Patent Number: 042232295
Section: description

Referring now in detail to the drawings, a human head is pictorially shown in FIG. 1, and partially skeletonized for better illustration of the present invention. To this end the lower frontal portion of the head has the external face anatomy removed and thus showing as a remainder in relative clarity the lower jaw bone at 12, a portion of the upper jaw at 14, and very broadly there is indicated a section of bone at 16 from which teeth normally arise. The pictorially depicted head additionally shows for physical orientation purposes, an ear 18, eyes at 20 and 22, a nose fragment at 24. The interconnection of upper and lower jaws is broadly indicated at 26. The rear head lobe is broadly indicated at 28. As pointed out hereinbefore the present invention has as its primary object the protection of teeth, gingiva, periodontal bone, salivary glands and adjacent body areas from direct impingement of uncontrolled rays used, for example, in radiation therapy, and applied to patient areas such as the head neck thyroid etc. This protection is attained, according to the present invention, by means of intraoral and extraoral radiation shield portions. The intraoral shield portion is broadly designated 30 and the extraoral shield portion is broadly indicated at 32. In most circumstances both of the shield portions will be simultaneously used in coacting composite operative positions as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3. Both the intraoral and extraoral shield portions preferably consist of an inner sheet or layer of lead, covered with a plastic material of a type and having properties to prevent engagement of the lead with any part of the human anatomy. For purposes of assembly into the composite unit when desired, the intra oral shield portion has a forwardly projecting multiple configuration and dimensioned tongue like attachment member 34. A first portion 36 is relatively flat and has a truncated triangular shaped segment narrowed toward the front end, and having a front terminal portion 38 of less width, and of generally rectilinear shape and serving as a frontal extension from the first portion. Superimposed on the first flat truncated portion 36 is a rib 40 which is extended upwardly above the upper surfaces of the first and second frontal portions 36, 38. This rib 40 and a lower rib 40A serve as a positioner, or a stop, for the extraoral shield portion when the two are combined or joined. The extraoral shield portion 32 has a generally oval shaped opening or hole 42 therethrough. This hole or opening 42 has dimensions such that the attachment member 34 can be inserted therethrough, with the frontal portion 38 extended through the opening, and the rear of the shield will then be engaged against the external surfaces of the portion 36, and restrained from more rearwardly engagement over the member. The ridges or ribs 40, 40A serve as a stop and positioning member at this time. From FIGS. 1 and 2 it will be seen that the extraoral shield portion 32 is generally curvilinear in shape and adapted to encompass the lower front portion of the head. This extraoral shield includes rearwardly extended slot or wind portions 44 and 46, which in the embodiment shown have an increased depth toward the free rear ends 48 and 50. The dimensions of the extraoral shield is such as to extend over and around the face substantially from ear to ear, and preferably is provided with a lower inwardly directed cap shaped edge 52. The dimensions and configuration provide a shield which covers the extraoral anatomy of the face, and provides protection for the parotid, sublingual and salivary glands. Under some circumstances use of the extraoral portion may not be desirable, such as when X-rays of the glands, for example, are to be taken. Otherwise the extraoral shield portion would normally be combined with the intraoral shield portion mounting on the attachment 34. The area of covering protection can be seen and more readily understood from FIGS. 2 and 3 of the drawings. This extraoral shield portion, similar to the intraoral shield portion, is constructed with an inner lead sheet or layer member 54, and a plastic material cover or coating 56 of a suitable material. The primary function of this plastic coating is to prevent contact between the lead and any part of the anatomy. Representative of such materials are synthetic resins like methyl methacrylates, synthetic polyamides such as nylon, and Dow Corning silicones for biological use. The intraoral shield portion indicated broadly at 30 in FIG. 1 is shown in greater detail in FIGS. 3 and 4. This member is somewhat in the nature or configuration of dental impression trays, known in the dental profession, and for practical usage may, for example, be provided in three different adult sizes and one or more children sizes. These members have generally curvilinear configurations commensurate with the normal dentition of humans, and include an upper cup shaped section 58 and an inverted lower cup shaped section 60 which are joined or interconnected at their apices 62. The configurations and dimensions of these cup shaped sections are devised to provide maximum possible coverage of lower teeth 64, upper teeth 66 and related gingiva or gum areas 68, the dimensions being of course controlled by the depths defined between upper lip 70 and lower lip 72 and the related gum and tooth regions. This relationship is clearly shown in FIG. 3 with the front cup surfaces 74 being interposed between the teeth and inner surfaces of the lips and a rear cup surface 76 being positioned behind the teeth in the mouth. The plastic material can have physical characteristics such that the teeth can bite on the flat center bases or bottoms of the cup shaped sections to hold it in place, or alternatively, as shown in FIG. 5, the cups can be filled with a soft and resilient material 78 such as a polyfoam for example. This material is not necessary however. The thickness of the lead sheet can of course vary, although roughly the dimension will be between one millimeter and 5 millimeters. This will depend to some extent on the intensity of radiation used. Under normal circumstances the intraoral shield portion is designed for a single usage, that is, not to be cleansed and/or sterilized and then used with a different patient. The extraoral shield portion is reusable however, since it is not normally necessary to sterilize this unit. It is obvious that the specific composition and/or materials used for the shield portions can vary as known in the art. The attachment 34 not only serves in the nature of an interlocking key between the two portions, but additionally can serve as a handle for manipulation of the device. While a preferred embodiment of the invention has been shown and described, manifestly minor changes can be effected without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention as defined in, and limited solely by, the appended claims.