Abstract:
An apparatus and a method of use for securing an object to a human body comprising: a first belt, wherein the first belt further comprises a central portion; a second belt, wherein the second belt further comprises a pouch for holding an associated ice pack; and, an associated ice pack; wherein the central portion of the first belt comprises insulating material with a first bolster and a second bolster; and, wherein the first and second belt further comprise a fastening means to secure the first belt and second belt to a human body.

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
       [0001]    The present invention relates to an apparatus for securing an item next to a human body. More particularly, the present invention is directed at a therapeutic device for applying and securing an ice pack in order to provide ice therapy to a portion of the human body. 
       BACKGROUND 
       [0002]    Conventional approaches to treating back pain have long included the use of prescription medications, surgery, hot and cold therapy, chiropractic manipulation, physical therapy, or a combination of some or all of these methods. Surgery can be successful at reducing or eliminating back pain, but surgery is invasive, expensive, and can lead to complications and other adverse side effects. 
         [0003]    Medications are commonly prescribed to manage the pain symptoms, but in most cases they do not treat any underlying cause of the pain. Medications can also cause allergic reactions and other adverse side effects, and in the case of some painkillers, the medications themselves can be habit forming and addictive. Furthermore, persons who have suffered from dependence in the past cannot use many of the most commonly prescribed medications. 
         [0004]    Current therapeutic solutions consist of applying heat or cold over a broad area, taking the generic approach that heating or cooling the entire area offers some benefit to the affected area. Furthermore, current broadly applied cold therapy products often don&#39;t get cold enough or retain their cold temperatures long enough to provide meaningful reduction in inflammation. 
         [0005]    What is needed is a non-invasive, non-surgical, medication free, therapeutic solution that can apply cold therapy that targets pain sources such as inflamed, displaced, or herniated discs, and/or swollen muscles and tissue in and around the spinal column. Additionally, this solution needs to reach lower temperatures and retain these temperatures long enough to supply meaningful reduction in inflammation, thereby treating the cause of and reducing back pain. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0006]    Provided is an apparatus and a method of use for securing an object to a human body comprising: a first belt, wherein the first belt further comprises a central portion; a second belt, wherein the second belt further comprises a pouch for holding an associated ice pack; and, an associated ice pack; wherein the central portion of the first belt comprises insulating material with a first bolster and a second bolster; and, wherein the first and second belt further comprise a fastening means to secure the first belt and second belt to a human body. 
     
    
     
       DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0007]      FIG. 1  shows an embodiment of the present invention from the outer side of the securing apparatus with two interchangeable ice packs; 
           [0008]      FIG. 2  shows an embodiment of the securing apparatus from above; 
           [0009]      FIG. 3  shows a close up of an embodiment of a first bolster; 
           [0010]      FIG. 4  shows a close up of an embodiment of a second bolster; 
           [0011]      FIG. 5  shows an embodiment of the present invention from the inner side of the securing apparatus; 
           [0012]      FIG. 6  shows a close up of an embodiment of the pouch with the ice pack partially inserted therein; 
           [0013]      FIG. 7  shows a close up of the pouch and ice pack with the ice pack removed. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0014]    With reference to  FIGS. 1 and 2 , an embodiment of the securing apparatus can consist of a two-piece belt  10  which can be fixedly connected in the center. The inner belt  12  is closest to the user while the apparatus is being worn, while the outer belt  14  is positioned exterior to the inner belt  12  while the apparatus is being worn. The two-piece belt  10  can be secured to the user by fastening means, which can include hook and loop closures at the distal ends of the inner belt  12  and outer belt  14 . The inner belt  12  can have loop closures on a first side with hook closures on a second side. The outer belt  14  can have loop closures on a first side corresponding to the hook closures on the second side of the inner belt  12 . 
         [0015]    With continued reference to  FIGS. 1 and 2 , the outer belt  14  can be made of a flexible material. According to one embodiment, the outer belt  14  can be made of neoprene based foam with a knit textile covering commonly known as 2-sided wetsuit neoprene. The edges of the inner and outer belts  12 ,  14 , can be bound with a stretchable knit binding. According to one embodiment, the binding can be polyester or nylon based with spandex fibers. The outer belt  14  can be fixed to the inner belt  12  by stitching the two together in the middle. The center portion  16  of the outer belt  14  can be made from a laminated polyethylene based foam that can be covered with a knit textile on one or both sides. The inner belt  12  can be made of flexible mesh material that can be polyester or nylon based. 
         [0016]    With reference to  FIGS. 3 and 4 , the inner belt  12  is folded away to reveal the inside of the outer belt  14  and the center portion  16 . The inside face of the center portion  16  can include a first bolster  30  and a second bolster  40  that can be molded as a part of the center portion  16 . The unique shape of the bolsters  30 ,  40  corresponds to the shape of the ice pack  18  (shown in  FIG. 1 ). Specifically, the lower portion of the first and second bolsters  30 ,  40  can be wider than the upper portion, thereby helping the ice pack  18  retain its shape while in use. The construction of the center portion  16  and the bolsters  30 ,  40  can serve to insulate the ice pack  18  from the environment which can allow the ice pack  18  to retain its cold temperature for a longer period of time, thereby increasing the therapeutic application time. 
         [0017]    With reference to  FIGS. 5-7 , the inner belt  12  can have a pouch  50  that can be fixedly attached to the inner belt  12  on three sides, leaving a fourth side open to receive the associated ice pack  18  (shown partially inserted into the pouch  50  in  FIG. 6 ). The pouch  50  can have a generally trapezoidal shape which can correspond to the shape of the ice pack  18  to assure a snug fit and to further assist in maintaining the shape of the ice pack  18  while in use. The generally trapezoidal shape of the ice pack  18  and the associated pouch  50  can allow the effect of the cold therapy to be directed specifically to the spinal column of the user, thereby increasing effectiveness of the placement of the ice pack  18  against the user&#39;s body. The pouch  50  can be made of a knit textile similar to that used for covering the center portion  16  of the outer belt  14 . According to one embodiment of the invention, the pouch  50  can be made of a stretchable fleece material, such as polyester brushed knit containing lycra or spandex. 
         [0018]    With reference to  FIGS. 1 and 7 , the ice pack  18  can be a sealed plastic container filled with a glycol/water mixture that changes phase at approximately 5° Fahrenheit. This mixture can allow the ice pack  18  to be chilled in a conventional freezer at temperatures below 32° Fahrenheit while maintaining the pliability of the ice pack  18 . The mass of the ice pack  18  can be such that the ice pack maintains its lower temperature for a longer period of time. According to one embodiment, the mass of the ice pack  18  can be approximately  25  ounces. The shape of the ice pack can be generally trapezoidal to correspond with the unique shape of the pouch  50  and bolsters  30 ,  40 . 
         [0019]    In order to properly utilize the two-piece belt  10  for cold therapy relief, the ice pack  18  can be chilled in a conventional freezer at temperatures below 32° Fahrenheit for a period between 4 to 8 hours. At this point, the user can remove the ice pack  18  from the freezer and insert the ice pack  18  into the pouch  50  with such an orientation as to match the shape of the ice pack  18  to the shape of the pouch  50 . Once the ice pack  18  is fully inserted into the pouch  50 , the user places the two-piece belt  10  around his or her waist, making certain to position the pouch  50  containing the ice pack  18  over the desired treatment area, and fastens the inner belt  12  using the hook and loop fasteners. Once the inner belt  12  is properly placed and fastened, the outer belt  14  can be adjusted for comfort and fastened to the inner belt  12  using the hook and loop closures. In this position, the two-piece belt  10  delivers concentrated cold therapy directly to the spinal column to treat the source of pain. The insulating function of the foam that comprises the center portion  16  of the two-piece belt  10  and the larger mass of the ice pack  18  can prevent cold loss to the environment. According to one embodiment, the ice pack  18  can retain therapeutically effective temperatures for up to 40 minutes, which can be up to double the maximum amount of time (20 minutes) recommended for meaningful reduction in inflammation and pain relief 
         [0020]    The bolsters  30 ,  40 , and the shape of the pouch  50  can function to maintain the shape of the ice pack  18  to prevent the ice pack  18  from flattening out which keeps the cold therapy treatment focused on the desired treatment area and minimizes cold loss to surrounding tissues and structures that are not intended to be treated. In a preferred version of the invention, the distance between the bolsters  30 ,  40 , is less than the width of the ice pack  18  when it is flattened out. 
         [0021]    The inner belt  12  and outer belt  14  of the two-piece belt  10  also provide the added benefit of providing support to the back and spinal column during therapeutic treatment. 
         [0022]    When used according to the claimed method, the present invention can provide a longer lasting, more meaningful reduction in inflammation and pain without the use of medications, the intrusiveness of surgery, or the side effects associated with these methods of treatment. 
         [0023]    Having thus described the invention, it is now claimed: