Patent Description:
A medical drape refers to a cloth in which, during a surgical operation or medical treatment, only a target region is open and surroundings thereof are covered. The medical drape is an essentially used medical supply that serves to block infection by preventing diffusion of sprays, foreign materials, etc. generated during a surgical operation or medical treatment and that can improve hygiene.

<FIG> is a schematic view illustrating a state in which a medical drape is used during dental treatment.

A hollow <NUM> is provided in a drape <NUM>, and the drape <NUM> is positioned such that the hollow <NUM> is located around the mouth <NUM> of a patient. In this case, the drape <NUM> is generally positioned such that the nose <NUM> is located around the mouth <NUM> and the hollow <NUM> is located up to the nose <NUM> in order to facilitate breath of a patient.

However, the conventional drape <NUM> has the following problems.

First, because the drape <NUM> is placed around the mouth of a patient without a separate fixture, the drape <NUM> is displaced during dental treatment in many cases. For this reason, a treatment time is frequently delayed to set a position of the drape <NUM> again. There is a problem that a patient feels uncomfortable and fearful.

Further, sprays are generated from the mouth <NUM> of a patient during dental treatment, and a separate component capable of interrupting the sprays is not provided to the drape. For this reason, a problem that the sprays are splashed to the nose <NUM> adjacent to the mouth <NUM> of a patient or another bodily region occurs, which leads to a problem that a reduction in hygiene, an uncomfortable feeling of a patient, etc. caused by infection are generated.

Further, because the drape <NUM> is generally a cloth material, the sprays are absorbed to the cloth in many cases. In this case, after the sprays are absorbed to a bottom portion of the drape <NUM> which is in contact with the skin of a patient, the drape <NUM> and the skin of a patient are in continuous contact with each other, and thus there is a problem that a reduction in hygiene, an uncomfortable feeling of a patient, etc. are generated.

Therefore, a drape capable of improving hygiene and fixation of the drape <NUM> needs to be devised.

<CIT> discloses a medical drape comprising an opening, wherein the drape includes catches for attaching the drape to the patient's ears, and a water-absorbent layer.

<CIT> discloses a medical drape with a first opening to be placed over the eyes of a patient and a second opening to be placed over the mouth of the patient, wherein the first opening is closed by a colored cover to protect the eyes of the patient from hazardous light radiation.

Further medical drapes are shown in <CIT>, <CIT>, and <CIT>.

The present invention is directed to providing a medical drape, and more particularly, to a drape capable of preventing diffusion of sprays, which are generated from the mouth of a patient during dental treatment, to improve hygiene and fixation.

To achieve the objective, a medical drape according to claim <NUM> is provided. Advantageous embodiments are subject to the dependent claims and the following description, referring to the drawings.

According to the present invention, a medical drape includes: a seat; an opening provided to be open to one point of the seat and located around a mouth of a patient; and a pair of catches provided to be separated from a bottom of the seat at a predetermined interval. The pair of catches are bindable to both ears of a patient to improve fixation of the seat.

Further, the medical drape according to the present invention includes a first guard provided around the opening on the bottom of the seat, and the first guard prevents diffusion of sprays generated during dental treatment of a patient.

Further, the medical drape according to an embodiment of the present invention may be configured such that an outer side of the first guard is rounded.

Further, each of the catches of the medical drape according to an embodiment of the present invention may have a closed curve shape in which opposite ends thereof are coupled to the first guard.

In addition, the bottom of the seat of the medical drape according to an embodiment of the present invention may be processed with a waterproof material.

According to the present invention, there is an advantage in that, due to first and second guards, diffusion of sprays generated during dental treatment can be prevented omnidirectionally, so that infection can be minimized, and hygiene can be maximized.

Further, there is an advantage in that, due to catches, fixation of a drape is improved.

The above and other features of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to certain exemplary embodiments thereof illustrated in the accompanying drawings which are given hereinbelow by way of illustration only, and thus are not limitative of the present invention, and wherein:.

The present invention relates to a medical drape, and more particularly, to a drape capable of preventing diffusion of sprays, which are generated from the mouth of a patient during dental treatment, to improve hygiene and fixation.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail so as to enable those having ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention pertains to extremely easily carried out them. However, the present invention may be implemented in various different forms and is not limited to the embodiments described here. Further, the present invention will be described below on the basis of a medical drape used during dental treatment.

<FIG> illustrates a bottom of a medical drape according to an embodiment of the present invention.

A medical drape according to the present embodiment includes a seat <NUM>, an opening <NUM>, a first guard <NUM>, a catch <NUM>, a second guard <NUM>, and a wire <NUM>.

The seat <NUM> covers surroundings of the mouth <NUM> and nose <NUM> of a patient. In <FIG>, the seat is expressed in a rectangular shape, but is not limited to this shape. As described above in the related art, the seat <NUM> serves to prevent a spray, foreign materials, etc. from being splashed beyond a treatment part.

The seat <NUM> is divided into a bottom <NUM> and a front <NUM>, and is preferably formed in two folds having different materials.

In this case, the bottom <NUM> of the seat <NUM> is preferably a waterproof material. When the bottom of the seat <NUM> is formed of a cloth that is a general material, if sprays, foreign materials, etc. are splashed on the seat <NUM> during treatment, the seat <NUM> comes into close contact with the skin of a patient with the sprays, foreign materials, etc. absorbed as they are, and thus a reduction in hygiene, an uncomfortable feeling, etc. may be caused. In the present embodiment, the bottom <NUM> of the seat <NUM> is treated with a waterproof material, and the spray, foreign materials, etc. are not absorbed by the seat <NUM> but flow down as they are, so that hygiene is improved to be able to reduce an uncomfortable feeling of a patient, and thus there is an advantage that can overcome conventional problems.

The opening <NUM> is provided in one spot of the seat <NUM>. The opening is a hollow, and the mouth <NUM> and nose <NUM> of a patient are partly located in the hollow. For example, the opening <NUM> is preferably formed in a waterdrop form in order to prevent diffusion of the sprays and foreign materials.

The first guard <NUM> is provided around the opening <NUM> on the bottom <NUM> of the seat <NUM>. The first guard <NUM> is described in detail with reference to an enlarged view of <FIG> and <FIG> is a view illustrating preventing diffusion of sprays when a first guard is viewed from the side.

The first guard <NUM> is coupled to the bottom <NUM> of the seat <NUM>. For example, the first guard <NUM> is preferably sewed on the bottom <NUM> of the seat <NUM>. Further, the first guard <NUM> has a round outer surface, and preferably has a semicircular cross section. Further, the first guard <NUM> has a "U" shape when viewed from the bottom, and is preferably formed such that opposite ends thereof start from the cheeks adjacent to the ears in the face of a patient and wrap the jaw.

For this reason, it is possible to prevent diffusion of the spray (hereinafter referred to as foreign materials, all of which are also referred to as spays for convenience of description) generated in the dental treatment process of treating a tooth or a gum in the mouth <NUM>. As illustrated in <FIG>, the sprays <NUM> stay inside the first guard <NUM> due to the first guard <NUM> protruding from the bottom <NUM>, so that the sprays <NUM> can be prevented from being diffused to the outside of the first guard <NUM>.

Further, the "U" shape of the first guard <NUM> fundamentally interrupts most directions in which the sprays <NUM> can be diffused. On the basis of <FIG>, all leftward, rightward, and downward directions of the diffusion are prevented by the first guard <NUM>. In this case, in the case of an upward/downward direction, because the diffusion is prevented by the second guard <NUM> (to be described below), omnidirectional diffusion is prevented, thereby improving hygiene.

Further, the first guard <NUM> is formed to have a round outer surface, and thus there is an advantage that can minimize contact with the skin of a patient and minimize an uncomfortable feeling that gives a patient.

The catches <NUM> are provided on the bottom <NUM> of the seat <NUM> and are provided in a pair. Further, the pair of catches <NUM> are preferably located on opposite sides of the opening <NUM> so as to be separated at a predetermined interval. More preferably, when the drape is used, the catches <NUM> are preferably located round the ears of a patient. In this case, the catches <NUM> may be sewed between the first guard <NUM> and the seat <NUM>, and are not necessarily limited thereto.

Each of the catches <NUM> has a ring shape, and opposite ends thereof are coupled to the first guard <NUM> or the bottom <NUM> of the seat <NUM>. For this reason, a closed curve can be formed.

When the seat <NUM> is placed on the face of a patient, the pair of catches <NUM> are preferably shaped to be bindable to both the ears of a patient. That is, the catches <NUM> are caught on the ears of a patient in a mask ear loop shape.

Therefore, contrast to placing the drape on the face of a patient in the related art, the catches <NUM> are caught on the ears of a patient, and thus fixation of the drape to the face of the patient is improved. For this reason, there is an advantage that can minimize a problem of treatment time delay caused by a change in position of the drape during treatment, and there is another advantage in that the drape comes into close contact with the face of a patient and diffusion of the spays <NUM> can be prevented.

<FIG> illustrates another embodiment of the catch according to the present invention.

Another embodiment of the catch <NUM> further includes a tightener <NUM>. One end and the other end of the catch <NUM> may pass through the tightener <NUM>. To this end, through-holes (not illustrated) may be provided. Further, the tightener <NUM> may be, for instance, a plastic material, but is not limited thereto.

Therefore, the tightener <NUM> may be positioned to adjust a size of the area of the closed curve formed by the catch <NUM>. On the basis of <FIG>, the area becomes small when the tightener <NUM> is moved to the left, and becomes wide when the tightener <NUM> is moved to the right. Here, the area, namely a space, formed by the closed curve is a portion into which the ear of a patient is inserted, and may be set in a personalized form depending on the size of the ear of a patient. According to an embodiment, when the ear of a patient is much smaller than the area, the fixation of the drape is reduced. However, according to an embodiment, the area may be set in a personalized form, and there is an advantage in that the fixation of the drape is improved.

The second guard <NUM> is formed on the bottom <NUM> of the seat <NUM>. Further, a part of the second guard <NUM> protrudes to the opening <NUM>.

When the drape covers the face of a patient, the second guard <NUM> preferably comes into contact with a periphery of the nose <NUM>. Further, the second guard <NUM> is sewed on the bottom <NUM> of the seat <NUM> (for example, a sewing line L is indicated in <FIG>). In this case, the portion (whose reference sign is "<NUM>") of the second guard protruding to the opening <NUM> is not sewed on the bottom <NUM> of the seat <NUM>. For this reason, when the drape covers the face of a patient, a part of the second guard <NUM> can cover the nose <NUM> of a patient, and thus the diffusion of the sprays can be prevented.

<FIG> are views illustrating the above. <FIG> is an enlarged side view illustrating a state in which the second guard <NUM> covers the nose <NUM> of a patient. <FIG> is an enlarged view illustrating a second guard part <NUM> protruding to the opening <NUM>, and <FIG> is an enlarged front view illustrating a state in which the second guard part <NUM> protruding to the opening <NUM> covers the nose <NUM> of a patient.

When the drape covers the face of a patient and a portion <NUM> of the second guard <NUM>, which is sewed on the bottom <NUM> of the seat <NUM>, wraps the nose <NUM> of a patient, opposite sides of the second guard part <NUM> protruding to the opening <NUM> are folded, and the second guard part <NUM> protruding to the opening <NUM> covers, as in <FIG>, a nostril portion of the nose <NUM> of a patient.

In conclusion, the first guard <NUM> and the second guard <NUM> can prevent the omnidirectional diffusion of the sprays generated during dental treatment, and the hygiene is improved. Further, the second guard part <NUM> of the second guard <NUM> which protrude to the opening <NUM> does not come into close with, but is placed on the nostril portion of the nose <NUM> of a patient. This is because the second guard part is not sewed. Therefore, there is an advantage that can reduce an uncomfortable feeling of a patient who does not breathe.

Claim 1:
A medical drape comprising:
a seat (<NUM>) having a bottom (<NUM>) and a front (<NUM>);
an opening (<NUM>) provided to be open to one point of the seat (<NUM>) and intended to be located around a mouth of a patient, so that the mouth and nose of a patient are partly located therein;
a pair of catches (<NUM>) provided on the bottom (<NUM>) of the seat (<NUM>) located on opposite sides of the opening (<NUM>) at a predetermined interval, wherein the pair of catches (<NUM>) are bindable to both ears of the patient to improve fixation of the seat (<NUM>);
a first guard (<NUM>) provided around the opening (<NUM>) on the bottom (<NUM>) of the seat (<NUM>),
wherein the first guard (<NUM>) protrudes from the bottom (<NUM>) of the seat (<NUM>) so that it prevents diffusion of sprays generated during dental treatment of the patient; and
a second guard (<NUM>) formed on the bottom (<NUM>) of the seat (<NUM>), the second guard (<NUM>) comprising one part (<NUM>) that is sewed to the bottom (<NUM>) of the seat (<NUM>), and another part (<NUM>) that is not sewed to the bottom (<NUM>) of the seat (<NUM>) and protrudes into the opening (<NUM>) so as to be configured to cover a nose of the patient, when, in use, the drape covers the face of the patient.