Surgical brassiere

A brassiere comprising:

• a first bust support cup;
• a second bust support cup;
• first means for supporting said first bust support cup over one breast of a wearer and for supporting said second bust support cup over the other breast of the wearer so as to form an open gap between said first and second bust support cups over the area of the sternum of the wearer;
• a ventilated panel adapted to be selectively secured and unsecured between said first and second bust support cups and over said gap when said first and second bust support cups are positioned over the breasts of the wearer;
• and
• second means interconnecting said first and second bust support cups across said gap for maintaining said first and second bust support cups in position over the breasts of the wearer when said ventilated panel is unsecured from between said first and second bust support cups.

A brassiere for providing support to a wearer's breasts following cardio-thoracic surgery so as to avoid stress in the area of an incision formed substantially along a line extending from the suprasternal notch to the zyphoid process, said brassiere comprising:

• a flexible backstrap assembly adapted to extend across the back of the wearer at substantially the level of the wearer's breasts;
• a first shoulder strap coupled to said flexible backstrap assembly and adapted to extend over one shoulder of the wearer toward the adjacent one of the wearer's breasts;
• a second shoulder strap coupled to said flexible backstrap assembly and adapted to extend over the wearer's other shoulder toward the wearer's other breast;
• a first bust support cup coupled to one end of said flexible backstrap assembly and to one end of said first shoulder strap and dimensioned to overlie the adjacent one of the wearer's breasts except in the area of the incision;
• a second bust support cup coupled to the other end of said flexible backstrap assembly and to one end of said second shoulder strap and dimensioned to overlie the other one of the wearer's breasts except in the area of the incision;
• first and second inside straps adapted to extend between said first and second bust support cups across the incision, said first and second inside straps being dimensioned and located to form an open area bounded by said first and second inside straps and said first and second bust support cups over the incision when said brassiere is being worn by the wearer;
• a ventilated panel dimensioned to overlie said open area;
• and
• means for removably securing said ventilated panel over said open area so as to selectively provide access to the incision when desired without requiring removal of said brassiere and so as to provide protection to the incision when said access is not desired while maintaining ventilation of the incision.