Abstract:
A device and system for protecting a surgically implanted medical port from damage during daily physical activities consisting of a protective shield that may be placed at any location on a port protection shirt.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to a protective device for covering a surgically implanted port. More specifically, the protective device is configured to protect a surgically implanted port from damage or injury during daily physical activities and is capable of being placed over different areas on the upper chest or arms of a user depending on the placement of the port. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Persons undergoing intensive medical treatment may be required to have repeated injections of drugs or multiple drawing of blood samples. To ease patient discomfort associated with repeated needle sticks, the patient may elect to have a port or portacath (a portmanteau of “portal” and “catheter”) surgically implanted beneath the skin. Various types of portacaths are available and go by various names, such Port-a-Cath, Microport, Bardport, PowerPort (power injectable), Passport, Infuse-a-Port, Medi-Port, and Lifesite (for hemodialysis patients). Another commonly used term is totally implantable venous access system (TIVAS). Additionally, portacaths are a form of a “central venous access device” and are frequently referred to as such in the medical field. 
     The port has a septum through which drugs can be injected and blood samples can be drawn many times. The port consists of a reservoir compartment (the portal) that has a silicone bubble (the septum) for needle insertion and a catheter or an attached plastic tube. The device is surgically inserted under the skin in the upper chest or in the arm, and appears as a bump under the skin. It requires no special maintenance and is completely internal, so swimming and bathing are not a problem. The catheter runs from the portal and is surgically inserted into a vein, usually the jugular vein, subclavian vein, or superior vena cava. Ideally, the catheter terminates in the superior vena cava, just upstream of the right atrium. This position allows infused agents to be spread throughout the body quickly and efficiently. 
     The septum is made out of a special self-sealing silicone rubber and can be punctured hundreds of times before it weakens significantly. To administer treatment or to withdraw blood, the port is located and the area is disinfected. The port is then accessed by puncturing the overlaying skin with a needle. When the port is no longer needed, the port can be removed through a surgical operation. 
     Ports have many different uses, such as total parenteral nutrition, delivery of chemotherapy, delivery of coagulation factors, the withdrawing of blood from patients requiring frequent blood tests, delivery of antibiotics, and the delivery of various medications. 
     Since the port is surgically implanted under the skin, there is a risk that the persons having such a port may damage it during the course of daily physical activities, especially for sports activities and the like. During such physical activities, people who have a port sometimes experience pain when physical contact is made with their port. Persons with a port are at a risk of rupturing the structural sutures that hold the port in place. It is also possible that the catheter may be ruptured or torn loose. 
     In the past, the only option for persons with a port was to have a specially made device for the protection of the port. As an example, pediatric chest guards are designed for children who have had surgery in the thoracic region or who have a port placed in their upper chest wall. The first step in making the pediatric chest guard involves taking individual measurements and creating a pattern. Splinting materials are molded to the patient&#39;s chest and back so that the end product contours to the patient&#39;s body and allows the upper extremities freedom of movement. An anterior chest piece and a posterior back piece are held in place using riveted straps made from stockinette and velcro strips. The chest guard allows children to safely return to their normal daily activities such as participation in gym classes, playing with friends, or engaging in extracurricular sports. Another option is to modify pads and belts designed for other sports, such as football, and sew a pocket onto a shirt at the location of the port. Usually the shirt would be slightly smaller than normal so that it fits snugly and does not shift. The pad is then inserted into the pocket to protect the port location. 
     Also available as a form of protection is a series of products for protecting the heart from impact during sports. These so-called “heart guards” protect persons from getting hurt by getting hit in the chest, for example, with a baseball, which could adversely effect the heart. Heart guards are intended to be located in the center of the wearer&#39;s chest and thus lack the ability to protect a port from damage since the port may be located in any of a number of different areas and varies depending on the patient. 
     For these reasons, it would be advantageous to have a protective device for a port that is shaped and sized to protect the port location from injury and is capable of being located at any position along the chest or upper arms of a user. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The foregoing and other features of the present invention will be more readily apparent from the following detailed description and drawings of the illustrative embodiments of the invention in which: 
         FIG. 1  is a front perspective view of one embodiment of the invention; 
         FIG. 2  is a bottom perspective view of one embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 3  is a side view of one embodiment of the present invention; and 
         FIG. 4  is a front view of the protection device used in combination with a port protection shirt of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Various embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings, where like reference numerals represent like parts and assemblies throughout the several views. Reference to various embodiments does not limit the scope of the invention, which is limited only by the scope of the claims attached hereto. Additionally, any examples set forth in this specification are not intended to be limiting and merely set forth some of the many possible embodiments for the claimed invention. 
     Throughout the specification and claims, the following terms take the meanings explicitly associated herein, unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. The phrase “in one embodiment” as used herein does not necessarily refer to the same embodiment, though it may. Furthermore, the phrase “in another embodiment” as used herein does not necessarily refer to a different embodiment, although it may. Thus, as described below, various embodiments of the invention may be readily combined, without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention. 
     In addition, as used herein, the term “or” is an inclusive “or” operator, and is equivalent to the term “and/or,” unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. The term “based on” is not exclusive and allows for being based on additional factors not described, unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. In addition, throughout the specification, the meaning of “a,” “an,” and “the” include plural references. The meaning of “in” includes “in” and “on.” 
     Port protector device  1  is shown in  FIGS. 1 through 3 . Port  1  may be comprised of protective shield  10 , absorption layer  12  and supports  14 . Protective shield  10  may be formed of plastic, aluminum, polymer or any other material or combination of materials capable of resisting impact that may occur against the chest or arm of a user. Preferably, protective shield  10  will be capable of slight deflection on impact so as to diminish the force of the impact. In one embodiment of the invention, on the underside of protective shield  10  is an absorption layer  12 . Absorption layer  12  may be made of a foam or any similar material that can compress and absorb an impact against protective shield  10 . In another embodiment of the invention, absorption layer  12  would only occur at the locations of supports  14 . Supports  14  may be located at three locations along the periphery of the device. Supports  14  space protective shield  10  from the body of the user and may be made of plastic, rubber or the like. On the lower side of supports  14  is located an attachment device, such as velcro hooks. Alternatively, protective shield  10  may be shaped so as to have three contact points at which velcro hooks may be attached without using separate supports. 
     Protective shield  10  is dimensioned with a length and width so as to extend beyond the periphery of an implanted port. Since most implanted ports are generally circular in nature, the device may have substantially the same length and width. Protective shield  10  may also be concave so that the center height of the device is greater than the height at the peripheral edges, as shown in  FIG. 3 . In one embodiment, protective shield  10  may have cutaway portions  11  which give the protective shield a shape resembling a symmetrical “Y”. The term “symmetrical extensions” means each of the arms of the “y” shape, which are relatively equal in size and shape. The symmetrical extensions have a bottom surface defining a plane with the center of the shield extending above the plane. Supports  14  may be attached or coupled to the bottom surface of each symmetrical extension. Supports  14  will extend below the plane, so as to space the center of the device further from the port of the user when port protection device  1  is in use. The reason for removing the material as shown at cutaway portions  11  is that the device will be held above the user&#39;s body by only those three points so as to provide a snug fit for the patient. In addition, any impact on the device will cause energy to be dissipated at the location of the three supports. By removing the extra material along the edges as shown at positions  11 , the comfort of the user is increased because there is potentially less surface area of the device contacting the wearer and there is less chance that those edges will cause irritation when contacting the body of the wearer. 
     Protective shield  10  may be in other forms, dimensions or shapes that provide suitable protection for an implanted port. Protective shield  10  may also contain holes  16  that pass entirely through the device. Holes  16  increase ventilation and therefore improve the comfort of the user, especially during sporting activities. In yet another embodiment as shown in  FIG. 3 , supports  14  may be comprised of foam section  18 , a compressible material  20  and velcro hooks  22 . Compressible material  20  may have the same functionality as absorption layer  12 . 
       FIG. 4  shows the placement of port protector device  1  on protection shirt  24 . Protection shirt  24  is generally an undergarment or shirt, such as what is commonly known as a compression shirt. It is intended to be a relatively tight fitting shirt that the user may wear, either alone or underneath other clothing. Protection shirt  24  will have port attachment material  26  located on its external surface along the upper thoracic region and upper arm locations where a port may be located. Material  26  may be a device such as the velcro loops that interact with the velcro hooks of protective device  1  to maintain protective device  1  in place. Other attachment devices may be used to ensure that protective device  1  may be removably attached in any location on the shirt that corresponds to a location of a portacath of a user. 
     In use, the user will wear the shirt and then simply place protective device  1  over the implanted port. The device is held in place by the velcro hooks on the bottom of supports  14  attaching to the velcro loops on the outside of protection shirt  24 . On impact against protective shield  10 , energy may be dissipated through the flexing of protective shield  10 , absorption of energy through absorption layer  12  and/or dissipation of the impact energy through supports  14  onto the body of the user. 
     While the invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to preferred embodiments thereof, it would be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.