Patent Description:
More in detail, the invention relates to a corset aimed at correcting postural problems or at correcting pathological deviations of the spine, such as for example scoliosis.

The use of corrective corsets for treating pathological deviations the spine is a known practice. The corset is normally used to correct wrong postural behaviours in order to reduce pathological deviations, thus avoiding, as much as possible, surgeries.

The corsets commonly used for the correction of scoliosis are characterized by particularly large-sized and uncomfortable structures and are configured to exert a thrust upon the spine suffering from the pathology at the back. The rear thrusting action is often obtained by means of metal upright rods or by means of (metal or plastic) plates, which act upon portions of the dorsal area where the malformations are located. An example of a corset of this type is disclosed in document <CIT>, disclosing an orthopaedic corrective corset according to the preamble of claim <NUM>.

However, corrective corsets of this type still have small percentages of success in terms of reduction of the deviations, especially in the most serious cases that are affected by severe spine deviations. As a matter of fact, the use of this type of corsets often does not avoid surgeries, which are invasive and involve significant risks for the patient.

The object of the invention is to provide an orthopaedic corrective corset that does not suffer from the drawbacks of the prior art discussed above; in particular, the object of the invention is to provide a corrective corset which is more effective, compared to known solutions, in reducing pathological deviations of the spine and, at the same time, is easy and comfortable to be applied.

According to these objects, the invention relates to an orthopaedic corrective corset for the correction of pathological deviations of a patient's spine; the corset comprising two shells, designed to be arranged along the respective sides of the patient's torso, and a connecting device, designed to connect the shells to each other;.

The corset according to the invention basically exerts, thanks to the shells acting upon the sides of the patient's torso, a lateral corrective action (along the frontal plane - see <FIG>) and, thanks to the presence of the thrust devices acting upon respective thoracic portions, a front corrective action (along the sagittal plane).

Therefore, the corset according to the invention carries out an exclusively anterolateral spine alignment thrusting action without performing any thrust upon the rear torso and, especially, without performing any thrust upon the dorsal area of the rear torso including the spine.

This solution is designed to obtain very significant levels of correction of pathological deviations in short times. The corrective action of the corset according to the invention, even though it has to be accompanied by postural exercises aimed at strengthening abdomen and hamstring muscles, such as hip extensors and glenohumeral joint fixator muscles, would allow for significant improvements in very short times, even in case of extremely severe deviations of the spine (exceeding <NUM>°).

The anterolateral thrusting action defined by the corset according to the invention manages to force the patient to assume a re-alignment postural behaviour that "trains" abdominal muscles and stabilizes them (thanks to the thrust device that acts at the front) so as to counter the excess of compensation actions needed during natural torsions of the spine that take place when the patient walks.

While walking and, in particular, while changing the feet resting on the ground, the torso oscillates on three planes (sagittal plane, transverse plane, frontal plane) and the spine is subjected to continuous torsions that, in non-pathological subjects, are compensated by the action of the abdominal muscles activated by the retraction/lowering of the rib cage which, by stabilizing the dorsolumbar spine, avoids an increase in the lever arm involved in the torsion/rotation.

In pathological subjects, the abdominal compensation actions are lacking and the spine, with every torsion, increasingly yields, thus determining deviations of the spine on the frontal and transverse plane.

Further features and advantages of the invention will be best understood upon perusal of the following description of a non-limiting embodiment thereof, with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:.

<FIG> show a patient's torso at the back and at the front, respectively.

<FIG> identify those anatomy elements deemed useful for understanding the use and the main features of the orthopaedic corrective corset according to the invention, as discussed more in detail below.

In <FIG>, reference number <NUM> indicates, as a whole, an orthopaedic corrective corset according to the invention in a first operating configuration.

The corset <NUM> is aimed at correcting pathological deviations of the spine of the patient on which it is applied.

The corset <NUM> comprises two shells 2a, 2b, designed to be arranged along the respective (right and left) sides of the patient's torso, and a connecting device <NUM>, designed to connect the shells 2a, 2b to each other.

Each shell 2a, 2b is provided with a front portion 5a, 5b, which, in use, extends from the respective (right and left) side along the front portion of the patient's torso, and with a rear portion 6a, 6b, which, in use, extends from the respective side along the rear portion of the patient's torso.

The rear portions 6a, 6b are shaped so as to leave, in use, a dorsal band including the spine free.

In other words, the rear portions 6a, 6b extend along the rear portion of the patient's torso in a limited manner. In particular, the rear portions 6a, 6b are preferably configured to extend from the respective side along the rear portion of the patient's torso without crossing over a respective vertical axis Ba, Bb going through the iliac crest proximal to the side along which the shell 2a, 2b is arranged.

In other words, the rear portions 6a, 6b are provided with respective terminal edges 8a, 8b, which do not cross over the respective vertical axis Ba, Bb going through the iliac crest proximal to the side along which the shell 2a, 2b is arranged.

Between the rear portions 6a, 6b there are no further components of the corset <NUM> having a corrective function (except for the parts defining the connecting device). In other words, the corset <NUM> is not configured to act upon the spine at the back.

Each front portion 5a, 5b of each shell 2a, 2b is shaped so as to subtend at least a respective thoracic portion of the patient's torso and is provided with at least one thrust device 7a, 7b arranged and configured to exert a thrusting action upon said thoracic portion.

With reference to <FIG>, the shells 2a, 2b substantially are C-shaped and, in use, are arranged so as to face one another with the concavities facing each other.

With reference to <FIG>, the front portion 5a, 5b of each shell 2a, 2b is provided with a first edge 9a, 9b, with a second edge 10a, 10b and with a terminal edge 11a, 11b extending between the first edge 9a, 9b and the second edge 10a, 10b. Each terminal edge 11a, 11b is preferably provided with an appendix 12a, 12b provided with the respective thrust device 7a, 7b and is configured so as to subtend at least the thoracic portion upon which the thrust device 7a, 7b acts.

The shells 2a, 2b are preferably sized so that the rear terminal portions comprising the terminal edge 11a, 11b substantially extend along a front plane a and so that the rear terminal portions comprising the terminal edge 8a, 8b substantially extend along a rear plane p.

In use, the terminal edge 11a, 11b preferably is substantially vertical, whereas the appendix 12a, 12b is defined by a prolongation of the front position 5a, 5b and substantially extends on the front plane a (well visible in <FIG>).

This solution leads to a configuration of the front portion 5a, 5b of each shell 2a, 2b that is particularly comfortable for the patient, since the terminal edge 11a, 11b extends along the front portion of the patient's torso as little as possible and the sole appendix 12a, 12b reaches the thoracic portion upon which the thrust needs to be exerted.

According to a less comfortable variant which is not shown herein, the terminal edge 11a, 11b extends up to entirely covering the thoracic portion upon which the thrust needs to be exerted.

In use, the appendix 12a, 12b is arranged proximal to the second edge 10a, 10b, when the corset <NUM> is arranged along the patient's sides at a thoracic height for the correction of thoracic scoliosis (see the configuration of <FIG>, <FIG>), or is arranged proximal to the first edge 9a, 9b, when the corset <NUM> is arranged along the patient's sides at an abdominal height for the correction of lumbar scoliosis (see the configuration of <FIG>), or is arranged in a substantially central position, when the corset is arranged along the patient's sides along the lumbar and thoracic area for the correction of combined scoliosis (see the configuration of <FIG>).

The thoracic portion upon which the thrust device 7a, 7b acts is preferably arranged laterally with respect to the body of the sternum.

More preferably, the thoracic portion upon which the thrust device acts is comprised between the eighth and the tenth rib under the pectoral muscles (see the circular area shown in <FIG>).

With reference to <FIG>, each thrust device 7a, 7b (only one of them being visible in <FIG>) comprises a contact body 15a, 15b, designed to be arranged, in use, in contact with the respective thoracic portion, and an adjusting device 16a, 16b, configured to adjust the thrust exerted by the contact body 15a, 15b upon the respective thoracic portion of the patient.

The contact body 15a, 15b preferably is planar and is provided with a contact face 17a, 17b, which, in use, is in contact with the patient's thoracic portion.

The adjusting device 16a, 16b is configured to adjust the distance d of the contact body 15a, 15b from an inner face 20a, 20b of the front portion 5a, 5b of each shell 2a, 2b.

In this way, the thrust exerted by the contact body 15a, 15b upon the respective thoracic portion, which it subtends, can be adjusted.

The adjusting device 16a, 16b is preferably housed in a through hole 22a, 22b of the front portion 5a, 5b of each shell 2a, 2b.

The adjusting device 16a, 16b comprises a connecting pin 23a, 23b, which is fixed to the contact body 15a, 15b and is threaded on the outside, and a bushing 24a, 24b, which is threaded on the inside and is housed in the respective through hole 22a, 22b.

Hence, the connecting pin 23a, 23b has an end connected to the contact body 15a, 15b and a free end, preferably shaped so as to allow the connecting pin 23a, 23b to be grabbed and rotated by means of a suitable tool (screwdriver, hex key, etc.).

In use, the rotation of the connecting pin 23a, 23b operated by means of a tool in both directions determines a forward or backward movement of the contact body with respect to the thoracic portion. The forward movement of the contact body towards the respective thoracic portion determines an increase in the distance d, whereas the backward movement determines a decrease in the distance d. In the position of minimum thrust, the distance d is <NUM>.

The connecting device <NUM> is configured to connect the shells 2a, 2b so as to limit their mutual distancing.

With reference to <FIG> again, the connecting device <NUM> is configured to connect the shells 2a, 2b so that the front portions 5a, 5b are arranged at a given front distance DA and the rear portions 6a, 6b are arranged at a given rear distance DP.

The connecting device <NUM> is preferably configured so that the front distance DA between the front portions 5a, 5b of the shells is adjustable and/or the rear distance DP between the rear portions 6a, 6b of the shells is adjustable.

The connecting device <NUM> preferably comprises at least a front connecting strap <NUM> provided with a front length adjustment system <NUM> and a rear connecting strap <NUM> provided with a rear length adjustment system <NUM>.

The connecting device <NUM> (in the examples of <FIG>) preferably comprises two front connecting straps 25a, 25b, respectively arranged in the area of an upper and lower portion of the front portions 5a, 5b of the shells 2a, 2b and respectively provided with a front length adjustment system 27a, 27b, and two rear connecting straps 26a, 26b, respectively arranged in the area of an upper and a lower portion of the rear portions 6a, 6b of the shells 2a, 2b and respectively provided with a rear length adjustment system 28a, 28b (not clearly visible in the accompanying figures).

The front adjustment system 27a, 27b and the rear adjustment system 28a, 28b are, in the non-limiting example described and shown herein, lever adjustment systems.

The front adjustment system 27a, 27b and the rear adjustment system 28a, 28b preferably are lever adjustment systems of the known kind and comprising a toothed portion, provided with a plurality of teeth, and an articulated hook or an adjustable-lever hook, which is configured to hook the toothed portion.

The number of straps used can obviously be greater than two, both at the front and at the back. The configuration of <FIG>, for example, uses at least three front straps and at least three rear straps.

Other types of adjusting adjustment systems can obviously be used to obtain the same result.

In this way, the adjustment device <NUM> is capable of adjusting the front distance DA and the rear distance DP in an independent manner and on two levels (lower, upper and, if necessary, intermediate level). This possibility allows users to properly adjust the lateral and transverse thrust and to obtain a traction, even an asymmetric one, exerted by the shells 2a, 2b so as to force, in the patient, a postural behaviour correcting the spine deviation.

Claim 1:
An orthopaedic corrective corset for the correction of pathological deviations of a patient's spine; the corset (<NUM>) comprises two shells (2a, 2b), designed to be arranged along the respective sides of the patient's torso, and a connecting device (<NUM>), designed to connect the shells (2a, 2b) to each other;
each shell (2a, 2b) being provided with a front portion (5a, 5b), which, in use, extends from the respective side along the front portion of the patient's torso, and a rear portion (6a, 6b), which, in use, extends from the respective side along the rear portion of the patient's torso;
the rear portions (6a, 6b) of the shells (2a, 2b) are shaped in such a way as to leave, in use, a dorsal band including the vertebral column free;
each front portion (5a, 5b) of each shell (2a, 2b) being shaped so as to subtend at least a respective thoracic portion of the patient's torso characterized in that each front portion is provided with at least one thrust device (7a, 7b) arranged and configured to exert a thrusting action on said thoracic portion.