URINE BAG HOLDER

Abstract: The urine bag holder has two front pieces (8, 9) each with a corner cutout sewn, for creating a pocket, onto a back piece connected with a carrying arrangement. Through the shape of the corner cutouts there is in the top of the pocket created an opening (16) for insertion of a urine bag into the pocket. The pocket is less elastic from top to bottom than in the transversal direction. The edges (14) of the cutouts run down approximately to the middle of the side of the pocket and are trimmed with flat knitted ribbon for increasing the retaining force. Arrangements for placing the urine bag holder on the lower leg of a patient and on a blouse top are shown.

Description: Urine bag holder The invention relates to a urine bag holder having a back piece connected to a carrying arrangement and ha¬ ving a front piece sewn to the back piece for creating a pocket for a urine bag, as recited in the introducto¬ ry part of claim 1. Such holders are used amongst other things for place¬ ment of a urine bag on a patient who suffers from uri¬ nary incontinence and therfore carries a catheter. An urine bag holder in accordance with the introductory part of claim 1 is known from Swedish patent publica¬ tion no. 417 395. The carrying arrangement in accor¬ dance with this document comprises a set of trousers having a pocket sewn into one of the trouser's legs for holding the urine bag. The pocket consists of a rectan¬ gular piece of woven fabric sewn onto the trouser's leg at the bottom and the sides. The set of trousers is equipped with a long zippper which starts further down on the trouser's leg than where the pocket sits and runs up across the crotch and a distance down on the other trouser's leg. According to the document this is meant to enable convenient in¬ sertion and removal of the urine bag from the pocket. It is, as is readily seen, difficult to carry out per¬ sonal hygiene with an arrangement of this kind. The * construction of the pocket does not prevent the con¬ tents of the bag from splashing around and making noi- ses. In the construction of urine bag holders it must be se¬ cured that there is not inflicted pain upon the patient from unwanted pulling at the catheter tube. When a uri¬ ne bag is filled it contains up to 1 kg of liquid; if such a bag starts sliding it may inflict violent pain on the patient when tensioπing of the catheter ≤tube oc¬ curs . In US patent 3 721 743 there is described an arrange- ment consisting of a pair of undertrousers having long legs with a relatively long and narrow pocket sewn on the front side of each leg below the knee. The catheter is lead through a strap arranged above the knee on the front side of the leg, and the catheter must be guided through another strap in switching from one container to the other. The urine container consists of an elon¬ gated cannister which is somewhat flattened at the ou¬ ter side, an inner bellows-like folded urine bag and a pressure spring seating on the bottom of the bag from beneath, which is increasingly compressed all while the bag fills. The cannister has a lid at the side which allows for an exchange of the bag. This somewhat com¬ plicated arrangement does make the set of trousers an improvement technically, but will not be of much prac- tical use. In Danish patent application nr. 1760/79 there is de¬ scribed an arrangement for supension of a urine bag on an ambulatory patient. The arrangement is a one-legged set of trousers which reaches down to the knee, fits closely to the leg, and is suspended from a waistband. Immediately below crotch height a pocket opens up. The pocket runs all the way down to the knee. The one- legged set of trousers will allow toilet visits to oc- cur without any pulling at the catheter. The arrange¬ ment has the drawback, however, that the weight is placed on a waistband and at one side only. Therefore it contributes to unsymmetrical pulling at the patient and may lead to serous pain in the abdomen. Furthermore the urine bag is not fixed at the leg but may dangle around. It is now an object of the invention to provide a urine bag holder having the urine bag placed in a more pur¬ poseful arrangement, and wherein in particular movement of the urine bag in relation to the urine bag holder is minimized as far as possible. In a urine bag holder in accordance with the introduc¬ tory part of claim 1 this object is attained through the provisions that the pocket for the urine bag has another front piece which lies on and over the firstly- mentioned frontpiece and likewise is sewn onto the back piece, that each front piece is provided with a corner cutout for forming an opening in the pocket, the edge of which cutout has the shape of a concave arch stret¬ ching downwardly and outwardly from the top of the pocket to one of the sides of the pocket, that the front pieces are arranged in the way of mirror images in relation to each other in such a way that both cor- ner cutouts lie towards the top of the pocket, but each corner cutout lies in a different side of the pocket, and that the front pieces are sewn onto the back piece substantially along all their edges except the arched edges . The pocket thus has an opening in the middle of the front side, which is held closed by a cross closure which runs down on and to the middle of the bag whereby the securing force acting on the bag is favourably di- stributed. Preferred embodiments of * the invention are presented in the dependent claims. A simple construction of the pocket is presented in claim 2, using a fabric having different elasticity in the longitudinal direction than in the transversal direction. In accordance with claim 3 the risk of tensioning of the catheter tube is dimi¬ nished. Suitable materials are apparent from claims 4 and 6, In accordance with claim 5 and 7 it may be ad¬ vantageous to provide the urine bag holder with ribbons on the seams of the pocket or for strapping the holder onto a limb or body part of a patient. Claims 8 through 10 recite preferred embodiments of the back piece of the pocket. An arrangement according to claim 8 or 9 may be used for catheterized patients sitting in a wheelchair while a holder in accordance with claim 10 may be used for ambulatory patients. The invention will be more specifically described below with reference to the accompanying--drawings. Fig. 1 shows a front view on a urine bag holder for placement of a urine bag on the lower leg of a patient who sits in a wheelchair. Fig. 2 is a side view of the urine bag holder shown in fig. 1. Fig. 3 illustrates a variant of the urine bag holder shown in fig. 1, without a knee-hole. Fig. 4 shows a back view of the urine bag holder shown in fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a front view of a blouse top mounted with a urine bag holder. Fig. 6 is a schematic side view of the blouse top shown in fig . 5. The urine bag holder for placement of a urine bag on the lower leg of a patient who sits in a wheelchair as shown in figure 1 has the purpose of giving the patient a feeling of confidence and security combined with the least possible inconvenience in daily use. As a wheel¬ chair patient because of using the wheelchair most of- ten has weakly developed muscles on the back side of the lower leg, the lower leg in itself cannot support the burden of the urine bag. Thus the more prominent knee must be used for solving this problem. The urine bag holder as shown consists of a piece of fabric which in the longitudinal direction is stable and inelastic and reaches from the ankle upwards over the knee. The piece of fabric 1 is sewn into a tube which may sur¬ round the lower leg and the knee. At both ends there is sewn on a rib cuff 2, 3, which has high elasticity and ability of contraction. During sewing the cuff 2, 3 is fully extended. The upper cuff 2 has an extension ca¬ pacity so as to be able to surround the thigh above the knee and secure the urine bag holder without tensio¬ ning. The lower cuff 3 fits loosely around the leg. Immediately below the upper rib cuff 2 an oval hole starts which can surround the knee. The hole 4 is trimmed with a flat knitted ribbon dressing 5. Immediately below the knee-hole 4 a pocket 6 starts on the urine bag holder, which pocket is rectangular and may surround a urine bag (not shown). One side edge 7 of the pocket is placed centrally below the knee-hole 4. Thereby the pocket 6 gets to be placed on the side of the leg. The back side of the pocket, which in use keeps the urine bag (normally consisting of plastics material) separated from the bag, is formed by the tube 1. Fig. 2 shows the urine bag holder of fig. 1 in a side view. The pocket 6 for holding the urine bag consists of to pieces of fabric 8 and 9 placed like mirror ima¬ ges. These will be named front pieces hereinafter. Each front piece has an upper edge 10 of a length which is less than half of the width of the finished pocket, such that the difference in length between the upper edges of the sewn-on front pieces and the width of the pocket later on will give an opening 16 in the pocket for insertion of a urine bag aηd for the access of a catheter tube. Each front piece furthermore has a long edge 11 in the full length of the finished pocket, which lotig edge is at an angle of 90° with the upper edge 10. Each long edge 11 is at a right angle with a lower edge 12 of the front piece; the lower edge of one of the front pieces is not visible on the drawing as the front pieces are placed on top of each other. The lower edges of the front pieces may be provided with surplus width for making the pocket baggy. Each front piece furthermore has a short edge 13 which is at a right angle with the lower edge. The short edge 13 is connected to the upper edge 10 via a concave arch 14 which gives each front piece the shape of a rect¬ angle having a corner cutout. The short edge of one of the front pieces is hidden and its arch 14 is only partially visible in the drawing because the front pieces are placed on top of one ano¬ ther. In the embodiment shown the short edges of both front pieces have a length of 6/11 of the full length of the finished pocket. In the embodiment shown in fig. 2 each front piece is at the bottom provided with a small cutout for creating a valve opening 17. The cutout is trimmed with flat knitted ribbon. The front pieces consist of knitted fabric which is cut in such a way that its elastic direction lies in the direction from one side of the pocket to the other side of the pocket. Each front piece has a sewn-on flat knitted ribbon 15 in the concave arch 14. Because the concave arch 14 always in part runs along the cross- going direction of the fabric where there is elasticity in the material used for the front piece, and because the flat knitted ribbon 15 is cut and sewn in such a way that its elastic direction lies transversely to the concave arch, the fl.at knitted ribbon 15 creates stabi¬ lity. The flat knitted ribbon 15 is sewn onto the con¬ cave arch 14 in a stretched state which creates con¬ traction of the arch. Thus the flat knitted ribbon 15 cannot expand beyond the size of the concave arch as constructed. The pocket 6 is mounted on the tube of fabric 1 by con¬ nection seams. The short edge 13 (not visible) of the right front piece lies under the long edge 11 of the left front piece which is at full length. The front pieces are arranged such that the two ellip¬ ical 1y shaped valve openings 17 lie exactly on top of one another. Together they form the lower valve opening which is likewise trimmed with sewn-on flat knitted ribbon. Through the difference in length between the upper edges 10 of the front pieces and the width of the pocket there is formed an upper opening 16 of the pocket. The front side of the pocket consisting of the two front pieces may be assembled separately and placed exactly on the tube 1, which forms the back side of the pocket, with the aid of a tailoring mark. The pocket is closed at the sides by sewing on flat knitted ribbon. The top of the pocket is sewn unto the tube 1 using a girth band 18 which runs along the entire top and is long enough to reach around a leg and be tightened us¬ ing a pair of o-rings 19 which are sewn on at one end of the girth band. A corresponding girth band 20 is sewn onto the bottom of the pocket leaving the lower valve opening 17 free. The edge ribbons 15 of the two concave arches form a loop 21 above the upper valve opening 16. The function of the pocket is as follows. The urine bag is inserted from the front through the opening 16. The construction of the front side of the pocket will re¬ tain the bag in its shape such that it does not sink down during the filling. The front opening 16 further¬ more allows nursing personnel to watch the urine during sickness. From the pocket 6 a catheter tube (not shown) is guided upwards through the loop 21 via the opening 16 and is connected to the catheter. The emptying valve of the urine bag is led through the valve opening 17 at the bottom of the pocket. The two girths 18, 20 are bound around the leg, but not tightly. With the place¬ ment of the pocket on the urine bag holder as stiown the patient will be carrying the urine bag on the outer side of the leg, provided that the holder is placed on the right-hand leg, and on the inner side if the pa- tient chooses to wear the holder on the left-hand leg. Because of the effect of the pocket construction as shown the patient may feel confident that the bag will remain where it was placed. Because of the front clo- sure as shown there will be the least possible amount of noise from the contents of the bag. The plastics bag will, because the tube 1 acts as a back side of the pocket, not be able to irritate the skin. The urine bag is easily emptied and will be convenient to carry in this urine bag holder. The patient may feel confident which is important for a patient suffering from urinary incontinence. Fig. 3 shows a variant of the urine bag holder shown in figure 1 which is intended for patients who prefer a lighter and more open model than the one hitherto de¬ scribed. In this embodiment there is not provided a knee-hole. Instead there is in the side opposite the pocket 6, where otherwise the tube 1 is seamed toge¬ ther, cut an elliptical hole from the upper cuff 2 to the lower cuff 3. The hole 21a has a convex elliptical shape. Its largest width is equal to one fourth of the length of the hole. The hole is trimmed with flat knit¬ ted ribbon. In all other respects the arrangement is worn in the same manner as the urine bag holder descri- bed in connection with figures 1 and 2. The knee will still be carrying the largest part of the weight of the urine bag. Fig. 4 shows the back side of the variant of the urine bag holder as shown in fig. 3. Fig. 5 shows a blouse top for placement of a urine bag on the thigh of an ambulatory patient carrying a cathe¬ ter. The blouse top has the shape of an undershirt or blouse with equal neck cutouts in the front and in the back and is cut in one with a carrying piece 24 inten- ded to stretch down to the knee of a patient on the ou¬ ter side of the patient's thigh. The carrying piece 24 has a width so as to be able to form the back side in a pocket 25 for holding a urine bag. The front side of the pocket is of the same construction as described in the discussion of figures 1 and 2. Correspondingly the¬ re are used two girth bands 18, 20 for strapping the pocket against the leg. The blouse top and the pocket are made of equal material and trimmed with flat knit¬ ted ribbon. In such a blouse top the weight is placed on the shoul¬ ders of the patient and the placement of the urine bag gives the patient a most confident and safe feeling combined with the least possible inconvenience in the daily routine. The urine bag is placed at the outer si- de of the thigh whereby it is influenced as little as possible by the different possible positions of the leg in relation to clothing. It is easy to fix the bag to the leg, and it is well concealed from observation by the social environments. The placement of the urine bag gives the patient easy access to visiting a toilet without running any risk of tensioning to occur in the catheter tube. The front construction of the pocket to¬ gether with the girth bands causes the bag to be firmly fixed against the leg without tensioning. The contents of the bag makes the least possible noise during move¬ ments. The carrying piece of the holder which forms the back side of the pocket prevents the bag from coming into direct contact with the leg. As mentioned the blouse top of the embodiment shown if figure 5 is cut in one piece, but there might as well be used a different material in the blouse part provi¬ ded that the fabric is stable in the longitudinal di¬ rection. The blouse top may thus be designed as a shirt or blouse as season demands according to whether the arrangement is to be worn by a male or female person, and does not need to be ajι_undershirt. In fig. 6 the blouse top of fig. 5 is s-hown from the side on a slightly larger scale. Part of the blouse is left out in the drawing.

Claims: C l a i ms 1. A urine bag holder having a back piece connected to a carrying arrangement and having a front piece sewn to the back piece for creating a pocket for a urine bag, c h a r a c t e r i z e d in that the pocket (6) has another front piece (8) which lies on top of the first¬ ly mentioned front piece and likewise is sewn onto the back piece (1), that each front piece (8, 9) is provi- ded with a corner cutout for forming an opening (16) in the pocket (6), the edge (14) of which cutout has the shape of a concave arch stretching downwardly and out¬ wardly from the top (10) of the pocket to one of the sides (11, 13) of the pocket, that the front pieces (8, 9) are arranged in the way of mirror images in relation to each other in such a way that both corner cutouts lie towards the top (10) of the pocket, but each corner cutout lies in a different side (11, 13) of the pocket, and that the front pieces (8, 9) are sewn onto the back piece (1) substantially along all their edges (10, 11, 12, 13) except the arched edges (14). 2. A urine bag holder as in claim 1, c h a r a c t e r i z e d in that each front piece (8, 9) is substantially rectangular except for the cor¬ ner cutouts such that the length of one of its side ed¬ ges (11) is substantially equal to the full height of the pocket and the length of its edge (12) running in parallel with the bottom of the pocket is substantially equal to the full width of the body, and that the cut¬ out of each front piece is shaped such that the length of the other side edge (13) of the front piece is less than half of the full height of the pocket and the length of its edge running in parallel with the top of the pocket is less than half of the full width of the pocket. 3. A urine bag holder as in claim 1 or 2, c h a r a c t e r i z e d in that each front piece (8, 9) consists of a fabric which is less elastic in the direction from the top (10) of the pocket to the bottom (12) of the pocket than in the direction from one side (11, 13) of the pocket to the other side (11, 13) of the pocket, and in that there is sewn a ribbon (15) on the arched edge (14) of each front piece which ribbon is less elastic in the direction parallel with the arched edge (14) than in the direction transverse to the arched edge (14). 4. A urine bag holder as in any preceding claim, c h a r a c t e r i z e d in that each front piece (8, 9) consists of knitted fabric. 5. A urine bag holder as in any preceding claim, c h a r a c t e r i z e d in that there is sewn rib¬ bon on each seam serving to connect a front piece (8, 9) with the back piece (1). 6. A urine bag holder as in claim 5, c h a r a c t e r i z e d in that at least one of the ribbons consists of knitted fabric. 7. A urine bag holder as in any preceding claim, c h a r a c t e r i z e d in that there is sewn on at least one girth band (18, 20) near the top (10) or the bottom (20) of the pocket for fixing the urine bag hol- der on one of the limbs or body parts of a patient. 8. A urine bag holder as in any preceding claim, c h a r a c t e r i z e d in that the back piece (1) is shaped as a fabric tube which may surround the lower leg of a patient, and ind that the fabric tube is pro- vided with at least one rib cuff (2, 3) serving as a carrying arrangement. 9. A urine bag holder as in claim 8, c h a r a c t e r i z e d in that the fabric tube is provided with a hole (4) in such a way that in use the edge (5) of the hole may surround the knee of a pati¬ ent. 10. A urine bag holder as in any one of claims 1 - 7, c h a r a c t e r i z e d in that the back piece (1) is shaped as a garment (22) which may be carried by the shoulders of a patient using at least one suspending strap.

Inventors: THOMSEN KAREN MARIE HOLM, THOMSEN, KAREN, MARIE, HOLM
Applicants: THOMSEN KAREN MARIE HOLM, THOMSEN, KAREN, MARIE, HOLM
Application year: 1986
Main classification: A61F5
IPC codes: A61F5