Viscoelastic gel foot padding and medicating device

Abstract

A padding and medicating device for the human foot comprising a sheet structure, preferably of an elastic fabric material and partially coated on one surface with a pressure sensitive adhesive, in combination with a pad of viscoelastic gelatinous material impregnated onto a portion of the same surface of the sheet structure as the pressure sensitive adhesive. The pad of viscoelastic gelatinous material is preferably made with an oleaginous plasticizer such as Mineral Oil USP, and may contain one or more pharmacologically active agents. The sheet structure is oil impervious or a separating layer of material impervious to the oleaginous plasticizer is incorporated on either surface of the sheet structure adjacent to the area of the sheet structure to be impregnated with the viscoelastic gelatinous material to prevent the oleaginous plasticizer from bleeding onto the sock or shoe of the wearer. Ideally the viscoelastic gelatinous material is thermoplastic, ultrasoft, able to stretch to many times its relaxed dimensions without tearing, and capable of bleeding a significant amount of a liquid hydrocarbon plasticizer such as Mineral Oil USP onto the skin of the wearer. The present invention can also function as a blister dressing which is able to internally absorb horizontal shearing forces when the gel is employed in thin layers. An alternative embodiment comprising only the viscoelastic gel molded into the shape of a toe spacer, crest pad, corn or bunion pad and the like is also contemplated.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.