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US 5,476,478 AGranted
Preoperative skin stretching apparatus and method
AssigneeProvidence Hospital
InventorIan T. Jackson
Life of this patent
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AssigneeProvidence Hospital
InventorIan T. Jackson
Estimating the term…
A preoperative skin stretching apparatus and method for preoperatively stretching facial and neck skin to alleviate the complications associated with the extensive undermining of the soft tissues of the face and neck that occur when performing facelifts. The preoperative skin stretching apparatus utilizes a plurality of skin attachments that are sutured superficially to predetermined areas of the skin. A nondistensible headcap is fitted onto a patient's head and covers the rear of the neck and the posterior, superior and frontal areas of the head. A plurality of straps are fixedly attached to the headcap and extend through rectangular apertures provided in the skin attachments. The free end of the straps are pulled rearward toward the headcap in order to pull the skin attachments rearward and apply tension to the skin. The material cooperatively engages to detachably and adjustably maintain the position of the skin attachments and the tension on the skin. Once the skin has stretched, the material on the straps is disengaged, and the free end of the straps is pulled further rearward, along with the skin attachments, to obtain the tension on the skin that was originally applied. After the skin has stretched a desired amount, the headcap and skin attachments are removed, and the facelift procedure is completed.
A method for preoperatively stretching skin prior to a facelift, the steps comprising:
A method for preoperatively stretching skin prior to a facelift, the steps comprising:
A method for preoperatively stretching skin prior to a facelift, the steps comprising:
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.