Patent ID: 7918840

Claim:
An absorbent article defining a longitudinal direction, a front portion in the longitudinal direction, a rear portion, and a middle portion arranged between said front and rear portions, the article comprising: an upper, liquid-permeable cover sheet, a lower, liquid-impermeable cover sheet, an absorption body arranged between the cover sheets, a rear barrier formed in the rear portion and attached to the article along a rear edge of the article, and first and second side barriers along respective longitudinal sides, each side barrier in turn comprising at least one longitudinal elastic element, said first and second side barriers, viewed from above, defining a shape which narrows in the direction towards said front portion so that the distance, in the transverse direction of the article, between said elastic elements, is greater in said rear portion than in said front portion, each side barrier is arranged such that each side barrier is secured in contact with said front portion, and each side barrier and the upper cover sheet define a folded structure of substantially Z-shaped cross section with a fold directed towards the inside of said article, wherein the at least one longitudinal elastic element of each side barrier is positioned at or near the fold directed towards the inside of the article, the at least one longitudinal elastic element of each side barrier runs between an attachment point on the front portion of the article and an attachment point on the rear portion of the article and along the entire length of the fold directed towards the inside of the article, and the first side barrier is secured to the upper cover sheet to form a first line of attachment, and the second side barrier is secured to the upper cover sheet to form a second line of attachment, the first and second lines of attachment extending under the rear barrier, and the first and second side barriers cooperate with the rear barrier to form a pocket, the pocket extending to the rear edge of the article and continuously between and beyond the first and second lines of attachment in respective outward transverse directions of the article.