Abstract:
A protective guard for protecting a body joint, the protective guard comprising: a first body having a first end and a second end; a second body having a first end and a second end, the second body rotatably connected to the first body at the second end of the first body, the first body and the second body defining an opening therebetween; and an extension member that extends distally from the first body towards the second body across the opening, wherein the extension member has a curvilinear profile with an apex aligned with the body joint. The extension member allows movement of the body joint while protecting the joint from direct impact.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    This application claims priority to provisional application 61/924,616 entitled “Constrained Thumb Protector,” filed Jan. 7, 2014, which is hereby incorporated herein in its entirety. 
     
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    The present invention relates to protective guards for the hand for use during activities, such as athletic activities, which may create a risk of damage or injury, and in some cases further injury, to one or more rays of the hand. 
       DESCRIPTION OF THE RELATED ART 
       [0003]    Protective guards of the prior art typically describe devices that attach externally to a protective glove (for example, U.S. Pat. No. 8,181,275 to Saturnio; US Pat. Pub. No. 2012/0284892 to Szurley et al; U.S. Pat. No. 7,784,110 to Jourde et al, which are hereby incorporated herein in their entireties), but fail to conform anatomically to the thumb. These designs prevent close proximity of the protective apparatus to the hand and incomplete protection due to increased clearance between the thumb and rigid protective element. 
         [0004]    Most prior art designs of protective guards protect primarily from direct impact to the dorsal surface of the thumb. This leaves the thumb vulnerable to injuries from direct impact on the volar surface, especially the volar aspect of the distal phalanx when the thumb is in an extended position. U.S. Pat. No. 5,963,985 to Behr et al, which is hereby incorporated herein in its entirety, encapsulates the tip (distal phalanx) of the thumb and addresses volar impact, but it is primarily designed to “absorb shock directed to the tip of the thumb in a direction substantially parallel to the long axis of the thumb”. It does so in a rigid manner and does not allow any physiologic movement of the thumb. Flexion of the interphalangeal joint is essential for gripping of the stick. 
         [0005]    Prior art is designed to prevent hyperextension only, typically described as the direction opposite of flexion. This fails to account for ligamentous injuries to the articular joints in all directions both physiologic and non-physiologic. Specifically, U.S. Pat. No. 8,181,275 to Saturnio and U.S. Pat. No. 7,784,110 to Jourde et al, do not prevent radial deviation of the metacarpal-phalangeal joint and subsequent injury to the ulnar collateral ligament. There is a need, therefore, to allow physiological movement of the thumb, while preventing volar impact and ligamentous injuries to the articular joints. 
       BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0006]    The protective guard of the present invention incorporates static or fixed positioning of the metacarpal, proximal phalanx, and metacarpophalangeal joint of a ray of the hand with a linked, articulated distal phalanx protective portion which allows for full functional flexion and limited extension of the inter-phalangeal joint. Protected flexion and extension of the inter-phalangeal joint may be accomplished by a curved dorsal extension from the metacarpal/proximal phalanx protective element that abuts the distal phalanx protective element as the inter-phalangeal joint increases the degrees of extension from a neutral position. The curved dorsal extension from the metacarpal/proximal phalanx protective element also provides protection from direct impact over the dorsal interphalangeal joint when it is in the flexed position. Finally, the current design is to be worn inside a standard protective glove or alone. 
         [0007]    In one embodiment, the protective guard for protecting a body joint, the protective guard comprises a first body having a first end and a second end; a second body having a first end and a second end, the second body rotatably connected to the first body at the second end of the first body, the first body and the second body defining an opening therebetween; and an extension member that extends distally from the first body towards the second body across the opening, the extension member having a curvilinear profile comprising an apex, wherein the extension member allows movement of the body joint while protecting the joint from direct impact. The second body may be rotatably connected to the first body with a hinged connection to allow movement of first body relative to the second body. In some embodiments, at least one of the first body and the second body has a curved outer surface and a curved inner surface. At least one of the first body, the second body and the extension may be constructed from a rigid material. The first body may be constructed from the same material as the second body. The extension may be constructed from the same material as the first body or the second body. In some embodiments, the protective guard further comprises a securing strap for securing the guard to the body. The protective guard may have a lining material on an inner surface of at least one of the first body and the second body and/or a gripping coating on an outer surface of at least one of the first body and the second body. 
         [0008]    Where the protective guard is used for protecting the interphalangeal joint of a ray of the hand, the first body is a metacarpal portion and the second body is a distal phalanx portion. When the protective guard is positioned about the ray, flexion and extension of an interphalangeal joint is allowed, while providing protection from direct impact. In some embodiments, the metacarpal portion extends from about the carpometacarpal joint of the ray to the metacarpophalangeal joint of the ray. The metacarpal portion may be generally curved and at least partially circumscribes the dorsal, radial and volar sides of the ray. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTIONS OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0009]    While the specification concludes with claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter that is regarded as forming the various embodiments of the present disclosure, it is believed that the invention will be better understood from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying Figures, in which: 
           [0010]      FIG. 1  depicts the dorsal view of one embodiment of a protective guard of the present invention, herein depicted as a right-sided thumb guard. 
           [0011]      FIG. 2  depicts the radial view of one embodiment of a protective guard of the present invention, herein depicted as a right-sided thumb guard. 
           [0012]      FIG. 3  depicts the volar view of one embodiment of a protective guard of the present invention, herein depicted as a right-sided thumb guard. 
           [0013]      FIG. 4  depicts the ulnar view of one embodiment of a protective guard of the present invention, herein depicted as a right-sided thumb guard. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0014]    The present disclosure relates to novel and advantageous protective guards for hand rays, i.e. the thumb or fingers. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to novel and advantageous protective guards that allow sufficient physiological movement of the ray, while preventing injury, or further injury, to the ray or ligaments. 
         [0015]      FIGS. 1-4  show one embodiment of the inventive protective guard  10  disclosed herein. The inventive protective guard may be constructed for protection of a ray on one or both of the right or left hand. In at least the embodiment shown in  FIGS. 1-4 , the inventive protective guard  10  is constructed for use with the first ray (i.e. thumb) of the right hand, although the device may be used with any ray (i.e. thumb or finger). As shown in  FIGS. 1-4 , the protective guard  10  comprises a first body  20  and a second body  40 . First body  20  and second body  40  may be constructed of metal, plastic, polymer or any combination of such materials. Desirably, first body  20  and second body  40  are constructed of a rigid material, although it is contemplated by the invention that first body  20  and second body  40  are constructed from a flexible material or a shape memory material. In one embodiment, the first body  20  and the second body  40  are constructed from a thermoplastic, which may be porous. In some embodiments, at least one of the first body  20  and the second body  40  may have a thickness of between about 0.03 inches (0.7 mm) and 0.3 inches (7.6 mm), and in one embodiment may have a thickness of about 0.06 inches (1.6 mm). 
         [0016]    In at least the embodiment shown, first body  20  is a metacarpal portion and comprises a first end  22 , a second end  23  distal from the first end  22 , an outer surface  24 , an inner surface  26 , and a thickness between the outer surface  24  and the inner surface  26 . First body  20  is configured to extend between the carpometacarpal (CMC) joint of the first ray at the first end  22  and metacarpophalangeal (MCP) joint of the first ray at the second end  23 . In at least one embodiment, the outer surface  24  and the inner surface  26  are curved and at least partially circumscribe the dorsal, radial and volar sides of the first ray. In at least one embodiment, the first body  20  is configured to statically fix the ray between the CMC joint and the MCP joint in a functional position for grasping or gripping a stick or racquet of typical size that would be utilized in athletic activities, such as lacrosse, hockey, tennis, racquetball, golf, baseball, cricket, ping pong, badminton, hurling, polo, and other athletic activities that use a stick or racquet. The degrees of flexion, extension, abduction, and opposition allowed by the first body  20  for the CMC and MCP joints may be standardized for mass production or customized to fit the specific grip tendencies of an individual athlete. In at least one embodiment for the first ray, the construction of first body  20  projects distally from a position on or about the trapezius of the first ray and will be nearly circumferential at the level of the carpal and first metacarpal (covering the dorsal, radial, and volar sides as shown in  FIGS. 1-4 ) as this allows the user to place the first ray into the protective guard  10  while protecting said structures by the dorsal and volar extensions. As first body  20  projects distally from near the first web space (i.e., the space between the first ray and a second adjacent ray) and it will become circumferentially enclosed on, about, or near the MCP joint. The first body, therefore, allows for static or fixed positioning of the metacarpal, proximal phalanx. 
         [0017]    As shown in  FIGS. 1-4 , in some embodiments, a second body  40  is rotatably connected to the first end of the first body  20 . The second body  40  is a distal phalanx portion and, in some embodiments, the second body comprises a first end  42 , a second end  43  distal from the first end  42 , an outer surface  44 , an inner surface  46 , and a thickness between the outer surface  44  and the inner surface  46 . In at least one embodiment, the outer surface  44  and the inner surface  46  are curved and in some embodiments, the second body  40  will enclose the distal phalanx circumferentially, covering the dorsal, volar, radial, ulnar surfaces including the tip as shown in  FIGS. 1-4 . In at least one embodiment, the rotatable connection  48  of the first body and the second body defines an opening  50  that is aligned with the IP joint. The connection  48  may comprise a hinged connection. In the embodiments shown, the first body  20  and the second body  40  are connect to one another on both the ulna and radial sides as shown in  FIGS. 1-4 . The rotatable connection  48  of the second body  40  to the first body  20  at the level of the IP joint by an articulation composed of a hinge joint that allows motion of the IP joint at least partially within opening  50  and in the directions commonly referred to as flexion and extension in normal IP motion, while protecting the distal phalanx. 
         [0018]    First body  20  comprises at least one extension  30   a.  In some embodiments, extension  30   a  projects distally near second end  23  and convexly extends toward the dorsal side of the ray, the extension  30   a  having an apex shown generally at  30   b  directed dorsally and centered over the inter-phalangeal (IP) joint. The extension  30   a  projects distally towards the IP joint. The extension  30   a  allows for flexion and extension of the inter-phalangeal joint, while providing protection from direct impact over the dorsal inter-phalangeal joint when it is in the flexed position. 
         [0019]    In some embodiments, first body  20  and second body  40  may be connected or tethered to one another on the volar surface via a strap, tether or other similar connection to prevent hyperextension of the IP joint, either with or without the extension  30 . 
         [0020]    In some embodiments, the protective guard is secured to the ray by friction forces or by utilizing one or more securement straps. For example, the first body  20  may be secured to the ray or another position of the hand by a strap, or series of straps, that project from the volar surface of the metacarpal portion of the guard in an ulnar, then dorsal, and radial direction to be secured to the dorsal surface of the metacarpal portion of the guard. 
         [0021]    At least a portion of the interior surfaces  26 ,  46  of the first body  20  and the second body  40  may be lined to provide better fit and cushioning of the first ray for the comfort of the user. Further, in some embodiments, at least a portion of the interior surfaces  26 ,  46  may be manufactured with compressive rubber composite in a varied pattern that allows for better gripping of the athletic stick. 
         [0022]    In some embodiments, a device for protecting a hand from injury may comprise one of more protective guards. 
         [0023]    The device for protecting a hand from injury may further comprise a glove having an exterior surface and an interior surface. In some embodiments, the protective guard may be fixed to the outer surface of the glove. For example, in one embodiment, the inner surfaces  26 ,  46  abut the outer surface of the glove. In other embodiments, the protective guard may be fixed to the inner surface of the glove. For example, in one embodiment, the outer surfaces  24 ,  44  abut the inner surface of the glove. In still other embodiments, the protective guard may be disposed between an inner layer and an outer layer of the glove. In addition to the athletic uses discussed herein, the protective guard may be used alone or with a glove for prevention of injuries while riding bicycles, snowmobiles, racing cycles, motorcycles, all-terrain vehicles, and other off-road vehicles. 
         [0024]    Although the embodiments disclosed herein have been described as being used in the metacarpal and distal phalanx regions of the ray of the hand in order to protect the inter-phalangeal joint while allowing movement thereof, it is contemplated by the invention that modifications of the first body and the second body may be made to adapt the design for use with respect to other joints of the body, e.g. elbows and knees. 
         [0025]    While certain embodiments have been described in detail, it will be understood that the present disclosure is not limited to such embodiments, but rather includes variations of features described, as well as combinations of features described, which are also included within the spirit and scope of the present invention.