BREAST PAD

Abstract: A breast pad (10), adapted to be in contact with the breast (not shown) of a lactating woman so as to absorb spontaneously exuded milk, comprises a first liquid pervious body-contacting member (1), a second liquid impervious member (4), and an absorbing member (3) between the first and second member. The breast pad has a geometry, which can be formed to fit discreetly over the female breast when the breast nipple is disposed within the pad so that at least more than 50 % of the projected area of the absorbent member is disposed beneath the breast nipple. Improved discretion and a relatively better absorbance capacity are achieved.

Description: BREAST PAD TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to an absorbent pad, in particu¬ lar a pad to be worn over the breast of a nursing human female and a method for manufacturing such a pad. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Breast pads of the kind referred to initially are known and are used to reduce the inconvenience caused by spontaneous leakage of milk outside of the feeding periods. Such spontane- ous leakage of milk may occur during the late stages of pregnancy, immediately following delivery and especially during the lactation period when a baby is being breast-fed by the lactating mother. The leakage normally occurs reflectorily from one breast when the baby is being breast-fed from the other, from one or both breasts when the baby is crying or when the mother is away from the baby for several hours. The leakage often results in embarrassing wet spots on clothing and unwanted wetness next to the skin. This condition can cause odour, chafing, irritation and an environment conducive to the growth of bacteria and fungus. Breast pads commonly used at present are usually in the shape of a disk and are frequently flat or slightly curved, as shown e.g. in GB-A-2,268,687. These breast pads are made of an absorbent material, on the side facing the breast optionally having a liquid-permeable layer, and on the side facing the brassiere or other garment the breast pad is provided with a liquid-barrier layer to prevent liquid from penetrating outwardly into the brassiere and other garments. The breast pad disclosed in said GB-A-2,268,687 comprises an inner, liquid-permeable layer, followed by a normal absorbent layer made from cellulose pulp, typically able to absorb liquid in a quantity corresponding to four times the dry weight of the layer itself, next there is a layer partially consisting of a super-absorber capable of absorbing a quantity of liquid corresponding to approximately 30 times its dry weight. Outside of this layer, there may be yet another layer of cellulose pulp, and the outmost layer is a layer consisting of liquid-impermeable material. These flat round breast pads can alleviate some of the inconveniences caused by spontaneously outflowing milk, but only to a certain degree, and they are themselves the cause of further inconveniences. Thus, a flat breast pad will primarily abut against the nipple, beyond this abutting against the surrounding breast only to the extent to which an optional brassiere presses it against the breast. Thus, there will frequently be free passages between the breast pad and the breast capable of acting as channels through which liquid can escape without coming into contact with the breast pad. Thus, these breast pads are only capable to a certain degree of preventing wetting of the skin and clothing. Further, the flat shape causes an increase in the pressure against the nipple itself, and as the latter is especially sensitive in the period of lactation and breast-feeding, this pressure, possibly also rubbing against the nipple, may cause greater inconvenience than the liquid itself. The round shape is the cause of further inconveniences as the breast pad is retained exclusively by the pressure between the breast and the brassiere, and when the breast moves relative to the brassiere, this may cause the breast pad to be dis¬ placed relative to the breast. Another result of the round shape is that the breast pad is frequently subjected to a relatively homogeneous pressure between the surfaces, that may vary extensively during the wearer's movement. Because of this, there is a risk that liquid will be pressed out from the breast pad if ordinary absorbent materials are used, and for this reason it is specified in GB-A-2,268,687 to use a material becoming a gel when absorbing water; this will, of course, limit the free choice of material for the absorbent layer or layers. Apart from the fact that these limits to the choice of material result in higher production costs caused by the material and a complicated laminated arrangement with widely differing layers, these known breast pads may also have an unfavourable effect by under certain circumstances causing dehydration of the areas of the breast in contact with the breast pad, also causing increased irritation of the nipple, especially when the breast pad moves relative to the breast because of less than optimal fixing of the pad relative to the breast. With regard to wearing comfort, the round breast pad also exhibits the disadvantage that its shape makes it very conspicuous through anything but loose-fitting garments, the round shape being easily recognisable. Further, there is a substantial waste of material when stamp-cutting or punching round work pieces from a starting material in sheet or web form, and when the breast pad is used, saturation of the absorbent material will first occur close to the nipple, after which the liquid will mainly be distributed in a vertical direction by the inner layers. The result of this is that the breast pad appears to be wet or moist long before the absor¬ bent effect of the absorbent material has been fully ex¬ ploited. Thus, the absorbent material in the upper region of the breast pad is only exploited to a low degree, because the liquid will mainly distribute itself vertically downwards when the absorbent material immediately concentrically adjacent to the nipple has been saturated. US-A-4,700,699 discloses a breast pad in the shape of a rectangular pocket terminated upwardly in a semicircle. This breast pad is placed against the breast with the semicircle facing upwards and the rectangular pocket downwards, so that the nipple is covered. In the pocket in the low region the absorbent layer is completely enclosed except upwardly by means of a liquid-impermeable layer. During use of this breast pad, liquid penetrating into the breast pad will migrate by gravity downwardly towards the bottom of the breast pad, i.e. the pocket referred to above, in which the liquid is collected and stored. Collecting liquid in a pocket in this manner may be very inconvenient, because a liquid-filled pocket suddenly being subjected to a pressure will, without warning, suddenly release a large portion of liquid that will run down along the lower part of the breast and possibly cause a large wet blotch of the clothing. Further, the very shape of this breast pad makes it difficult to give it a correct anatomical shape, for which reason it is difficult to achieve good wearing comfort, at the same time as the shape is easily recognisable through anything but very loose-fitting garments. The construction of these breast pads also makes them relatively difficult and costly to manufac¬ ture. Further, the reduction of heat-insulating capacity caused by insufficient absorption and consequent wetting may cause a detrimental cooling of the breast with consequent risk of inflammation (mastitis) . US 5,149,336 discloses a disposable, contoured, form fitting, absorbent breast pad comprising three layers, an inner fluid wicking layer, a central fluid absorbent layer, and an outer moisture resistant layer, which generally has the shape of a tear drop and dome-like cross-section and is large enough to encompass substantially the entire female breast and to fill substantially the average nursing and maternity bra cup. In order to encompass substantially the entire breast of a lactating mother the breast pad is bulky and unnecessary large. Further the breast pad according to US 5,149,336 can only be used together with a brassiere. The outer layer wraps around the bottom edge of the breast pad and extends upwardly along the interior concave surface of said pad in order to create a hollow interior space in which a central fluid absorbent layer is enveloped. When the milk is collected in this said hollow interior lying beneath the breast, this particular zone of the pad will swell and provide the breast pad with an artificial shape, which is very conspicuous through anything but loose-fitting garments. Until now no reference discloses a breast pad which at the same time offers good wearing comfort, quickly carries moisture away from the skin of the wearer, leaves the wearer with a dry feeling for a long period of time, appears imper¬ ceptible through normal garments without abutting strongly against the nipple causing irritation, leaves the wearer the choice of wearing a brassiere or not and not to forget has a shape which makes it relatively cheap to manufacture. One object of the invention is to provide a breast pad with the above mentioned features which gives the wearer a good wearing comfort and a high degree of safety against leakage of liquid. Another object of the invention is to provide processes for manufacturing of such breast pads in a simple and cheap way in order to exploit the material optimally with a minimum of waste. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a breast pad which is intended to quickly carry moisture away from the skin of the wearer and distribute it to a wide area of the pad, in order to keep the skin as dry as possible. At the same time the moisture can only penetrate the layer closest to the cloth in the form of vapour. Said breast pad having a geometry which can be formed to fit discreetly over the female breast. Furthermore, the invention relates to a method for manufac¬ turing a pad to be worn over the breast of a nursing human female. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In the following detailed part of the present description, the invention will be explained in more detail with reference to the exemplary embodiments of a breast pad and components of same according to the invention shown in the drawings, in which Figure 1 shows a first preferred layer assembly, Figure 2 shows a second preferred layer assembly, Figure 3 shows a third layer assembly, Figure 4 shows a preferred embodiment of a breast pad seen from the side intended to face the breast, Figure 5 shows the breast pad shown in Figure 4 in section along the line V-V, and Figures 6, 7 and 8 are three sketches indicating possible alternative shapes of the contour of the breast pad. The drawings are all schematic examples of specific embodi- ments of the invention and are not to be considered as being limiting for the scope of the invention in any way. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION In one aspect, the invention relates to a pad to be worn over the breast of a nursing human female comprising a first liquid pervious body-contacting member 1, a second liquid impervious member 4, and an absorbing member 3 between the first and second member, said pad having a geometry, which can be formed to fit discreetly over the female breast when the breast nipple is disposed within the pad so that at least more than 50% of the projected area of the absorbent member is disposed beneath the breast nipple. With this pad it is possible to achieve a more discreet and better fit to the breast, and thereby ensure a high degree of satisfaction for the nursing human female as she can act more freely than if she was wearing conventional products. This is especially important for nursing human females working or attending other normal social activities. When at least more than 50% of the projected area of the absorbent member is disposed beneath the breast nipple the risk of leakage is seen to be diminished considerably. According to an embodiment of the invention the second liquid impervious member consists of at least a liquid impervious layer and a soft outer layer. This soft outer layer may e.g. be a nonwoven layer. The soft outer layer will then be in contact with the clothing or an optional brassiere. According to a preferred embodiment of the invention at least two of the said members constituting the pad are substantially triangular in shape and fastened to each other. The fastening may be carried out at the periphery thereof. The substantially triangular shape is meant to cover all geometries from a simple triangle to pads having flaps extending from each of the three corners, especially symmetrical pads are preferred. With this arrangement it is possible to achieve a good fit for the breast, because the "wavy" edge region formed by the flaps or corners alternating with the intermediate regions can easily be adapted to the circumference of the breast in the zone of contact with the breast pad and also because the materials of said members are conformable, so that the pad or the main body of the pad can be shaped, before or during use, from a generally plane configuration into a configuration to fit the female breast by elastic and/or plastic deformation. Further, the "wavy" edge region makes the breast pad less liable to be subjected to a homogeneous surface pressure, thus reducing the risk of the absorbing function of the breast pad being compromised by some unfortunate pressure distribution, possibly due to the shape of the brassiere being used. If a pressure suddenly arises in an otherwise saturated region of absorption, this also makes it possible for liquid being pressed out of this region to migrate into a region that is not saturated nor subjected to this pressure. With an embodiment set forth above where the pad is shaped, before or during use, from a generally plane configuration, it is possible to manufacture the breast pad in a plane con- figuration making it extremely suited for packaging in stacks in a relatively compact state, the user then shaping the pads to fit her own breasts. In another embodiment where the members are shaped into a configuration to fit the female breast, the members are shaped before or during the manufacturing of said pad. With this embodiment, the user will avoid the inconvenience of having to shape the pads, and it is possible, especially when choosing a radius of curvature for the breast pad less than the natural radius of curvature of the breast to ensure that the pressure from the breast pad will mainly lie outside of the nipple area, at the same time as the breast pad lies in abutment with the breast with an "anatomical" curvature. A further way of avoiding the nipple from being subjected to pressure is when the central portion of the pad according to the invention includes a depression adapted to receive the breast nipple. The vaulted or arched triradial and preferably symmetrical shape of the breast pad is considerably better with regard to fixing in position than the previously known constructions of the breast pads. Further, this construction provides a softer and more pleasant breast pad capable of following the move- ments of the breast in a more natural manner without the inconveniences associated with the known constructions of breast pads. Further, the triradially symmetrical shape makes it possible to give the breast pad a larger surface area without going beyond the limits set by conventional brassieres. The triangular shape is also very advantageous in not being visually conspicuous as it is possible to give it a more flat shape than the known breast pads, and further, because its shape is similar to that of a conventional brassiere, it will frequently be taken for a brassiere and not for a breast pad, to the extent it can be perceived through the clothing. The triangular shape is also advantageous with regard to dis- tributing the liquid over the entire absorption layer, even though special distributive layers are not used in the manner provided in special embodiments of the invention, because the force of gravity will cause a major proportion of the liquid to migrate downwardly and a lesser proportion will be drawn upwardly, corresponding to the distribution of material in the spherical-triangular breast pad, because dividing this horizontally at half-height of the triangle will produce a distribution of area and material in the ratio one part upwards and three parts downwards. According to a further preferred embodiment of the invention the pad comprises at least one distributive means incorporated in the absorbent member and/or situated between the latter and the first member, said distributive means being adapted to distribute the liquid over the absorbent member. The distributive layer mentioned is intended to fulfil at least one of the functions with regard to vertical transfer of liquid, e.g. by capillary action, and transfer of liquid from a region having been saturated, e.g. occurring upon a suddenly arising pressure, to another and non-saturated region, so that the absorbent material may be exploited to the maximum extent by distributing the liquid over the entire area, and sudden leakages of liquid from more or less saturated breast pads are avoided. The distributive layer referred to may advantageously be provided in a manner in which the means for distributing the liquid are partially compressed selected regions 5 in the surface of the absorbent member or in layers 3a-3f comprised by same. The embodiments create a capillary effect capable of dis¬ tributing the liquid over the entire surface. This represents a simple and cheap method of manufacturing the distributive layer, at the same time ensuring the integration of the distributive layer with the absorbent layer and retaining the large freedom of choice of material. The distributive effect is augmented when the pad according to the invention comprises a number of layers 2,3,3a-3f having at least a partially distributive function. These distributive layers may advantageously be provided by assembling the absorbent layer from a number of mutually offset layers of absorbent material having been pre-embossed in a pattern. The liquid barrier for the absorbent layer at the edge regions may advantageously be provided by a pad according to an embodiment of the invention wherein a barrier extends along the circumference 7 of the absorbent member 3, said barrier being constituted by completely compressed regions. This embodiment is especially advantageous with regard to manufacture, since the starting material for the breast pad may be completely or partly assembled from the requisite layers prior to cutting the individual triangular breast pads from the sheet or web, e.g. by a punching operation, and after this or simultaneously, the barrier in the edge region of the absorbent layer is produced by compressing the edge region. The distributive layer may advantageously be shaped in the manner where the pad according to the invention comprises embossments in the form of lines 5 forming a pattern of substantially radially extending rays from a region 9 at the centre of the absorbent member to the edge regions 7 of same, said embossments being provided in the layer or layers 2,3 having distributive functions. The pad according to yet a further embodiment of the invention comprises embossments 5,8 in the form of point-like regions distributed over the surface of the absorbent member 3 in a predetermined pattern. This embodiment is especially advantageous with regard to spreading liquid from the inner layer outwardly towards the outer layer. If this spreading is necessary because of the nature of the materials used, it would otherwise be necessary to have a complex arrangement or to make perforations - the latter being difficult - if the starting material is a composite sheet or web comprising the almost or completely liquid-permeable outer layer, as in that case, there would be a risk of the outer layer being perforated. The embodiment of the invention in the form of a breast pad comprising embossments 5 in the form of partially compressed regions extending in the circumferential direction of the absorbent member 3 is advantageous with regard to ensuring a concentric propagation of liquid, especially at the edge regions, since in these regions, the propagation of liquid is limited in one direction. If it is desired to avoid displacement of the breast pad relative to the breast, a further embodiment of the pad may include an adhesive, preferably a skinfriendly adhesive for releasably securing the pad to the breast. The adhesive is preferably a hydrocolloid in order to be able to absorb liquid without detaching. In yet further embodiments the pad may include an adhesive for securing it either to an optional brassiere or directly to the clothing if no brassiere is used. Combination of these embodiments includes breast pads with an adhesive for securing the first member of the pad to the breast and another adhesive for securing the second member of the pad to the clothing or to an optional brassiere. Embodiments using adhesive can optionally be provided with release liners for protection of the adhesive before applica¬ tion of the breast pad. The release liners may be an integra¬ ted part of an optional packaging. With this arrangement, the breast pad will adhere to the breast. The adhesive referred to is mainly applied in the edge regions, and it may at the same time be utilised to secure a protective film over the breast pad, said film being removed before use. According to the invention the absorbent member of the pad may comprise cellulose fibres and/or a superabsorbent material. The superabsorbent material may be a powder and/or a fibre. In connection with nursing human females working or being otherwise active a pad is preferred wherein more than 50% of the absorbency of the absorbent member is beneath the breast nipple. In order to ensure that the liquid is retained in the pad, the second liquid impervious member may include parts extending around the periphery of the pad and over the edge portion of the first liquid pervious member. Still further the absorbent member of the invention may be thicker in the centre and taper towards all sides. This embodiment ensures absorption of liquid even if the leakage is very sudden and with high volume. In a preferred embodiment of the invention the pad 10 to be worn over the breast of a nursing human female comprises an absorbing member 3, a pervious body-contacting web 1, and an impervious web 4, with absorbent member disposed between the two webs, said pad being generally irregular in shape and being substantially cup-shaped with a depression in the centre of the cup to receive the nipple of the breast, the major portion of the absorbency of the pad being disposed beneath the breast nipple when the pad is worn against the female breast. In another aspect the invention relates to a method for manufacturing a pad 10 to be worn over the breast of a nursing human female, said method including the following steps: a) providing a substantially continuous supply of a band of a liquid pervious body contacting material, b) optionally providing a substantially continuous supply of acquisition/distributive members, and placing said acquisi¬ tion/distributive members on the band in predetermined distance, c) providing a substantially continuous supply of absorbent members, and placing said absorbent members on the band on top of the liquid pervious body contacting material and the optional acquisition/ distributive members in a predetermined distance, d) providing a substantially continuous supply of a liquid impervious material on top of the absorbent members, e) optionally pre-for ing each pad in a crimping or pressing station, f) cutting the pads substantially along their contour, g) optionally removing the scrap material, h) optionally giving each pad a predetermined three-dimensio¬ nal shape/form in a final forming station. In one embodiment of this method for manufacturing a pad the absorbent members are placed in such a way that every second of said members lies opposite in a predetermined pattern, the optional acquisition/distributive members are likewise the absorbent members placed in such a manner that every second of said acquisition/distributive members lies opposite in a predetermined pattern on the band in predetermined distance, and said absorbent members are placed on top of the optional acquisition/distributive members in a predetermined distance. This embodiment ensures optimal use of the material as very little waste material will be formed during the manufacturing of the pads. The triangular shape as such is very economical with regard to the material used, since the individual layer portions may be cut from material in sheet or web form practically without waste, and the shape as such and the functioning in use do not impose special limitations with regard to the choice of material . In a further embodiment of the invention the method for manufacturing a pad includes that the continuous band of liquid impervious material is provided with or placed on top of a soft carrier layer, which forms the outer layer of the final breast pad in contact with an optional brassiere. This carrier layer may be a non-woven material. The absorbent members can optionally be formed in line directly on top of the continuous band of the liquid pervious material e.g. by way of three-dimensional drum forming. The acquisition/distributive member can optionally be formed in line directly on top of the continuous band of the liquid pervious material e.g. by way of fibre deposition. The method for manufacturing a pad 10 according to the invention may include the following steps: a) providing a substantially continuous supply of a band of a absorbent material, b) cutting of said band of absorbent material into members with predetermined shape, c) removing and optionally recycling any scrap material, d) providing a substantially continuous supply of a band of a substantially liquid impervious material, which is combined with the absorbent members and acts as carrier layer during the rest of the manufacturing process, e) optionally providing a substantially continuous supply of acquisition/distributive members, and placing said acquisi¬ tion/distributive members on the absorbent members in prede¬ termined distance, f) providing a substantially continuous supply of a liquid pervious body contacting material on top of the absorbent members, g) optionally pre-forming each pad in a crimping or pressing station, h) cutting the pads substantially along their contour, i) optionally removing the scrap material, j) optionally giving each pad a predetermined three-dimensio- nal shape/form in a final forming station. Similar to the first method mentioned, this embodiment of the invention may include that the cutting of the absorbent members are performed in such a way that every second one lies opposite, and that every second of the acquisition/distribu¬ tive members likewise lies opposite when placed on the absor¬ bent members. MATERIALS AND METHODS The materials of the layers of the breast pads may be any suitable materials. Some materials have already been men¬ tioned, but are not meant to be limiting the possible materi¬ als that can be used. Some methods for manufacturing the breast pad according to the invention have been described, but any suitable method known per se may be used. EXPERIMENTAL PART The invention is explained in more detail below with reference to the Example disclosing embodiments of the present in¬ vention. The example is not considered to be limiting to the scope of the invention which is defined in the appended claims. EXAMPLE A pad to be worn over the breast of a nursing human female, wherein said pad comprises a first liquid pervious body- contacting member consisting of a hydrophilic PP 15 gs , a second liquid impervious member made of a thin PE, and an absorbing member containing fluff pulp mixed with SAP-powder between the first and second member, and wherein said pad has a geometry according to Fig 4 and 5 however without emboss¬ ments. The breast pad was provided with a soft carrier layer, which formed the outer layer of the final breast pad in contact with the optional brassiere. This carrier layer was a clothlike composite-nonwoven. The breast pads were tested in a open comparative test against a conventional breast pad and the results showed a significant preference for the geometry claimed in this invention, mainly due to a superior discretion when wearing the pad under any clothing. The invention has been described with reference to examples of specific embodiments thereof. Many modifications can be carried out without thereby deviating from the scope of the invention being defined by the scope of the appended claims.

Claims: CLAIMS 1. A pad (10) to be worn over the breast of a nursing human female, wherein said pad comprises a first liquid pervious body-contacting member (1) , a second liquid impervious member (4) , and an absorbing member (3) between the first and second member, and wherein said pad has a geometry, which can be formed to fit discreetly over the female breast when the breast nipple is disposed within the pad, so that at least more than 50% of the projected area of the absorbent member is disposed beneath the breast nipple. 2. A pad (10) to be worn over the breast of a nursing human female according to claim 1, wherein the pad has a substanti¬ ally triangular geometry, at least two of the members (3,4) being substantially triangular in shape and fastened to each other, and wherein the pad can be formed to fit discreetly over the female breast with more than 50% of the absorbing volume of the pad being disposed beneath the geometrical center of the pad. 3. The pad according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the second liquid impervious member consists of at least a liquid imper- vious layer and a soft outer layer. 4. The pad (10) according to any of the claims 1 - 3, wherein the materials of said members are conformable, so that the pad can be shaped, before or during application, from a generally plane configuration into a configuration to fit the female breast by elastic and/or plastic deformation. 5. The pad according to any of the claims 1 - 3, wherein said members are shaped into a configuration to fit the female breast, said members having been shaped before or during the manufacturing of said pad. 6. The pad according to any one of the claims 1 - 5, wherein at least one distributive means is incorporated in the ab¬ sorbent member and/or situated between the latter and the first member, said distributive means being adapted to distri- bute the liquid over the absorbent member. 7. The pad according to claim 6, comprising embossments in the form of lines (5) forming a pattern of substantially radially extending rays from a region (9) at the centre of the absorbent member to the edge regions (7) of same, said em¬ bossments being provided in the layer or layers (2,3) having distributive functions. 8. The pad according to any of the claims 1-7, including an adhesive for releasably securing the pad to the breast and/or a brassiere or clothing. 9. The pad according to any of the claims 1-8 wherein more than 50% of the absorbency of the absorbent member is beneath the breast nipple. 10. Method for manufacturing a pad (10) to be worn over the breast of a nursing human female, said method including the following steps: a) providing a substantially continuous supply of a band of a liquid pervious body contacting material, b) optionally providing a substantially continuous supply of acquisition/distributive members, and placing said acquisi¬ tion/distributive members on the band in predetermined distance, c) providing a substantially continuous supply of absorbent members, and placing said absorbent members on the band on top of the liquid pervious body contacting material and the optional acquisition/ distributive members in a predetermined distance, d) providing a substantially continuous supply of a liquid impervious material on top of the absorbent members, e) optionally pre-forming each pad in a crimping or pressing station, f) cutting the pads substantially along their contour, g) optionally removing the scrap material, h) optionally giving each pad a predetermined three-dimensio¬ nal shape/form in a final forming station.

Inventors: HANSEN GRAZYNA, LARSON LARS, MADSEN LARS BO, MARCUSSEN JAN, HANSEN, GRAZYNA, LARSON, LARS, MADSEN, LARS, BO, MARCUSSEN, JAN
Applicants: COLOPLAST AS, HANSEN GRAZYNA, LARSON LARS, MADSEN LARS BO, MARCUSSEN JAN, COLOPLAST A/S, HANSEN, GRAZYNA, LARSON, LARS, MADSEN, LARS, BO, MARCUSSEN, JAN
Application year: 1996
Main classification: A61F13
IPC codes: A61F13