External vacuum expander with non-adhesive rim
AssigneeLipocosm, LLC
InventorsRoger K. Khouri, Khalil R. Khouri, Thomas Morgan Biggs, JR.
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A tissue expander having a shell, an opening in the shell in communication with an external vacuum source to apply a vacuum within the shell and impart a distracting force to expand tissue, and a rim connected to the shell and adapted to be in contact with a skin of a patient. The rim is non-fixedly attached to the skin of the patient and moves laterally outwardly with respect to the shell under application of the vacuum.
Claims20
A tissue expander comprising a shell, an opening in the shell in communication with an external vacuum source to apply a vacuum within the shell and impart a distracting force to expand tissue, and a rim connected to the shell and adapted to be in contact with a skin of a patient, wherein the rim is non-fixedly attached to the skin of the patient and moves laterally outwardly with respect to the shell under application of the vacuum as the rim increasingly spreads under increasing pressure.
A tissue expander comprising a shell, an opening in the shell in communication with an external vacuum source to apply a vacuum within the shell and impart a distracting force to expand tissue and a rim connected to the shell and adapted to be in contact with a skin of a patient, wherein the rim has a concave lower surface, and at least a segment of the concave lower surface deforms upon the application of vacuum to invert to a convex surface upon application of vacuum.
A tissue expander comprising a shell, an opening in the shell in communication with an external vacuum source to apply a vacuum within the shell and impart a distracting force to expand tissue and a rim connected to the shell and adapted to be in contact with a skin of a patient, wherein the rim has a feathered edge to increase contact area with the skin.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.