Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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The preserlt inventioII relates to a spinal restraint
device.
BACK&ROU~D OF TH~ INVENTION
The pri.mary vbjec-t of a spirlal restrairlt device is
to main-tain the spine of an injured person in an
ana-tomically neu-tral posi-tion. People vary in size,
weight and proportion; existing spinal restraint devices
ofterl are unable -to maintain the spirle in an
10 anatomically neutral position as they are not capable oE
adjustmen-t to accommodate dif-ferences between
individuals. This can best be illustrated by a
comparison of -the body proportions of children as
compared to adults. Children have larger heads and
15 protruding abdomens. If an adult spinal restrain-t
device is used on a child, injury can occur due to
inadequa-te sup~ort or inappropria-te suppor-t. The
protruding abdomen of the child sometimes makes it
difficult -to securely strap the child to the spinal
20 restraint device, resulting in the child sliding
lonyi-tudinally. The larger head of the infarlt
inevitably results in the head being pushed forward when
placed in the adul-t head rest position. A further
problem is encountered in existing spinal restraint
25 devices in positioning the head of the patien-t.
Altering the head position of the patient can
poteIltially aggrava-te spinal injuries. Notwiths-tandirlg
the danger of altering the head position, exis-tiny
spinal restraint devices have only one head support
30 position to which the patients head mu4t be made to
conform.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
What is required is a spinal restraint device which
35 is adjustable to suit the size and angular positioning
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of the head of a patient.
According to the present invent:ion there i5
provided a ~pinal restrain-t device which is comprised of
a rigid elongate primary support whereby a spine of a
patient may be supported. The primary support has a top
surface, a bot-tom surface, a firs-t end, a sec~nd end and
opposed sides. The primary support has a head portion
adjacent -the first end and a back portion adjacent the
10 second end. The head portion is parallel to and lower
than the back por-tion. A pair of flaps is provided,
each of which has a f irst edge and a second edge. The
first edge is secured to the opposed sides of the back
portion of the primary support. Fastening means are
15 secured to the flaps adjacent the second end. The flaps
are flexible and pliable such that the flaps conform to
-the contours of a patient's body wi-thout regard to -the
size and build of the patient when the second edges of
-the flaps are overlapped and secured in position by the
20 fastening means. Means for supporting and restraining
movemen-t of a patient's head are de-tachably secured -to
the head portion of the support such that the supporting
and res traininy means may be adjusted as required to
suit the longitudinal and angular positioning of the
25 patients head in relation -to the head portion of -the
primary support and the elevation of the pa-tient's head
may be placed in a subs-tarltially anatomically neutral
position. Mearls to secure the pa-tient against
lonyitudinal movemerlt in relation to t~le primary swpport
30 are secured to the flaps.
I The described spinal restraint device can readily
be adapted for use with patients of differing height,
weight and body proportions. Tne flaps conform -to tne
contours of the patients body. The means for supporting
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and restraining movemen-t of the patien-t's head detach
and can be reattached to the head portion of the primary
support as the heigh-t of -the patierlt may re~uire. The
means for supporting and restraining movement of the
patierlt's head are anyularly adjusta~le, whicrl is a
major advance in the art. The flaps can be insulated to
kPep the patien-t warm or ~lave ventilating openings to
keep the patien-t cool as circumstances warrant. The
spinal res-train-t device as described is particularly
10 9uited for use with childrerl,
The Applicant prefers to use as supporting and
res-trainirlg means a plurality of pads detachably secured
-to the head por-tion of the support by means of a tape
15 fasteners, There are head suppor-t pads and head
restraining pads. The pads can be configured in
different manners -to elevate the head of either a child
or an adult to an ana-tomically neutral position. The
restraining pads are detachable and can be removed if
20 the child begins to fPel claustrophobic.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRA~INGS
These and other features of the invention will
become more apparent from the following description in
25 which reference is made to the appended drawings,
wherein:
FIGURE 1 is a bottom plan view of the componeIlts
comprising a preferred embodiment of the invention.
FIGURE 2 is an exploded perspec-tive view of a
30 preferred manner of configuring the componerl-ts of the
spinal res-traint device illustrated iIl FIGURE 1.
FIGURE 3 is a perspective view of the spinal
restraint device illustrated in FI~RE 2, supporting a
patient.
FI~U~E 4 is a transverse sec-tion view taken along
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section lines 4-4 of FIGURE 3.
FIGURE i5 i5 a lonyitudinal section view -taken al~ng
section lines ~-5 of FIGURE 3.
FIGURE 6 is an alterrlate manner of configuring the
components of tne spinal restraint device illustrated in
FIGURE 1.
FIGURE 7 is a perspec-tive view of the spinal
restraint device illustrated in FIGURE 6, supporting a
patient.
TAIL~D ~ESCRIPTION OF T~E P~EF~RRED E~BODIMENT
The preferred embodimen-t will now be described with
reference to FI~URES 1 through 7. The preferred
embodiment, generally designated by reference numeral
15 10, is a 9pinal restraint device.
Referring to FIGURE 1, -the primary coMpoIlents of
spinal restraint device 10 are a rigid elongate primary
support 11, a pair of flaps 12 and 14, a head support
20 pad 16, a restraining pad 18, and straps 20 and 22.
Pri~ary support 11 has a top surface 24, a bottom
surface 26, a first end 28, a second end 30 arld opposed
sides 32 arld 34. Top surface 24 of primary support 11
25 is illustrated in FIGURE 2. Bot-tom surface 26 of
primary support 11 is illustrated in FIGURE 1.
Referring to FIGURES 1 and 2, primary support 11 has two
identifiable portions, a head portion 36 adjacent first
end 28 and a back portion 38 adjacen-t second end 30.
30 Head portion 36 is parallel to but lower than back
portion 38. The difference is heigh-t is due to padding
in back portion 38. Top ~urface 24 and bottom surface
26 of head portion 36 are covered by a plurality of tape
fasteners 40. Referring to FIG~RE 2, flaps 12 and 14
35 each have a first edge 42 and a second edge 44. First
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edge 42 of flap 12 is secured to side 32 of back portion
38 of primary support 11. First edge 42 of flap 14 is
secured to side 34 of back portion 38 of prLmary support
11. Mating buckle~ 46 and 49 are gecured by straps 47 to
flaps 12 and 14, respectively, adjacent second end 44.
Flaps 12 and 14 are made from material which is flexible
and pliable. Head support pad 16 and restraining pad 18
are detachably secured to head portion 36 of primary
support 11 by means of tape fasteners 48 which mate with
tape fasteners 40. Restraining pad 18 has flexible and
pliable wings 50 and 52. Wings 50 and 52 have tape
fasteners 54. Tape faæte~er~ 54 mate with tape fastener~
(not shown) on fastening strap 58, as illu traked in
FIGUR~S 3 and 4. Top strap 20 is secured adjacent to a
top edge 60 of each of flaps 12 and 14. Bottom strap 22
i8 secured adjacent to a bottom edge 62 of each of flaps
12 and 14. Top ætrap 20 and bottom strap 22 have mating
buckles 64 and 66, respectively. Referring to FIGURE 3,
a transverse strap 61 extends between top ~traps 20.
Transver~e strap 61 attaches to it~elf with tape
fastener~ (not ~hown).
The use of spinal restraint device 10 will now be
described with reference to FIGURES 1 through 7.
Referring to FIGURE 5, a patient, identified by
referen~e numeral 100, i5 positioned on spinal restraint
device 10 with his or her ~pine placed on primary
support 11. Head ~upport pad 16 and restraining pad 18
are then in positioned longitudinally on head portion 36
of primary support 11 depending upon the height of the
patient. The attachment at the desired location is
accomplished by mating tape fastener 48 on head ~upport
pad 16 to tape ~astener 40 on head support portion 36 of
Iprimary ~upport 11. The starting p~sition of head
~35 portion 36 being lower than back portion 38 ensures that
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the head of the patient must be elevated. This
elevatiorl is accomplis}led by using head support pad 16.
If the patierl-t is a child, a thin}ler version of support
pad 16 should be used as the child's larger head
propo-rtions require less elevation, as compared to an
adult, to maintain the spine in an anatomically neutral
position. Re-~erring to FIGURE 4, res-training pad 18 is
then secured to bo-ttom surface 26 to head support
por-tion 36 of primary support 11. Res-training pad 18 is
10 maintained in position by mating tape fasteners 48 on
res-training pad 18 to -tape fas-teners 40 on bot-tom
surface 26 of head support portion 36. Wings 50 and 52
are then wrapped around head support portion 36 and the
head portion of patient 100. Wings 50 and 52 are
15 maintairled in position by mating tape fasteners 54 Oll
wings 50 and 52 with tape fasteners (not shown) on
fas-tening s-trap 58. 0nce -the head of pa-tien-t 100 is
secured in restraining pad 18 by fastening strap 58
movemen-t of -the head of patien-t 100 is minimized. It
20 will be apparent that the wrapping of wings 50 and 52
secure the pa-tien-ts head to primary suppor-t 11.
Referring to FIGURE 3, flaps 12 and 14 are -then
wrapped around the patient. Flaps 12 and 14 conform to
the contours of the patient's body without regard -to -the
size and build of the patierlt. Second edges 44 of flaps
12 and 14 are overlapped and -then flaps 12 and 14 are
secured in position by mating buckles 46 and g9. To
se~-ure the patien-t against longi-tudinal movemen-t in
relation to the primary support 11, top straps 20 are
-then extended over -the shoulders of the patient and
buckle 64 is engaged with buckle 66 on bottom straps 22
which are ex-tended under -the crotch of -the pa-tient.
Transverse strap 61 is then secured between top straps
20 to maintain -top straps 20 in position.
8~
Referring to FIGURES 6 and ~, if the head of
patient 100 is off an at angle, it is undesirable to
al-ter the angular positionirlg of the head of the patient
as thi~ may result aggravate any spinal injury. In such
a situatiorl the configura-tion of head pad 16,
restraining pad 18 and head support portion 36 of
primary suppor-t 11 i~ al-tered. Referring to FIGURE 6,
head pad 16 i~ secured to restraining pad 18 by mating
tape fasteners 48 on head pad 16 -to tape fasteners 48 on
10 restraining pad 18. Restraining pad 18 may then be slid
into posi-tion urlder -the head of patient 100; where the
head is at an angle. Restraining pad 18 i~ secured to
top surface 24 of head suppor-t por-tion 36 by ma-ting tape
fasteners 48 on restraining pad 18 with tape fasteners
15 40 orl head support por-tion 36 of primary support 11.
Wings 50 and 52 are then wrapped around the head of
patient 100 and secured by fastening strap 58 as has
previously been described. The gripping force of the
tape fasteners joining retraining pad 18 -to head support
20 portion 36 of primary support 11 maintains the head of
the patierrt in a position where movemen-t is minimized.
Flaps 12 and 14 are then wrapped around and secured to
patient 100 as has previously been described.
It will be apparent to one skilled in the art that
the present inverrtion is adjustable to suit the height
of a pa-tient as head pad 16 and restraining pad 18 can
be longitudinally po~i-tioned along head suyport portion
36 of primary support 11. lt will also be apparent to
30 one ~killed in the art tha-t the presen-t inveIl-tion is
adjustable to suit the proportions of the pa-tient. It
will also be apparent to one skilled in -the ar-t tha-t the
pre~ent invention is adjustable to accommodate the
angular positioning of -the head of a patient.
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I-t will also be apparent to one skilled in the ar-t
that -the present invention i5 particularly suited for
use wi-th chlldren. There are unique problems in
treating children, due to the fact that cannot be
reassured in the same manner that adults can. It will
be apparent to one skilled in the art that every efort
is made with -the present inventiorl -to make -the child
feel comfortable and secure. Bottom portion 38 of
primary support 11 is padded -to make i-t comfortable.
10 Flaps 12 and 14 can be insulated where it i5 desired to
assis-t -the child to retain body hea-t, or have
ventilating perforations where i-t i9 desired to assist
the child in remaining cool. If the child becomes
claustrophobic fastening straps 58 on restraining pad 18
15 can be temporarily removed and winys 50 and 52 pressed
flat to calm the child. It will be apparent to one
skilled in the ar-t that the use of flexible and pliable
flaps 1~ and 14 permit spinal restraint device 10 to
conform to -the patients body. I-t will be apparen-t to
20 one skilled in the art that the use of pads 16 and 18
enable spinal res-traint device 10 to have a tremendous
range of adjustment, such that two si~es should be
adequate to accommodate all children. The Applicant
recommends one size to suit children weighing between ~
25 pounds and 45 pounds, and a second size to accommodate
children between 45 pounds and 125 pounds. It will be
apparent to one skilled in the ar-t, -that the benefits
provided by spinal restrairlt device 10 are not limited
to u~e with childrerl.
It will be apparent to one skilled in -the ar-t that
modifications may be made to the preferred cmbodiment
wi-thout departing from the spirit and scope of the
present invention. Although the use of pads 16 and 18
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secured by tape fas-terler~ to ~lead portion 36 of primary
suppor-t 11 is preferred, it is possible to accomplish a
similar result using a pad which has a dependiny rod
secured in a slot irl head portion 36 by a winy nut.
S Upon the loosening of the winy nu-t the pad could be
movable longitudinally in the slot or oould be made
angularly adjus-table. The pad would also be provided
with a heiyht adjustment in relation to the attaohirlg
rod. It is similarly possible to seoure -the patient
10 against longitudinal movement without the use of straps
Z0 and 22.
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