US 5,289,828 A · Abduction pillow for orthopedic support

Abstract

An abduction pillow used to immobilize a patient's legs after hip surgery has a wedge-shaped body constructed of a resilient deformable material which positions the legs in a forgiving, fixed divergent position. The body is wedge-shaped and preferably air filled, and has a pair of opposing sides which taper outwardly in a divergent manner from a narrow anterior end adapted to be located adjacent the groin area of a patient, toward a wider distal end. The body has an upper surface which inclines downwardly from the distal end toward the anterior end. A longitudinal arcuate recess is formed in the upper inclined surface and has a depth sufficient to support one of the patient's legs. The vertical distance between a plane in which the other of the patient's legs lies and the bottom of the longitudinal arcuate recess, is equal to the width of the wedge-shaped body at any transverse plane taken through the pillow. This dimensional relationship insures that the patient's legs and hips remain immobilized and at a constant spaced relationship even after the patient is turned onto either side.

Claims6

Dependent claims

An abduction pillow for supporting the lower extremities of an orthopedic patient comprising:

a top fluid-impervious flexible layer having opposite ends and opposing divergent sides;
(b) a bottom fluid-impervious flexible layer having opposite ends and opposing divergent sides;
(c) first and second divergent sides which are joined in fluid-impervious sealed relationship to said sides of said top layer and said bottom layer;
(d) first and second ends defined by said first and second divergent sides which are joined in fluid-impervious relationship to said ends of said top and bottom layers such that a fluid-impervious body is created by said top, bottom, sides, and ends;
(e) a longitudinal recess extending along said top surface for accepting one of the patient's legs, wherever the distance from the plane in which the patient's other leg lies to the bottom of said longitudinal recess is equal to the width of said body within any transverse plane taken through said body;
(f) at least one inflatable fluid-impervious heel support extending laterally from one of said sides of a sufficient height to raise said patient's heel out of contact with an underlying support on which the body is supported;
and
(g) fluid inlet/outlet port means on said body for communicating with a hollow interior of said body.

5 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Abduction pillow for orthopedic support

Life of this patent

Abduction pillow for orthopedic support

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims6