U.S. patent application number 13/025158 was filed with the patent office on 2012-08-16 for medical garments and their use.
Invention is credited to Neeru Shahani Hutton, Farida Mithaiwala, David Rogers.
Application Number | 20120204316 13/025158 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 46635706 |
Filed Date | 2012-08-16 |
United States Patent
Application |
20120204316 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Hutton; Neeru Shahani ; et
al. |
August 16, 2012 |
Medical Garments and their Use
Abstract
Medical garments with features for improving patient privacy
during a medical examination or treatment are provided. Garments of
the invention also enable ease of access by a treatment
provider.
Inventors: |
Hutton; Neeru Shahani;
(Pleasanton, CA) ; Mithaiwala; Farida; (Aliso
Viejo, CA) ; Rogers; David; (Burbank, CA) |
Family ID: |
46635706 |
Appl. No.: |
13/025158 |
Filed: |
February 11, 2011 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
2/114 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A41D 2400/44 20130101;
A41D 13/1236 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
2/114 |
International
Class: |
A41D 13/12 20060101
A41D013/12 |
Claims
1. A gown comprising: at least two overlapping panels of material
attached to a common third panel wherein each of the two
overlapping panels is attached to a separate side edge of the third
panel; a fourth panel forming a top yoke section, wherein the two
overlapping panels are attached to the fourth panel along a common
edge of the fourth panel; the fourth panel further comprising two
separate edges whereby the two separate edges are parallel to the
common edge attached to the two overlapping panels; said third
panel consisting of a tie attached to a point mid-length along a
length dimension of the third panel.
2. The gown of claim 1 further comprising at least one closing
means on each of the two separate edges whereby the fourth panel is
secured to the third panel by the closing means binds the separate
edges to the third panel.
3. The gown of claim 1, wherein one of the at least two overlapping
panels overlaps at least a portion of the other of said at least
two overlapping panels.
4. A gown of claim 1, wherein said at least two overlapping panels,
the third panel and the fourth panel are made from a
water-absorbent material.
5. The gown of claim 1, wherein the tie extends out from each of
the side edges of the third panel such that the tie can be folded
around the two overlapping panels to form a belt around the
gown.
6. The gown of claim 2 wherein the closing means is selected from a
group consisting of buttons, ties, snap-ons, or Velcro
closures.
7. The gown of claim 1, wherein said at least two over lapping
panels, the third panel and the fourth panel are made from a cotton
fabric.
8. The gown of claim 1, wherein said at least two over lapping
panels, the third panel and the fourth panel are made from a
synthetic material.
9. The gown of claim 1, wherein said at least two over lapping
panels, the third panel and the fourth panel are made from a
disposable material.
10. A medical garment comprising: a back panel having two opposed
side edges, a top edge and a bottom edge perpendicular to said
opposite side edges' a first front panel with two overlapping
sections secured together along a bottom edge of said first front
panel; a second front panel attached to one side edge of the back
panel and at least partially attached to the bottom edge of said
first front panel; a third front panel attached to a second side
edge of the back panel and at least partially attached to the
bottom edge of the first front panel so as to overlap the second
front panel. a means to secure corners of opposing edges of the
second and third front panels to each other.
11. The medical garment of claim 10, wherein the first front panel
is secured along two sections of a top edge to the top edge of the
back panel so as to form two sleeves or arm openings.
12. The medical garment of claim 11, wherein the first front panel,
the back panel, the second and third front panels are made of a
material selected disposable synthetic fibers, paper or fabric.
13. The medical garment of claim 12, wherein the material is
cotton.
14. The medical garment of claim 13, wherein the material is
paper.
15. The medical garment of claim 10, further comprising a tie
secured to an internal surface at a point mid-length along the two
side edges of the back panel.
16. The medical garment of claim 15, wherein the tie extends out of
the edges wherein the back panel is secured to the second and third
front panels so as to form a belt for tying around the medical
garment when in use.
17. The medical garment of claim 15, wherein the first front panel
comprises double layers of materials within each overlapping
section.
18. The medical garment of claim 10 wherein the second and third
front panels overlap each other for almost the entire width of each
panel.
Description
RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] The invention is related to and claims priority from the
provisional application No. 61/303,134 filed on Feb. 10, 2011.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0002] The invention is related to garments utilized in a medical
and/or clinical setting for patient examination.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0003] Examination of individuals in a clinical or medical setting
most often requires the individual being examined to change into a
clinical gown so as to allow the medical practitioner easy access
to patient anatomy for examination. Typically, the clinical gown is
made of a paper like fabric with no secure means for holding it
close. The clinical gown is made with the primary objective of
facilitating examination of the individual anatomy by a medical
professional. Although the ease of use by the medical professional
is an important objective in the design of clinical gowns
generally, the comfort of the individual patient has been largely
unaddressed by the clinical gowns available on the market today.
The present invention addresses this unmet need and provides novel
designs for clinical gowns that offer ease of use features for the
medical professional coupled with significant improvements than
ensure patient comfort while undergoing medical examination.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0004] The invention provides gowns for medical use with design
features that allow easy access for medical professionals such as
doctors and nurses to examine an individual and also help with
protecting the individual's privacy with appropriate coverage.
Various aspects of the invention enable superior coverage without
the need for multiple "ties", "buttons", "snaps" or "velcro
closures". The main objective of the invention is to minimize the
"openness" of the gowns and the number of "ties" that need to be
secured and that are difficult to access, while maintaining a high
degree of accessibility for the medical practitioner.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0005] The present invention will now be described with reference
to the accompanying figures, in which:
[0006] FIG. 1 is a front view of an embodiment of the present
invention illustrating the overlapping front panels secured to a
yoke along a top edge.
[0007] FIG. 2 is a front view of a second embodiment of the
invention illustrating a design in which the overlapping panels are
partially secured along a top edge to the yoke and the open corners
are further secured with buttons or other securing means.
[0008] FIG. 3 is a front view of a third embodiment showing
overlapping panels within a yoke region of the garment and
overlapping front panels for two different access points.
[0009] FIG. 3-1 is a front view of a fourth embodiment of the
invention showing overlapping panels within a yoke region of the
garment, overlapping front panels for two different access points
and securing means along the top edges of the yoke section and the
back panel, and a tie extending out of the back panel from each of
the two side edges of the back panel.
[0010] FIG. 4 is an inside and outside view of the back panel
wherein the tie is shown attached at a central location of the back
panel.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS AND THE
DRAWINGS
[0011] The features and advantages of the invention are described
below in reference to the preferred embodiments which have been set
forth in detail in the examples in conjunction with the
accompanying drawings shown in FIGS. 1 through 5. Each of the
drawings utilizes the following legend for references to the
various parts of the invention.
Legend:
TABLE-US-00001 [0012] Number Description of Item 1. Yoke 2. Left
Front Panel 3. Right Front Panel 4. Tie sewn on the inside of the
Back Panel of the gown 5. Front Panels Overlap 6. Snap buttons
located on the Yoke (1) and Left and Right Front Panels (2 and 3,
respectively) 7. Snap buttons at the Shoulder and Back Panels.
Example 1
Clinical Gown A
[0013] Referring to FIG. 1, a slip-on clinical gown or medical
garment that has over-lapping front panels down the length of the
gown. A double thickness yoke (1) at the top that will have Panel
(2) sewn at the left seam and extending towards the right seam.
Another Panel (3) sewn at the right seam and going over (2) to
create an overlap across the front of the gown. The over-lapping
panels are sewn to Yoke (1) to secure them in place. The opening is
on the front, but the gown could be worn either way to allow the
opening either in the front or the back, as required by the medical
staff. The neckline of the gown may be shaped in a U shape, a V
shape or a round shape or any shape suitable to allow the gown to
be slipped over a patient's head. The over-lapping panels will
allow access to the medical staff for medical examination of the
patient. There will be a tie (4) sewn on the inside of the back of
the gown. The gown and tie may be made of any material including
cotton fabric, synthetic fiber or paper. Both ends of the tie will
come out of openings on both left and right seams of the gown. The
tie could be tied in the front or back for patient's reassurance
and emotional comfort that their privacy is secured. The gown will
have a broad, and low neckline to allow access for cervical spine
examination. The sleeves could be any length. The length of the
yoke region is any desired length. Typically, the length of the
yoke will be about 5 to about 6 inches. The width of the panels and
the length of the gown will vary to accommodate varying sizes
suitable for different size individuals.
Example 2
Clinical Gown B
[0014] Referring to FIG. 2, a slip-on gown that has an over-lap
front panels down the length of the gown. A double thickness yoke
(1) at the top that will have Panel (2) sewn at the top edge
starting from the left seam extending for a distance of about 3
inches to about 18 inches. It will be left loose for the rest of
the length and secured at the end to the yoke with a snap button.
Another Panel (3) sewn at the right seam and going over (2) to
create an overlap at the center of the gown in the front. Panel (3)
will be sewn similar to Panel (2), which means, it will be attached
to the yoke (1) for about 3 inches to about 18 inches and then left
loose to be secured to the yoke (1) at the end with a snap button
(6). Both Panels (2 and 3) will cross over each other to create
overlap (5) in the center of the front of the gown. The opening is
on the front, but the gown could be worn either way to allow the
opening either in the front or the back, as required by the medical
staff. The over-lap panels will allow access to the medical staff
for medical examination of the patient. The snap button feature
will allow access to the medical staff for patient examination. A
tie (4) sewn on the inside of the back of the gown is made of
suitable material. Both ends of the tie will come out of openings
on both left and right seams of the gown. The tie could be tied in
the front or back for patient's reassurance and emotional comfort
that their privacy is secured. The gown will have a broad and low
neckline to allow access for cervical spinal examination. The
sleeves could be any length. Optionally, the gown will have buttons
or snap on closures along the top edge of the sleeves for ease in
wearing and removal of the gown.
Example 3
Clinical Gown C
[0015] Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3, a slip-on gown or garment that
has over-lapping front panels down the length of the gown. A double
thickness yoke (1) at the top that will have Panel (2) sewn
starting from the left seam partially along the top edge to attach
to the yoke. It will be left loose for the rest of the width and
secured at the end to the yoke with a snap button (6). Another
Panel (3) sewn starting at the right seam and going over (2) to
create an overlap at the center of the gown in the front. Panel (3)
will be sewn similar to Panel (2), meaning, it will be attached to
the yoke (1) partially and then left loose to be secured to the
yoke (1) at the end with a snap button. Both Panels (2 and 3) will
cross over each other to create overlap (5) in the center of the
front of the gown. The two panels will overlap with each other
almost the entire width of each panel whereby maximum coverage is
provided to an individual during use. The opening is on the front,
but the gown could be worn either way to allow the opening either
in the front or the back, as required by the medical staff. The
over-lap panels will allow access to the medical staff for medical
examination of the patient. The snap button feature will allow
access to the medical staff for patient examination. There will be
a fabric tie (4) sewn on the inside of the back of the gown as
shown in FIG. 4. Both ends of the tie will come out of openings on
left and right seams of the gown. The tie could be tied in the
front or back for patient's reassurance and emotional comfort that
their privacy is secured. The gown will have a broad, and low
neckline to allow access for cervical spinal examination. The
sleeves could be any length. The top seam at the shoulders on both
sides of the neck will have snap-button closures (7) starting from
the neck across the shoulder and down the length of the top of the
sleeves. This feature will be appropriate for patients who are not
able to slip on the gown either from the top and cannot slip on the
sleeves. The nursing staff will be able to assist the patients by
putting on the gown for them while in any position (standing,
laying or sitting). This will facilitate complete assistance by the
nursing staff.
Example 4
Clinical Gown D
[0016] Referring to FIG. 3-1, a preferred embodiment of the
invention is shown. In this embodiment, the gown includes a yoke
comprising overlapping layers to form a V neckline and the front
regions of sleeves. The overlap layers are sewn in place and are
attached to two overlapping panels, Front panel (2) and (3)
respectively. Each of the Front panels is attached to the yoke
partially and includes a overhang region that is not attached to
the yoke. Snaps or buttons made of metal or plastic or other
suitable material are used to secure the open edge of one panel to
the other panel. The sleeve regions of the yoke, and front panels
are attached to a back panel along the top edge and side edges
respectively. The back panel also includes a tie sewn on the inside
of the back panel and extending out from both side edges so as to
allow the tie to be used as a belt around the gown when in use.
Optionally, the top edges of the sleeves in the yoke panel are
secured to the top edge of the back panel with snaps or button.
During use, a medical practitioner will obtain access to the
individual's anatomy by undoing the button or snap to partially
fold the top front panel away from the individual to create an
opening enough to obtain access and yet maintain a great degree of
coverage for the individual. Similarly, if neck region evaluation
needs to be performed, the medical practitioner has simply to undo
the buttons along the sleeve edges to fold the yoke forward and
away from the individual to obtain access. In a further preferred
aspect, the length of the sleeves starting from the neckline is
about 10 inches to about 14 inches. The total length of the gown is
about 50 inches to about 62 inches. The width of each of the panels
between the two side edges of each front panel is about 20 inches
to about 30 inches. Additional variations to length, width,
neckline shape and depth may be made to accommodate varying sizes
suitable for individuals of all sizes.
[0017] The foregoing descriptions and drawings detail specific
elements which may be employed to practice the present invention.
One of skill in the art will readily know and appreciate how to
devise alternate reliable variations at arriving at the same
improvements by modifications to the components of the gowns
covered in the disclosure of the present invention using ordinary
skill However, the foregoing description should not be construed as
limiting the overall scope of the present invention, but are to be
considered as illustrative thereof.
* * * * *