Abstract:
An adjustable length spinal brace includes an elongate belt and an adjustment plate having spaced apart belt passage slits through which the belt is passed and belt engagement members that are pivotally adjustable relative to the plate to engage or disengage the belt. The belt engagement members are engaged with the belt to maintain a desired length of the brace, and are disengaged from the belt to permit adjustment of the length of the brace.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
       [0001]    This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application 62/114,345, filed Feb. 10, 2015, entitled Adjustable Back Brace, and incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. 
     
    
     FIELD 
       [0002]    This disclosure relates to the field of orthopedic bracing. More particularly, this disclosure relates to adjustable circumferential length lumbar sacral braces. 
       BACKGROUND 
       [0003]    Improvement is desired in the provision of soft and flexible braces for supporting the thoraco-lumbro-sacral spine. While conventional lumbar belt type braces provide support, improvement is desired. 
         [0004]    The present disclosure advantageously provides a soft and flexible lumbo-sacral brace to which can be added desired rigidity in an anterior, posterior and lateral portion of the belt adjacent the spine, and which is adjustable to fit a wide range of waist sizes circumferentially. One benefit of the flexibility of this brace design is a reduction of a large inventory of various sizes. 
       SUMMARY 
       [0005]    The above and other needs are met by an adjustable circumferential length spinal brace. The brace includes an elongate belt and a belt adjustment plate. 
         [0006]    The belt adjustment plate has an outer side and an opposite patient faceable side configured to be positionable adjacent a spine or back portion of a patient. The belt adjustment plate has spaced apart belt passage slits through which the belt is received and belt engagement members that are pivotally adjustable relative to the plate to engage or disengage the belt. 
         [0007]    The belt engagement members are engaged with the belt to maintain a desired length of the brace, and are disengaged from the belt to permit adjustment of the length of the brace. 
         [0008]    Braces according to the disclosure are advantageous as compared to prior devices. For example, the brace length may be easily and uniformly reduced or increased in length from a central location. This is accomplished by disengaging the belt engagement members, pulling a central portion of the belt to uniformly reduce the overall length, or pulling on each end to increase the length, and then engaging the belt engagement members. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0009]    Further advantages of the disclosure are apparent by reference to the detailed description when considered in conjunction with the figures, which are not to scale so as to more clearly show the details, wherein like reference numbers indicate like elements throughout the several views, and wherein: 
           [0010]      FIGS. 1 and 2  show an adjustment plate component of an adjustable brace according to the disclosure. 
           [0011]      FIGS. 3 and 4  are front and rear views showing a belt component installed on the adjustment plate component. 
           [0012]      FIG. 5  shows an assembled adjustable brace according to the disclosure. 
           [0013]      FIG. 6  shows the brace of  FIG. 5  with a cover thereof opened with the brace set at a large size setting. 
           [0014]      FIG. 7  shows adjustment of the brace of  FIG. 5  to a smaller size setting. 
           [0015]      FIG. 8  shows the brace at the smaller size setting. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0016]    With reference to the drawings, there is shown an adjustable length lumbar sacral brace  10 . The brace  10  includes an adjustment plate  12  and a belt  14 . 
         [0017]    The adjustment plate  12  is configured to be located adjacent the small of the back of a patient, and permit adjustment of the effective length of the belt  14 . That is, the effective length of the belt  14  is adjusted utilizing the adjustment plate  12  so that the brace  10  desirably fits the waist of the patient. 
         [0018]    The adjustment plate  12  may be of molded plastic construction and includes an outer side  12   a  and a patient facing side  12   b . The plate  12  includes a mildly u-shaped or curved central channel portion  20  flanked on either side by planar portions  22  and  24 . The curvature of the channel portion  20  is towards the patient facing side  12   b . Belt passage slits  22   a  and  24   a  are located on the planar portions  22  and  24 , respectively, adjacent the channel portion  20 . Hinged belt engagement members  26  and  28  are defined adjacent the lateral edges of the planar portions  22  and  24 , respectively. 
         [0019]    The belt engagement members  26  and  28  are provided as doors that pivot relative to open spaces  26   a  and  28   a , respectively, of the planar portions  22  and  24 . The engagement members  26  and  28  pivot to open towards the outer side  12   a  of the plate  12 . The patient facing side  12   b  of the engagement members  26  and  28  include a hook material thereon for releasably engaging a loop material of the belt  14 , as explained more fully below. The patient facing side  12   b  of the adjustment plate  12  is positioned during use of the brace  10  adjacent the small of the back of the patient. 
         [0020]    Flexible fingers  30  are located on the back of the channel portion  20  to provide a comfortable interface between the small of the back of the patient and the patient facing side  12   b  of the plate  12 . The fingers  30  are preferably adjacent the slits  22   a  and  24   a  and extend the height of the plate  12 . Size indicator indicia  32  is located on the outer side  12   a  for cooperating with size indicating zones of the belt  14 , as explained more fully below. 
         [0021]    The belt  14  is an elongate and flexible member preferably made of a soft fabric surrounding a batting or padding, such as a soft foam or spacer fabric. The belt  14  has opposite ends that releasably overlap or otherwise cooperate to install the belt about the waist of a user. To provide the brace  10  to adjust between waist sizes of from about 26 inches to about 44 inches, the belt  14  may have an overall length of about 48 inches. 
         [0022]    The belt  14  preferably includes indicia or indicium, such as length demarcations or color zones or the like, that cooperate with the size indicator indicia  32  of the plate  12 , to facilitate selection of desired size of the brace  10 . The exterior of the belt  14  may be made of a loop material or a strip of loop material  34  may be located on the exterior surface of the belt  14  to cooperate with the hook material located on the patient facing side  12   b  of the engagement members  26  and  28 . A midpoint of the length of the belt  14  preferably includes a handle  36  to identify the midpoint and to facilitate adjustment of the length of the brace  10  as described more fully below. 
         [0023]    The brace  10  is assembled by passing the belt  14  through the slits  22   a  and  24   a  to span the belt across the channel  20  on the outer side  12   a  of the plate  12 . Initially, the belt  14  is oriented so that the handle  36  is aligned with the middle of the channel  20 , which provides the brace  10  at a maximum length. As will be noted, the loop material  34  is engaged by the hook material located on the patient facing side  12   b  of the engagement members  26  and  28 , which are in their closed positions so as to be flat with the planar portions  22  and  24 . In this orientation, the brace  10  is maintained at the maximum length. 
         [0024]    Additional securement of the belt  14 , and hence the brace  10 , at a desired length is provided by a hinged cover  40 . The cover  40  is desirably made of a soft fabric material, but may be of other construction. The cover  40  is hingedly coupled to the plate  12  and folds over the portions of the belt  14  located in the channel  20 . The cover  40  may include hook material to also cooperate with the loop material  34  of the belt  14 , and maintain the cover  40  closed against the belt  14  and in releasable frictional engagement therewith. In this regard, it will be understood that the indicated hook and loop materials may be reversed, and that other cooperating fastener devices may be utilized. 
         [0025]    To shorten the effective length of the belt  14 , and hence of the brace  10 , the cover  40  is lifted and the engagement members  26  and  28  are hingedly pivoted to their open positions. This disengages the hook and loop engagement of the belt  14  therefrom. The handle  36  of the belt  14  is then grasped and pulled upwardly, such as shown in  FIG. 7 . 
         [0026]    As will be appreciated, this uniformly reduces the length from each end of the belt  14  and accumulates excess portions of the belt  14  adjacent the channel  20 . The engagement members  26  and  28  are then closed to maintain the effective belt length. The excess belt material may be folded or the like as shown in  FIG. 8  to neatly store the excess material in the channel  22 , and the cover  40  closed to overlie the excess material and otherwise secure the brace  10  at the adjusted length. This procedure may be repeated or reversed as desired to adjust the length of the brace  10  to be incrementally longer or shorter. 
         [0027]    The foregoing description of preferred embodiments for this disclosure has been presented for purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the disclosure to the precise form disclosed. Obvious modifications or variations are possible in light of the above teachings. The embodiments are chosen and described in an effort to provide the best illustrations of the principles of the disclosure and its practical application, and to thereby enable one of ordinary skill in the art to utilize the disclosure in various embodiments and with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated. All such modifications and variations are within the scope of the disclosure as determined by the appended claims when interpreted in accordance with the breadth to which they are fairly, legally, and equitably entitled.