Pressure dynamic device for treatment of chest wall pain after thoracic surgery or injury, and method of use

Abstract

A device and method for treating chest wall injuries, including thoracic surgeries, rib fractures, flail chest injuries, or surgical incisions so as to lessen pain experienced by patients. The device and method can include creating a localized airtight compartment external to the chest wall and fully covering the area of injury, varying the pressure within the compartment, and providing dynamic real-time counter forces that act reciprocal to the intrathoracic pressure changes that occur during ventilation. In a preferred embodiment, the apparatus has the capability of sensing the patient's chest wall motion created by ventilation, a pressure control component capable of varying the pressure within the airtight compartment such that it opposes pressure changes within the chest. The pattern of positive and negative pressures may be adjusted based on the patient's subjective sense of their pain.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.