Flushable body waste collection pouches, pouch-in pouch appliances using the same, and methods pertaining thereto

A method of promoting the flushability of a waste collection pouch in a flush toilet, comprising the steps of providing a pouch with a pair of walls secured together along their peripheral edges to define a waste-receiving chamber therebetween;

• one of said walls having a waste-receiving opening therethrough communicating with said chamber;
• said walls being formed from a laminate comprising (a) a layer of thin heat-sealable film impermeable to liquid and solid body wastes and of a composition comprising a biodegradable aliphatic polyester, or a biodegradable aliphatic-aromatic copolyester, or blends thereof, plasticized by one or more biodegradable plasticizers, and (b) a water-disintegratable biodegradable cover layer of water-dispersible fibers having one of its surfaces uninterruptedly bonded thereto, comprising the step of coating said water-dispersible fibers along at least a portion of the outer surface of said laminate, either before or after assembly of said pouch, with a water-soluble hydrophilic lubricating agent, said hydrophilic lubricating agent coated on said water-dispersible fibers being capable of becoming slippery when the outer surfaces of said pouch are exposed to water and, upon subsequent drying, again become water-soluble upon re-exposure to water, said step of coating said water-dispersible fibers with said hydrophilic lubricating agent comprising applying a water-based hydrophilic solution to said water-dispersible fibers, said water-based hydrophilic solution comprising said hydrophilic lubricating agent.

A pouch-in-pouch body waste collection appliance comprising an outer pouch formed of liquid, gas and odor impermeable heat-sealable polymeric film having proximal and distal side walls defining a chamber;

• a toilet-disposable inner pouch having proximal and distal side walls and being disposed in said chamber;
• said proximal walls of said inner and outer pouches having aligned body waste receiving openings therethrough;
• and attachment means for attaching said proximal walls of said inner and outer pouches in areas surrounding said openings to skin surfaces of a patient about a body waste discharge orifice;
• said disposable inner pouch having walls formed from sheet material comprising (a) a layer of thin heat-sealable film impermeable to body wastes of a composition comprising a biodegradable aliphatic polyester, or a biodegradable aliphatic-aromatic copolyester, or blends thereof, plasticized by one or more biodegradable plasticizers and (b) a water-disintegratable, porous, biodegradable cover layer of water-dispersible fibers bonded thereto;
• said heat-sealable film of said inner pouch having a melting temperature lower than that of the heat-sealable film of said outer pouch;
• said walls of said outer and inner pouches having peripheral edge portions heat-sealed together with the peripheral edge portions of said cover layer being bonded more securely to the film material of said inner pouch than to the film material of said outer pouch;
• said water-dispersible fibers along at least a portion of the outer surface of the walls of said inner pouch being coated with a water-soluble hydrophilic lubricating agent, said hydrophilic lubricating agent coated on said water-dispersible fibers being capable of becoming slippery when exposed to water and, upon subsequent drying, again becoming water-soluble upon re-exposure to water.

A method of making a pouch-in-pouch body waste collection appliance having an outer pouch formed of odor-impermeable thermoplastic film with proximal and distal walls defining a chamber and a toilet-disposable inner pouch having proximal and distal walls and being disposed in said chamber;

• said proximal walls of said inner and outer pouches having aligned body waste receiving openings therein;
• said walls of said inner pouch being formed of a laminate comprising (a) a layer of thin heat-sealable thermoplastic film, and (b) a porous water-disintegratable cover layer of water-dispersible fibers attached to exterior surfaces of said inner pouch film, said cover layer having at least some of said water-dispersible fibers along the exterior surface of said inner pouch coated with a water-soluble hydrophilic lubricating agent, said hydrophilic lubricating agent coated on said water-dispersible fibers being capable of becoming slippery when exposed to water and, upon subsequent drying, again becoming water-soluble upon re-exposure to water;
• wherein said method comprises the steps of selecting a material for the film of an inner pouch having a melting temperature substantially lower than that of the material of said outer pouch;
• coating said water-dispersible fibers along at least a portion of the outer surface of said laminate, either before or after assembly of said pouch, with a water-soluble hydrophilic lubricating agent, said step of coating said water-dispersible fibers with said hydrophilic lubricating agent comprising applying a water-based hydrophilic solution to said water-dispersible fibers, said water-based hydrophilic solution comprising said hydrophilic lubricating agent;
• and joining together peripheral portions of said walls of said inner and outer pouches, and portions of said proximal walls of said inner and outer pouches surrounding said body waste receiving openings, by simultaneously applying pressure and heat to said portions so that said proximal and distal walls of said inner pouch are welded together and, simultaneously, said film material of said inner pouch melts and invades the pores of said fibrous cover layer to a greater extent than said film material of said outer pouch, where, upon the subsequent application of peeling forces, said walls of said outer pouch may be peeled away from said inner pouch without causing separation of said cover and film layers of said inner pouch.

An ostomy appliance for receiving discharge from a human stoma and comprising

• attachment means for attaching the appliance to the peristomal skin surface of a user of the appliance,
• and an ostomy assembly comprising:
• an inner pouch attached to said attachment means and having a first aperture for receiving the stoma of said user, said inner pouch being defined by a flexible body side or proximal inner pouch wall and a flexible distal inner pouch wall, and one or more peripherally extending inner pouch sealing seams,
• an outer pouch enclosing said inner pouch, attached to said attachment means and having a second aperture for receiving said stoma and being aligned with said first aperture, said outer pouch being defined by a flexible bodyside or proximal outer pouch wall and a flexible distal outer pouch wall, and one or more peripherally extending outer pouch sealing seams,
• said one or more outer pouch sealing seams being manually peelable such that the attachment forces provided by said one or more peelable outer pouch sealing seams may be manually eliminated by manually pulling said distal outer pouch wall in a direction transverse to said one or more peelable outer pouch sealing seams,
• said inner pouch walls being made of a plastic film laminated to a web of a non-woven fibrous material, said web facing outwards relative to the interior of said pouch and having an externally exposed coating of a water-soluble hydrophilic lubricating agent, said hydrophilic lubricating agent coated on said web being capable of becoming slippery when exposed to water and, upon subsequent drying, again becoming water-soluble and slippery upon re-exposure to water.

A pouch-in-pouch body waste collection appliance comprising an outer pouch formed of liquid, gas and odor impermeable heat-sealable polymeric film having proximal and distal side walls defining a chamber;

• a toilet-disposable inner pouch having proximal and distal side walls and being disposed in said chamber;
• said proximal walls of said inner and outer pouches having aligned body waste receiving openings therethrough;
• and attachment means for attaching said proximal walls of said inner and outer pouches in areas surrounding said openings to skin surfaces of a patient about a body waste discharge orifice;
• said disposable inner pouch having walls formed from sheet material comprising (a) a layer of thin heat-sealable polymeric film impermeable to body wastes and (b) a water-disintegratable, porous, biodegradable cover layer of water-dispersible fibers bonded thereto;
• said water-dispersible fibers along at least outer surface portions of the walls of said inner pouch being coated with a water-soluble hydrophilic lubricating agent, said hydrophilic lubricating agent coated on said water-dispersible fibers being capable of becoming slippery when exposed to water and, upon subsequent drying, again becoming water-soluble upon re-exposure to water.