Patent ID: 7749180

Claim:
A substrate for a medical bandage, comprising: (a) an elongate fabric having two opposed major faces connected by yarns extending between the faces, the yarns having a predetermined, relatively high modulus sufficient to provide rigidity to the fabric when conformed to an injury site and hardened by activation of a reactive system applied to the fabric; (b) two opposed, relatively narrow and longitudinally-extending side marginal areas formed on the fabric and defining two opposed side edges, the marginal areas being formed to provide a sufficient degree of softness and flexibility when conformed to an injury site and hardened by activation of a reactive system applied to the marginal areas of the fabric to thereby reduce abrasion between the marginal areas of the substrate and the injury site; and (c) a plurality of ingress channels formed by wales omitted at intervals along the length of the substrate; wherein the fabric comprises a warp knitted fabric.