Abstract:
A reusable sheath-like support for use with absorbent articles, and specifically used with ostomy appliances. The absorbent article provides an additional level of security and comfort to an ostomate already utilizing a two-piece or one-piece ostomy appliance of the type which is secured to the body with a faceplate. The faceplate provides an adhesive securement means such as a hydrocolloid adhesive member or a combination of hydrocolloid adhesive member and an integral or non-integral adhesive non-woven fabric or adhesive tape.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     Not applicable. 
     STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT 
     Not applicable 
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
     This invention relates to a support for a disposable absorbent device used with accessories for ostomy pouches. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Disposable absorbent devices such as adult incontinence pads, sanitary pads, or pantiliners are provided for the population whose bodily wastes are eliminated thru natural pathways rather than artificial means such as ileostomies, colostomies, or urostomies. An ostomy provides fecal or urinary diversion in emergent and elective settings and is a surgically created opening in which a portion of the intestine is brought through the abdominal wall to form a stoma that may be permanent or temporary depending on the reason for surgery, i.e., disease, injury, birth defects, or cancer. Pouching systems (also called appliances) are used to collect bodily waste through the surgically created openings on the abdomen. 
     Although appliance styles vary from manufacturer to manufacturer, there are two main types of pouching systems commercially available: one piece systems consisting of a pouch with a built-in skin barrier (also called a faceplate), and two-piece appliances composed of a faceplate and detachable pouch. A flange is provided on the two-piece system in the form of a pair of annular or ring-like rigid plastic parts designed to aid in either securing the pouch to the faceplate or removing the pouch at the user&#39;s discretion. A one-piece system connects the faceplate to the pouch by welding or heat sealing. Faceplates are comprised of an adhesive layer formed of a soft, skin-friendly hydrocolloid containing adhesive material and provide therein a centrally located aperture to receive a stoma. Systems may further provide a peel and stick tape on the outer edges of a faceplate for additional adhesion. Sticky skin wipes also help with adhesion of the appliance faceplate and said faceplates are attached to the peristomal region of the user to protect the skin from irritating digestive juices. A pouch may or may not be equipped with a drainable end. 
     Ostomates are faced with many problems associated with stomas and stoma waste collection pouches. One critical problem faced by ostomates is loss of adhesion of the faceplate from the skin, threatening a resulting loss of containment of waste. 
     Another problem is that while considerations for stoma placement may be optimum, some part of an appliance faceplate may lie directly underneath the waistband of a wearer&#39;s clothing contributing to loss of adhesion. 
     Fear of public humiliation due to such failures with the faceplate adhesion causes many ostomates to avoid returning to normal lifestyle activities, including work and usual attire. An absorbent article which may or may not be adhesively attached to a support device that is able to provide firm support for a disposable absorbent article for use with ostomy appliances to provide added protection and comfort, would bring peace of mind to an ostomate regarding leakage of primary means. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of an ostomy appliance. 
         FIG. 2  is one embodiment of an absorbent article for an ostomy appliance 
         FIG. 3  is a cross-sectional view of an absorbent article support. 
         FIG. 3A  is a perspective view of an absorbent article support of  FIG. 3 . 
         FIG. 4  is a back view of an absorbent article support of  FIG. 3  showing its placement on a faceplate with garment facing border of an absorbent article. 
         FIG. 5  is a second embodiment of an absorbent article support having an offset aperture. 
         FIG. 5A  is a cross-sectional view of the support of  FIG. 5 . 
     
    
    
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     A reusable sheath-like support for use with absorbent articles, and specifically used with ostomy appliances. The present invention provides an additional level of security and comfort to an ostomate already utilizing a two-piece or one-piece ostomy appliance of the type which is secured to the body with a faceplate. The faceplate provides an adhesive securement means such as a hydrocolloid adhesive member or a combination of hydrocolloid adhesive member and an integral or non-integral adhesive non-woven fabric or adhesive tape. 
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     The illustration of  FIG. 1  is given to allow for visual understanding of an ostomy appliance system and is not part of the invention of the present application. 
       FIG. 1  is a typical example of a current, commercially available two-piece ostomy pouching system consisting of a pouch  40 , a pouch flange  42 , belt tabs  44 A and  44 B on either side of the pouch flange; a tab on the upper flange facilitates easy removal, and a fold and lock drain  48  for removal of waste. The two-piece appliance also consists of a faceplate  30 , with coupling flange  34 B, flange base  34 A and centrally located aperture  36  to receive a stoma  31 . An outer taped portion  32  aids adhesion of an appliance faceplate on the abdomen. 
       FIG. 2  illustrates one embodiment of an absorbent article  110  disclosed in another application, and for use with an absorbent article support  100  of the present application. The individual components of the absorbent article  110  consists of two sides or two surfaces, a body facing side or body facing surface  111 A, and a garment facing side or garment facing surface  111 B (not shown), a fluid permeable top sheet  112 , a fluid impermeable backsheet  114 , and cores  120  and  121  interposed between. 
     Absorbent core  121  may be a distribution or transfer sheet, its purpose well known in the art, and may be interposed between the topsheet  112  and outer core  120  or alternately, may be a web backing layer interposed between outer core  120  and backsheet  114 , but all in accordance with the best mode of manufacture to accomplish the desired functions. Alternately, cores  120  and  121  may be one layer with varied degree of thickness or may be of a consistent thickness throughout. The absorbent article  110  also provides a centrally located aperture  118  through each member component of said absorbent article, for the purpose of maintaining a position upon a faceplate  30  of an ostomy appliance. 
     The fluid permeable top sheet  112  and fluid impermeable backsheet  114  extend beyond the cores  120 ,  121  in at least a lateral direction and are joined to one another in the area outside said cores  120 ,  121  to form an edge seam  116  and/or a garment-facing border  128 , and may be joined by gluing, crimping or heat-sealing completely around the periphery of the absorbent article, including sealing the edges of central aperture  118 , secured by any means known in the art. Compression lines  119  and compression circles  119 A are shown leveraging the use of gravity to help divert and absorb escaping effluent inwardly while compression circles  119 A near aperture  118  help prevent leakage at the flange  34 B of a faceplate  30 . 
     The outer border  128 , having a front, or body facing border  128 A, and a back, or garment facing border  128 B, (not shown) may be supplied in any shape or form that provides the best protection against leakage if outer border  128  is utilized for taping the absorbent article  110  to the body and said border may be in any shape desirable to provide the best protection for the wearer and is not limited to the illustrations given in the drawings. 
       FIG. 2  also shows the absorbent article  110  has two centerlines, a transverse (or lateral) centerline A-A and a longitudinal centerline Y-Y. The term “transverse” as used herein, refers to a line, axis, or direction in the plane of the absorbent article  110  that is generally aligned with (e.g., approximately parallel to) the abdomen of a wearer. The terms “longitudinal” used herein, are interchangeable, and refer to a line, axis or direction within the plane of the absorbent article  110  that is generally perpendicular to the transverse direction. In use, the absorbent article  110  is interposed between a faceplate  30  and a pouch  40  and is worn in a transverse direction along line A-A, i.e., generally parallel a user&#39;s abdomen. The support  100  likewise having transverse and longitudinal directions, being in the general shape and form of an absorbent article  110  in that the absorbent article  110  is contoured to adhesively attach to the slightly concave body-facing surface  102  of support  100  shown in  FIG. 3 , not including a garment-facing border  128 B. 
     The absorbent article  110 , when worn without a support  100  or not adhesively attached, is applied by guiding the pouch end  48  of an ostomy appliance through central aperture  118  of body facing surface  111 A of the topsheet  112 , and out garment facing surface  111 B, and lifting the article up and over the upper portion of a pouch  41 ; central aperture  118  is then circumferentially surrounding the coupled appliance flanges  42 / 34 B. The body facing surface  111 A is intended to be worn adjacent the faceplate  30  of the wearer&#39;s preferred appliance. 
     In the case of a one-piece appliance, central aperture  118  is placed generally adjacent the connection of the pouch to the faceplate (usually the heat weld) and body facing surface  111 A lying on the faceplate  30 . In the case the absorbent article is not adhesively attached, the support would be applied in the same fashion as the absorbent article  110  and interposed between the absorbent article  110  and the pouch  40 . 
       FIG. 3  illustrates a support  100  for an absorbent article and consists of a slightly concave body-facing surface  102 , a slightly convex garment facing surface  103 , a central aperture  101 , a flat body-facing landing zone  104  that may be provided with optional protrusions  105  (not shown), a rolled edge  107  and optional belt tabs  108 A &amp; B as shown in  FIG. 3B . The support is worn in a transverse direction A-A on the abdomen, (i.e., generally perpendicular to the body). 
     While an absorbent article  110  worn alone would bring additional comfort and peace of mind to a user, there are additional considerations in favor of a support  100  for an absorbent article  110 . One benefit would be to protect the adhesion of a faceplate  30  of an ostomy appliance from the pressure applied from waistbands of form-fitted clothing by means of a more firm material interposed between. 
     A thickness of a support  100  may be at least about 0.06 inches ( 1/16 in.) more or less, or up to 0.125 inches (⅛ in) more or less, and may be of substantial thickness to provide this protection. Another advantage gained is that a pressure applied to the absorbent article  110  by a flexible, yet rigid material for a support  100  may allow greater absorption in the absorbent article  110  in the event of a leak of the faceplate  30 , when worn under form-fitted clothing, allowing a closer engagement of the absorbent article  110  to the area surrounding the flanges  34 B/ 42  of a pouching system and extending outwardly past the periphery of a faceplate  30  (shown in phantom) as can be seen in  FIG. 4 . 
     Another beneficial reason is provision of a more sleek profile under form-fitted clothing by keeping an absorbent article close to the body. Still yet another advantageous option is utilizing the outer border  128  of an absorbent article  110  as a means to provide comfort to the skin of the wearer when worn between the support  100  and the skin as illustrated in  FIG. 4 . Another benefit is to help maintain placement of the absorbent article  110  without adhesive means on said absorbent article  110  or support  100 , especially for those who may still be sensitive from surgery or who may have hairy abdomens where an adhesive may be painful to remove. Another benefit is that the absorbent article  110  is held in place by the flange-fit application of a support  100  in order to maintain an advantageous position to capture escaping effluent in case of a leak in the ostomy appliance. 
     The reusable absorbent article support  100  is applied to the abdomen together with an absorbent article  110  once the absorbent article&#39;s backsheet  114  is adhesively attached to the support  100  by strings of adhesive or a pattern of adhesive spots or pressure sensitive adhesives of the kind generally used on pantiliners and the like that are adhered to clothing. The pouch end  48  of an ostomy appliance is guided through central apertures  118 / 101  of body facing surfaces  111 A/ 102 , with the absorbent article  110  adhesively interposed between; the pouch  40  is brought outward of the garment facing surface  103  and the support  100  holding the absorbent article  110  is then lifted up and over the upper portion of a pouch  41 . 
     The absorbent article  110  of body-facing surface  111 A now faces an appliance faceplate  30 . Central aperture  101  of the support  100  is then circumferentially surrounding the coupled appliance flanges  42 / 34 B or the heat weld of a one-piece ostomy appliance, as the case may be. The adhesively attached absorbent article  110  conjoined with the support  100  is intended to be worn adjacent the faceplate  30  of an ostomy appliance, garment-facing surface  103  of support  100  lying adjacent to a pouch  40 . 
     The central aperture  101  of the support  100  may be provided in varied sizes to accommodate various flange sizes of appliances, and preferably in skin tone colors so as not to be noticed under clothing. 
     Common flange diameters of appliance faceplates generally range more or less than about 1⅞ inches (47 mm), more or less than about 1¾ inches (44 mm), more or less than about 2¼ inches (57 mm), more or less than about 2¾ (70 mm), and more or less than 4.0 inches (100 mm). 
     Common and generally square faceplate sizes measured from their peripheral edges may range in diameter approximately more or less than about 1⅞ inch (47 mm) square (infant size), up to more or less than about 4.0 inches (100 mm) square, more or less than about 5.0 inches (127 mm) square, and up to more or less than about 6.0 (152 mm) square, or possibly larger in less common or specially ordered sizes. Circular faceplate diameters or triangular configurations in similar size ranges, as mentioned above, may also be available. 
     In case an absorbent article  110  does not have an outer border  128 , outer periphery  104  on the body-facing surface of support  100  may have optional protrusions  105  that create discontinuous contact facilitating blood flow in the non-contact areas when support  100  lies directly on the skin. Itchiness or tingling, which may be caused by pressure on the skin, may also be relieved by the presence of such support protrusions. Heavy texture, a pattern, or possibly lettering provided in relief the flat body-facing landing zone  104  of the support  100 , stamped or molded into the material, may facilitate blood flow in non contact areas when constant pressure is applied from form fitted clothing or a security strap (not shown). Security straps are known in the art of ostomy appliances and may be utilized in this application to hold the conjoined apparatuses close to the body for greater protection against leaks. 
     As can be seen in  FIG. 4 , the circular embodiment of an absorbent article support  100  as illustrated, may be appropriate for faceplate shapes that are not circular, or a square shaped absorbent article support  100  may be appropriate for a circular shaped faceplate, etc. and the illustrated embodiment is not meant in any way to limit the scope of the invention, nor is it limited to the particular types or configurations of absorbent articles shown in the drawings. Absorbent article supports  100  may be provided in various colors, sizes of small, medium or large, daytime or nighttime wear. Also, the central aperture  101  may be offset of the longitudinal centerline, allowing added coverage in areas below and beside the appliance faceplate  30  and avoiding a waistband of a wearer whose ostomy appliance is not under a waistband of clothing. 
     An absorbent article  110  configured to fit a support  100  may have an overall diameter of less than or equal to about 10 inches (254 mm), preferably less than or equal to about 8½ (220 mm), more preferably less than or equal to about 6½ inches (165 mm), and of more than or equal to about 5½ inches (140 mm), and of more than or equal to about 3½ inches (90 mm). The absorbent article (without flaps or circular appendages, if any), may be preferably more than or equal to about 4.0 inches (100 mm), more preferably, more than or equal to 5½ inches (140 mm). 
     The support  100  may have an overall diameter of more or less than about ¼ inch (0.06 cm) than the absorbent article sizes listed above, extending past the outer periphery of an absorbent article  110  to hold an absorbent article  110  closely to a user&#39;s faceplate  30 . 
     The absorbent article support  100  has a slightly domed surface  106  having a central aperture  101  with a flange clearance of at least ⅛ inch (0.125 in.), for ease of use to keep from having to disengage pouch flange  42  from coupling member  34 B, and may be formed of any suitable material that may be formed into the desired configurations as explained above and exemplified in the figures. The capacity of the slightly domed surface  106  may vary depending on the absorbent article&#39;s thickness, possibly configured for daytime or nighttime use. 
     Suitable materials for manufacture may be chosen from materials of a non-flexible or flexible grades of plastic, but more preferably flexible, such as polystyrene, polyethylene, polyvinyl chloride, polypropylene or the like, or even thermoplasic polymers such as cyclic olefin copolymers or the like, or more preferably a medical grade thermoplastic elastomers and their blends (TPE) such as made by ExxonMobil Chemical called Santoprene™ which is latex-free in a durometer of about more or less than about 65 durometer, or more or less than about a 75 durometer, preferably more or less than about a 90 durometer, but more preferably, more or less than about 80 durometer. Thermoplastic vulcanizates (TPV) or their blends may also be used having similar durometers. 
     The absorbent article support  100  may be formed by injection molding, extrusion processes or any other process, i.e., stamped or molded that may impart a degree of rigidity on the garment facing surface  111 B of an absorbent article  110  so that when form-fitted clothing is pressed against the layers of an absorbent article  110 , pressure to the absorbent article  110  is applied to the abdomen to aid capture of escaping effluent of an ostomy faceplate  30 , to absorb and help prevent leakage of intestinal or urinary output in the case of faceplate failure. A flexible material may overlay the edges for example, forming a gasket either removable or adhesively adhered by bonding or overmoulding and co-injection/co-extrusion processes where a more rigid support is formed and edges are softened by use of the more flexible and comfortable edging. 
     The support  100  may have a means to attach a security strap by tabs  108 A and  108 B shown in  FIG. 3A  on either side to hold said support close to the body, or may be attached by hook and loop means applied in a circular, square, random or otherwise, in order to bring the absorbent article close to the body in case form-fitted clothing is not utilized for this purpose. 
       FIG. 5  alternately illustrates a second embodiment of a plastic absorbent article support  100  illustrated having an offset of center aperture  101  for the purpose of maintaining a position upon the faceplate of an ostomy appliance, and avoiding the waistband of a user who may have an ostomy faceplate  30  that is not under a waistband. The offset may also allow the device to be worn sideways for those who need more protection or comfort to one side or another of their appliance under form-fitted clothing. 
     The support  100  is made of a very thin material, with an overall thickness of about more or less than about 1/16 inch (0.06 in), but may be provided in any thickness up to more or less than about ⅛ in (0.125 in) and selected from any the above mentioned plastics and having any shape complementary to an absorbent article, having a flattened edge that may or may not rests on the outer border  128  of an absorbent article  110  but may also rest directly on the skin of the user. The absorbent article  110  is attached to the concave or slightly raised body-facing surface  102  of the support  100 , as usual, and may be used with an absorbent article  110 , which is also off-center in its central aperture  118 . 
     The absorbent article holder  100  may have a centrally and slightly raised portion  106 A on its garment facing surface  103  as seen in  FIG. 5A  and may be in various shapes such as circular, oblong, triangular or any other shape conforming to or extending beyond a user&#39;s faceplate  30  and having a dimension complementary to the absorbent articles disclosed herein; central aperture  101  may be provided to accommodate various pouching system flanges currently available and in any color but preferably the color of skin as not to be seen under clothing. 
     The absorbent article holder  100  may be formed of various grades of plastic such as those mentioned above, to provide flexibility yet rigid support for an absorbent article while providing a sleek profile for the user worn under form fitted clothing and added protection against leakage, having a rounded or substantially flat distal edge  107  and a substantially flat landing zone  104 . The support  100  may have an apertured surface for ventilation and optional protrusions in the form of lettering, texture or a pattern in relief. 
     While preferred embodiments of the invention have been shown and described, modifications thereof can be made by one skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and teachings of the invention. The embodiments described herein are exemplary only, and are not intended to be limiting. 
     Many variations and modifications of the invention disclosed herein are possible and are within the scope of the invention.