Abstract:
A hinging breast implant capable a being variably sized and that includes an exterior shell and an inner bladder is described. The exterior shell is typically a bellows having a plurality of pleats so that the outer size of the implant is variable so that different sizes and shapes can be obtained. The rear of the housing closest to the patient&#39;s interior is typically shaped in order to conform to the patient&#39;s rib cage and internal connective tissues. Conversely, the front of the housing is shaped to naturally conform to the outer shape of the patient. The inner bladder can be filled with a suitable filling material, liquid, gas or solid. As the bladder is filled, the exterior shell expands in a manner that creates a lifting effect and a ballooning effect. An appendage, used to fill the bladder external to the patient, is connected to both the exterior shell and the inner bladder.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
     I. Field of the Invention  
     The present invention relates generally to the field of prosthesis and, more particularly, to a hinging breast implant with variable size.  
     II. Description of the Related Art.  
     In general, modern breast implants do not allow the implant to be variably sized either during or after surgery. As such, people who desire to change the overall size and shape of their breasts must have major surgery if they desire to change the overall size and shape of their breast.   
     SUMMARY  
     In general, the invention features a hinging breast implant that includes an exterior shell and an inner bladder. The exterior shell is typically a bellows having a plurality of pleats so that the outer size of the implant is variable so that different sizes and shapes can be obtained. The rear of the housing closest to the patient&#39;s interior is typically shaped in order to conform to the patient&#39;s rib cage and internal connective tissues. Conversely, the front of the housing is shaped to naturally conform to the outer shape of the patient. Typically, the inner bladder can be filled with a suitable filling material, liquid, gas or solid. As the bladder is filled, the exterior shell expands in a manner that creates a lifting effect and a ballooning effect. An valve is connected to both the exterior shell and the inner bladder. The valve can be used to fill the bladder external to the patient without the need for further surgery after the implant is initially implanted into the patient. Local anesthetic can be used to access the appendage that is located close to the surface of the skin.  
     In general, in one aspect, the invention features a breast implant, including an external housing having a top end and a bottom end and a hollow interior, a bladder having an interior reservoir and located within the hollow interior of the housing, a valve connected to the bladder and protruding from the housing, a hinging mechanism connected to the top end of housing.   
     In one implementation, the housing includes a front panel having a generally rounded contour that mimics the outer contour of a human chest, a rear panel having a generally concave outer surface adapted to fit against the general shape of a human chest and a flexible and pleated wall connected between the front and rear panels.  
     In another implementation, the bladder is connected to an inner surface of the housing.  
     In another implementation, the bladder is connected to an inner surface of the rear panel.  
     In another implementation, a portion of the bladder is in mechanical contact with an inner surface of the front panel.  
     In another implementation, the implant further includes a compartment formed between a lower portion of the bladder and an internal portion of the pleated wall.  
     In still another implementation, a first end of the pleated wall is connected to one side of the hinging mechanism and a second end of the pleated wall is connected to an opposite side of the hinging mechanism.   
     In yet another implementation, the hinging mechanism is an elongated cap that encloses an end of the front and rear panels and a portion of the pleated wall.  
     In another implementation, the pleated wall forms a bellows.  
     In another implementation, the implant further includes a liquid filling the interior reservoir of the bladder.  
     In another implementation, the implant further includes a gas filling the interior reservoir of the bladder.  
     In another implementation, the implant further includes a solid filling the interior reservoir of the bladder.  
     In another implementation, the valve is adapted to remain external to the patient and adapted to receive a filler.  
     In another implementation, the filler is added and removed as needed to vary the size of the implant.   
     In another aspect, the invention features a breast implant, including an external housing having a top end and a bottom end and a hollow interior, a valve connected to the housing and a hinging mechanism connected to the top end of housing.  
     In one implementation, the housing includes a front panel having a generally rounded contour that mimics the outer contour of a human chest, a rear panel having a generally concave outer surface adapted to fit against the general shape of a human chest and a flexible and pleated wall forming a bellows connected between the front and rear panels.  
     In another implementation, the invention features a liquid filling the interior reservoir of the bladder.  
     In another implementation, the implant further includes a gas filling the interior reservoir of the bladder.  
     In another implementation, the implant includes a filler that can be added and removed through the valve to vary the overall size of the implant.  
     In another aspect, the invention features a breast implant, an external housing having a front panel, a rear panel, a top end and a bottom end and a hollow interior and means for variably inflating and resizing the external housing.   
     One advantage of the invention is that surgery is not required to change the overall size and shape of the implant once it is surgically implanted.  
     Another advantage of the invention is that the implant has the ability to hinge upward, creating a lifting effect.  
     Another advantage of the invention is that the implant has the ability to change the amount of lift and ballooning.  
     Another advantage of the invention is that the implant provides further stretching of the skin for those patients who need it, such as mastectomy patients, thereby providing a more natural tapered look that the surgeon does not have to construct with other tissue.  
     Other objects, advantages and capabilities of the invention will become apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings showing the preferred embodiment of the invention.   
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
         FIG. 1  illustrates a side view of an embodiment of a hinging breast implant in a first state;  
         FIG. 2  illustrates a side view of the embodiment of the hinging breast implant of  FIG. 1  in a second state;  
         FIG. 3  illustrates a side view another embodiment of a hinging breast implant in a first state; and  
         FIG. 4  illustrates a side view of the embodiment of the hinging breast implant of  FIG. 3  in a second state.  
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
     Referring to the drawings wherein like reference numerals designate corresponding parts throughout the several figures, reference is made first to  FIG. 1  that illustrates a side view of an embodiment of a hinging breast implant  100  in a first state. In general, the implant  100  includes a flexible but semi-rigid external housing  105  having a top end  110 ,  a bottom end  115  and a hollow interior. The housing  105  further includes a front panel  120  and a rear panel  125 . The front panel  120  typically includes a generally rounded contour that mimics the outer contour of a human chest, and more specifically, the contour of a woman&#39;s breast  130 . The front panel  120  can include a variety of shapes that can also be custom fit for a particular person&#39;s shape. Although the housing  105  is generally rigid, a variety of suitable materials can be used in the housing  105  and particularly the front panel to create a soft and natural firmness that mimics human tissue. The front panel  120  typically has a low end  121  that is generally larger than a high end  122  of the front panel  120 . The front panel  120  is tapered from the low end  121  to the high end  122  in order to create a shape that mimics the breast  130 . The rear panel  125  typically includes a generally concave outer surface  126  adapted to fit against the general shape of a human chest so that the rear panel  125  can fit properly against connective, muscular and skeletal tissue. In one implementation, the rear panel  125  can also be customized in order to more properly and naturally fit a particular person.  
     A flexible and pleated wall  135  is connected between the front panel  120  and rear panel  125 . In general, the wall  135  includes several folds that form a number of pleats when the wall  135  is closed upon itself. The pleats allow the wall  135  to expand and contract as necessary. The outer edges  136  of the pleats are adapted to rest within the tissue of the person having the implant  100 . This expansion and contracting as well as the overall construction of the implant  100  is similar to a bellows. In general, the wall has a folded  upper edge  140  that is connected to a hinging mechanism  145 . The hinging mechanism  145  can be an elongated cap that is secured to and covers the upper edge  140  of the pleated wall  135 . In another implementation, the hinging mechanism  145  can be an elongated bar to which the upper edge  140  is connected, similar to a book binding. In this implementation, the elongated bar can include a slit into which the upper edge  140  connects. In another implementation, the hinging mechanism  145  is a clamp that applies clamping pressure to the upper edge  140  of the wall  135 . In the implementations described above for the hinging mechanism  145 , a first end of the wall  135  can generally be connected to one side of the hinging mechanism  145  and a second end of the wall  135  is connected to an opposite side of the hinging mechanism  145 . In general, the hinging mechanism  145  is adapted to remain a fixed point so that the remaining portions of the housing  105  can lift and expand with respect to the hinging mechanism  145 .  
     The implant  100  further includes a valve  150  connected to the housing  105 . The valve  150  can typically include an elongated stem  155 . The valve  150  can be located at various locations on the housing  105 . In one implementation, the valve  150  is located on the pleated wall  135 . The valve  150  is coupled to the hollow interior of the housing  105 . The valve  150  can be any suitable type of valve that allows the implant  100  to be filled with a suitable gas, liquid or solid used to fill the implant. In general, the valve  150  is adapted to remain external to the patient after the implant  100  is surgically implanted into the patient. By remaining external, the valve  150  can be used to add and remove the filling gas, liquid  or solid as needed or desired by the patient, without having to have any further surgery. Therefore, the valve  150  acts as a shunt that can eventually be removed and the connection to the housing  105  permanently sealed. In another implementation, the valve  150  can be located under the patient&#39;s skin, close to the surface. In this way, minor surgery can be performed to access the valve  150  to add or remove the filling gas, liquid or solid.  
       FIG. 1  illustrates the implant  100  in a first state that is semi-expanded. The flexible wall  135  is adapted to expand and contract as needed as the filling gas liquid or solid is added or removed, thereby allowing the implant  100  to by variably sized. As such, the implant  100  has a variable size that can be adjusted as the patient desires by adding or removing the gas, liquid or solid via the valve  150  after surgery. In general, the flexible nature of the implant causes a lifting effect and a ballooning effect when the filling gas, liquid or solid is added to the housing  105 . The lifting effect of the implant  100  is generally enabled by the presence of the hinging mechanism  145 . By having the fixed point at the hinging mechanism  145 , the front panel  120  can lift, with the low end  121  experiencing the outward arc of the lift. The general flexibility of the wall  135  also allows the implant  100  to balloon, having an overall expansive effect and generally increasing the overall size of the implant  100 . In another implementation, the pleated wall  135  can be replaced with a material that is suitable for expansion and contraction similar to expansion and contraction of latex or rubber.   
       FIG. 2  illustrates a side view of the embodiment of the hinging breast implant  100  of  FIG. 1  in a second state. As described above, the implant  100  includes the flexible-but semi-rigid external housing  105  having the top end  110 , the bottom end  115 , the hollow interior, the front panel  120  and the rear panel  125 . The front panel  120  typically includes a generally rounded contour that mimics the outer contour of a human chest. The front panel  120  typically has a low end  121  that is generally larger than a high end  122  of the front panel  120 . The front panel  120  is tapered from the low end  121  to the high end  122  in order to create a shape that mimics the breast  130 . The rear panel  125  typically includes a generally concave outer surface  126  adapted to fit against the general shape of a human chest so that the rear panel  125  can fit properly against connective, muscular and skeletal tissue.  
     The flexible and pleated wall  135  is connected between the front panel  120  and rear panel  125 . In general, the wall  135  includes several folds that form a number of pleats when the wall  135  is closed upon itself. The pleats allow the wall  135  to expand and contract as necessary. The wall has a folded upper edge  140  that is connected to a hinging mechanism  145 . The several implementations of the hinging mechanism  145  are described above. In general, the hinging mechanism  145  is adapted to remain a fixed point so that the remaining portions of the housing  105  can lift and expand with respect to the hinging mechanism  145 .   
     The implant  100  further includes the valve  150  connected to the housing  105  and is coupled to the hollow interior of the housing  105 . The valve  150  can be any suitable type of valve that allows the implant  100  to be filled with a suitable gas, liquid or solid used to fill the implant. surface.  
       FIG. 2  illustrates the implant  100  in a second state that is almost fully deflated.  FIGS. 1 and 2  are shown in order to illustrate the expansive nature of the implant  100  due to the hinging and ballooning effects that are enables by the flexible wall  135  and the hinging mechanism  145 . As described above, the flexible wall  135  is adapted to expand and contract as needed as the filling gas, liquid or solid is added or removed. As such, the implant  100  has a variable size that can be adjusted as the patient desires by adding or removing the gas, liquid or solid via the valve  150  after surgery. In general, the flexible nature of the implant causes a lifting effect and a ballooning effect when the filling gas, liquid or solid is added to the housing  105 . In  FIG. 2  much of the filling has been removed and therefore the implant  100  has decreases overall size in both outward appearance and overall volume. It is understood that even in this deflated state, the implant  100  still serves a prosthetic purpose showing an overall shape due to the front panel  120 . In general, therefore, the implant  100  typically has an inherent minimum size due to the prosthetic nature of the front panel  120 .   
       FIG. 3  illustrates a side view another embodiment of a hinging breast implant  200  in a first state. In general, the implant  200  includes a flexible but semi-rigid external housing  205  having a top end  210 , a bottom end  215  and a hollow interior. The housing  205  further includes a front panel  220  and a rear panel  225 . The front panel  220  typically includes a generally rounded contour that mimics the outer contour of a human chest, and more specifically, the contour of a woman&#39;s breast  130 . The front panel  220  can include a variety of shapes that can also be custom fit for a particular person&#39;s shape. Although the housing  105  is generally rigid, a variety of suitable materials can be used in the housing  205  and particularly the front panel to create a soft and natural firmness that mimics human tissue. The front panel  220  typically has a low end  221  that is generally larger than a high end  222  of the front panel  220 . The front panel  220  is tapered from the low end  221  to the high end  222  in order to create a shape that mimics the breast  130 . The rear panel  225  typically includes a generally concave outer surface  226  adapted to fit against the general shape of a human chest so that the rear panel  225  can fit properly against connective, muscular and skeletal tissue. In one implementation, the rear panel  225  can also be customized in order to more properly and naturally fit a particular person.  
     A flexible and pleated wall  235 , similar to the pleated wall  135  as described above with respect to  FIGS. 1 and 2 , is connected between the front panel  220  and rear panel  225 . The wall  235  is shown generally in phantom to illustrate further features of the implant  200 . In general, the wall  235  includes several folds that form a number of pleats when the  wall  235  is closed upon itself. The pleats allow the wall  235  to expand and contract as necessary. The outer edges  236  of the pleats are adapted to rest within the tissue of the person having the implant  200 . This expansion and contracting as well as the overall construction of the implant  200  is similar to a bellows. In general, the wall has a folded upper edge  240  that is connected to a hinging mechanism  245 . The hinging mechanism  245  can be an elongated cap that is secured to and covers the upper edge  240  of the pleated wall  235 . In another implementation, the hinging mechanism  245  can be an elongated bar to which the upper edge  240  is connected, similar to a book binding. In this implementation, the elongated bar can include a slit into which the upper edge  240  connects. In another implementation, the hinging mechanism  245  is a clamp that applies clamping pressure to the upper edge  240  of the wall  235 . In the implementations described above for the hinging mechanism  245 , a first end of the wall  235  can generally be connected to one side of the hinging mechanism  245  and a second end of the wall  235  is connected to an opposite side of the hinging mechanism  245 . In general, the hinging mechanism  245  is adapted to remain a fixed point so that the remaining portions of the housing  205  can lift and expand with respect to the hinging mechanism  245 .  
     The implant  200  further includes a bladder  260  located within the hollow interior of the housing  205 . The bladder  200  is comprised of a material that can retain its general shape but expand and contract as a filling such as a gas liquid and solid is inserted into the bladder  260 , similar to a balloon. In general, as described further below, the bladder  260  is  adapted to expand and contract to cause a respective expansion and contraction of the housing  205 . The bladder can be connected to an inner surface of the housing such as an inner surface  227  of the rear panel  225 .  
     The implant  200  further includes a valve  250  connected through the housing  205  and connected to the bladder  260 . The valve  250  is similar to the valve  150  described above with respect to  FIGS. 1 and 2 . However, there is no stem for illustrative purposes. The valve  250  can be located at various locations on the housing  205 . In one implementation, the valve  250  is located on the pleated wall  235 . The valve  250  can be any suitable type of valve that allows the implant  200  to be filled with a suitable gas, liquid ir solid used to fill the implant. Typically, the filler is forced through the valve  250  into the bladder which has an interior reservoir. In general, the valve  250  is adapted to remain external to the patient after the implant  200  is surgically implanted into the patient. By remaining external, the valve  250  can be used to add and remove the filling gas, liquid and solid as needed or desired by the patient, without having to have any further surgery. Therefore, the valve  250  acts as a shunt that can eventually be removed and the connection to the housing  205  permanently sealed. In another implementation, the valve  250  can be located under the patient&#39;s skin, close to the surface. In this way, minor surgery can be performed to access the valve  250  to add or remove the filling gas, liquid ir solid.   
       FIG. 3  illustrates the implant  200  in a first state that is semi-expanded. The flexible wall  235  is adapted to expand and contract as needed as the filling gas, liquid or solid is added or removed into or from the bladder  260  thereby allowing the implant  200  to be variably sized. As such, the implant  200  has a variable size that can be adjusted as the patient desires by adding or removing the gas, liquid or solid via the valve  150  after surgery. In general, the bladder  260  is adapted to expand and therefore push against inner surfaces of the housing  205  in order to expand the housing  205  as needed. Conversely, as the bladder contracts as the gas, liquid or solid filler is removed, the housing  205  also contracts. Connection to the inner surface  227  of the rear panel  225  helps to stabilize the bladder  260  within the housing  205  and to allow expansion outward against an inner surface of the wall  235  and an inner surface  223  of the front panel  220 . By this connection to the inner surface  227  of the rear panel  225 , greater degrees of freedom are generally enabled for the expansion and contraction. In general, expansion is not needed toward the chest. Therefore, as the bladder  260  expands and contracts, there is movement with respect to the front panel  220  and the wall  235 . The bladder  260  is typically in some mechanical contact with the inner surfaces of the bladder  260 . The flexible nature of the implant  200  causes a lifting effect and a ballooning effect when the filling gas, liquid or solid is added to the bladder  260 . The lifting effect of the implant  200  is generally enabled by the presence of the hinging mechanism  245 . By having the fixed point at the hinging mechanism  245 , the front panel  220  can lift, with the low end  221  experiencing the outward arc of the lift. The general flexibility of the wall  235  also allows the implant  200  to balloon, having an overall expansive  effect of the implant  200  and generally increasing the overall size of the implant  200 . In another implementation, the pleated wall  235  can be replaced with a material that is suitable for expansion and contraction similar to expansion and contraction of latex or rubber. During the expansion and contraction, compartments such as compartment  270  can form within the hollow interior of the housing  205  when the bladder is in the semi-expanded or expanded state.  
       FIG. 4  illustrates a side view of the embodiment of the hinging breast implant  200  of  FIG. 3  in a second state. As described above, the implant  200  includes the flexible but semi-rigid external housing  205  having the top end  210 , the bottom end  215 , the hollow interior, the front panel  220  and the rear panel  225 . The front panel  220  typically includes the generally rounded contour that mimics the outer contour of a human chest and the low end  221  that is generally larger than the high end  222  of the front panel  220 . The front panel  220  is tapered from the low end  221  to the high end  222  in order to create a shape that mimics the breast  130 . The rear panel  225  typically includes a generally concave outer surface  226  adapted to fit against the general shape of a human chest so that the rear panel  225  can fit properly against connective, muscular and skeletal tissue.  
     The flexible and pleated wall  235  is connected between the front panel  220  and rear panel  225 . In general, the wall  235  includes several folds that form a number of pleats when the wall  235  is closed upon itself. The pleats allow the wall  235  to expand and contract as  necessary. In general, the wall has a folded upper edge  240  that is connected to a hinging mechanism  245 . The embodiments of the hinging mechanism  245  are described above. In general, the hinging mechanism  245  is adapted to remain a fixed point so that the remaining portions of the housing  205  can lift and expand with respect to the hinging mechanism  245 .  
     The implant  200  further includes a bladder  260  located within the hollow interior of the housing  205 . The bladder  200  is comprised of a material that can retain its general shape but expand and contract as a filling such as a gas liquid and solid is inserted into the bladder  260 , similar to a balloon. In general, as described further below, the bladder  260  is adapted to expand and contract to cause a respective expansion and contraction of the housing  205 . The bladder can be connected to an inner surface of the housing such as an inner surface  227  of the rear panel  225 .  
     The implant  200  further includes a valve  250  connected through the housing  205  and connected to the bladder  260 . The valve  250  can be any suitable type of valve that allows the implant  200  to be filled with a suitable gas, liquid or solid used to fill the implant. Typically, the filler is forced through the valve  250  into the bladder  260  which has an interior reservoir.   
       FIG. 4  illustrates the implant  200  in a second state that is almost fully deflated.  FIGS. 3 and 4  are shown in order to illustrate the expansive nature of the implant  200  due to the hinging and ballooning effects that are enabled by the flexible wall  135  and the hinging mechanism  145 . As described above, the flexible wall  235  is adapted to expand and contract as needed as the filling gas, liquid or solid is added or removed. As such, the implant  200  has a variable size that can be adjusted as the patient desires by adding or removing the gas, liquid or solid via the valve  250  and into the bladder  260 , after surgery. In general, the bladder  260  is adapted to expand and therefore push against inner surfaces of the housing  205  in order to expand the housing  205  as needed. Conversely, as the bladder contracts as the gas, liquid or solid filler is removed, the housing  205  also contracts. The flexible nature of the implant  200  causes a lifting effect and a ballooning effect when the filling gas, liquid or solid is added to the bladder  260  and thereby expanding against the housing  205 . In  FIG. 4  much of the filling has been removed and therefore the implant  200  has decreased overall size in both outward appearance and overall volume. It is understood that even in this deflated state, the implant  200  still serves a prosthetic purpose showing an overall shape due to the front panel  220 . In general, therefore, the implant  200  typically has an inherent minimum size due to the prosthetic nature of the front panel  220 .  
     As described above, the filler was generally referred to as a gas, liquid and solid. It is understood that several types of filler that can be used to vary the size of the variable sized hinging implants.   
     The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Further, various modifications may be made of the invention without departing from the scope thereof and it is desired, therefore, that only such limitations shall be placed thereon as are imposed by the prior art and which are set forth in the appended claims.