritation or damage to nasal skin surfaces.
• the present invention includes a nasal dilators with an improved spring element comprising multiple filaments.
• the nasal dilator has a resilient element, or "spring,” made up of a plurality of small filaments for keeping the nasal passages from drawing in while breathing.
• the filaments may be a variety of shapes and sizes and may run both along the length of the nasal dilator and at a variety of different angles relative to the length of the nasal dilator.
• the filaments further allow the nasal dilator of the present invention to be removed from the nose in a "top-to-bottom” fashion.
• the top- to-bottom peel method allows a greater peel angle and so results in less peel force being transferred to the skm of the use.
• FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of a nasal dilator of the prior art as placed on a nose.
• FIG. 2 depicts removal of the nasal dilator of FIG. 1.
• FIG. 3 is a side elevational view of a nasal dilator of the present invention as placed on a nose
• FIG. 5 is a top view of another alternative embodiment of the present invention.
• FIG. 6 is a top view of another alternative embodiment of the present invention.
• FIG. 8 is a depiction of a nasal dilator of the present invention being removed from application and illustrating the peel angle.
• the truss member may also include a flexible strip of top material 15 so that the resilient element is disposed between top and bottom strips of material.
• the truss member may be made of rubber, vinyl, cloth, soft plastic, or any other material known in the art to be pliable under the conditions for which the nasal dilator 10 is to be used. Those of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that the materials used to make the truss member must withstand the forces placed thereon and also withstand the foreign objects and materials that the nasal dilator 10 may come into contact with, including water, sweat, etc.
• the resilient element 13 is fixedly attached or integrated within the truss member and may further include a plurality of filaments 14.
• the adhesive material 16 is placed on one side of the truss member 12 such that the nasal dilator 10 can be removably affixed to the nose of a user.
• the adhesive material 16 is preferably a bio-compatible adhesive that is compatible with the skin of the nose but strong enough such that it can maintain the nasal dilator 10 in the correct position during use.
• a number of different types of adhesives are known to those in the art such as breathable, acrylic, pressure sensitive bio-compatible adhesives.
• the resilient element 13 of the present invention includes filaments 14.
• Spring element 13 includes a plurality of individual filaments 14.
• Uttter changes to a nasal dilator 10 may also enhance tne ease of removal of the nasal dilator 10 in a "top-to-bottom" fashion.
• the tab area 28 of the nasal dilator 10 could be enlarged. Enlarging the tab area 20 of the nasal dilator 10 provides the user with a larger piece of the dilator 10 to grasp during removal.
• Fig. 4 illustrates in phantom lines the tabs 28 being enlarged and rounded. This also provides a more convenient region for the user to grasp the nasal dilator 10 during removal and also helps to center the user's force of removal.
• An adhesive void 30 over the bridge of the nose allows the removal forces on the two sides of the nose to act independently and, at the same time, may reduce the total amount of removal force necessary to remove the nasal dilator 10.

Landscapes

• Health & Medical Sciences (AREA)
• Otolaryngology (AREA)
• Pulmonology (AREA)
• Nursing (AREA)
• Orthopedic Medicine & Surgery (AREA)
• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Biomedical Technology (AREA)
• Heart & Thoracic Surgery (AREA)
• Vascular Medicine (AREA)
• Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
• Animal Behavior & Ethology (AREA)
• General Health & Medical Sciences (AREA)
• Public Health (AREA)
• Veterinary Medicine (AREA)
• Orthopedics, Nursing, And Contraception (AREA)

Priority Applications (6)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (2)

Family

ID=34272544

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (10)

Cited By (2)

Families Citing this family (28)

Family Cites Families (10)

• 2004
  • 2004-08-23 BR BRPI0413739-6A patent/BRPI0413739A/pt not_active IP Right Cessation
  • 2004-08-23 WO PCT/US2004/027462 patent/WO2005020845A2/en not_active Ceased
  • 2004-08-23 KR KR1020067003400A patent/KR20060120587A/ko not_active Ceased
  • 2004-08-23 JP JP2006524119A patent/JP2007503228A/ja active Pending
  • 2004-08-23 US US10/925,278 patent/US20050081857A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2004-08-23 EP EP04782031A patent/EP1659982A4/en not_active Withdrawn
  • 2004-08-23 CN CNA2004800275530A patent/CN1878588A/zh active Pending
  • 2004-08-23 MX MXPA06001988A patent/MXPA06001988A/es not_active Application Discontinuation
  • 2004-08-23 CA CA002536572A patent/CA2536572A1/en not_active Abandoned
  • 2004-08-23 AU AU2004268596A patent/AU2004268596A1/en not_active Abandoned

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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