JP2008149174A - Body orthosis - Google Patents

Abstract

[PROBLEMS] To provide a body prosthesis that is comfortable to wear and that can be easily worn on a daily basis, and that can be used for walks and the like while being worn, and that enables comfortable and effective functional recovery training.
An air bag 56 made of a fabric having low stretchability and high airtightness, and a vest portion 52 for attaching the air bag 56 in close contact with the trunk of a wearer 16 are provided. The vest portion 52 includes a pair of shoulder ring members 54 that make a round from the shoulder to the armpit, and a belt 62 that is a pair of fastening members attached to the back side of each shoulder ring member 54. A belt threading 63 attached to the wearer 16 so as to be inserted in the vertical direction is positioned at two places, the vertebral vertebral apex near the center of the back of the wearer 16 and the spine base near the joint of the wearer's spine and pelvis. Prepare. Air is introduced into the air bag 56 and the belt 62 is tightened so that the spine of the wearer 16 extends along the air bag 56.
[Selection] Figure 2

Description

  The present invention relates to a body prosthesis that is attached to a spinal column, a limb joint, or the like that is deformed and has a functional disorder to promote correction, functional recovery, and the like.

  The bones and joints of the human body are deformed due to various causes, causing pain and causing functional disorders such as difficulty in moving the joints. In addition, some parts of the body may become paralyzed due to illness and become unable to operate.

  For example, age-related deformation of Japanese knee joints is often varus deformity (O-leg deformation). When the cartilage covering the joint surface is worn by the biased joint load and the load is supported by the exposed bone surface, pain and osseous deformation appear. Conservative therapy for correcting the deformation includes a method of changing the orientation of the knee joint surface with a plantar plate, a method of directly correcting with a knee brace (hard brace) using a metal support or resin. Surgical treatment includes osteotomy and artificial joint replacement. Knee joint deformity is a property that gradually progresses over several years from onset to sophistication, but conservative therapies (including pharmacotherapy) currently used have little effect on preventing progression of deformation, and deformity The current situation is that surgery is being carried out after advancing sophistication. Severe cases are generally more common in older people, but rigid braces interfere with daily activities, and surgical therapy has limited indications for older people. Therefore, there is currently no appropriate treatment for elderly people suffering from knee joint deformity pain.

  On the other hand, in the field of beauty and health equipment, there are devices that correct deformed knees by winding both knees with elastic bands from the outside. However, a device that corrects knee deformation at the same time as strengthening muscle strength and knee joint range of motion has not been developed. In order to achieve good and continuous correction of knee joint deformation (varus knee and valgus knee (X leg)), increase the extensibility of joint capsule and ligament in the knee joint deformity recess, increase joint range of motion and knee It is necessary to increase the strength of joint extension muscles. In particular, the latter finding is the result of a recent kinematic study. The major exacerbation factor of knee joint deformation and pain generation and decreased range of motion is a decrease in knee extensor strength (quadriceps), The weakness of the quadriceps muscles is often caused by knee joint deformity pain and forms a vicious circle with the knee pain. Furthermore, it has been shown that aggressive reinforcement of the quadriceps improves pain and range of motion. In order to correct the X and O legs, it is necessary to increase the flexibility of the tissue of the concave deformed portion of the knee joint and further train the muscles that extend the knee.

  In addition, a representative example of spinal / pelvic junction disease is degenerative lumbar spondylosis. Conventional conservative therapy uses a soft or rigid corset, and both the metal or resin strut of the corset material and the internal strut due to the effect of increasing abdominal pressure by the corset, part of the load on the affected area is It was bypassed to the pelvis. If the degeneration / deformation of the lumbar spine is advanced, continuous use of a rigid corset is required, but firm fixation induces tissue atrophy and inhibits daily living activities.

  A hip abduction brace is generally used for osteoarthritis, which is a representative hip disease. This orthosis is intended to reduce pain by changing the femoral head load surface and enhancing the hip abductor muscle strength, and has no hip load bypass effect. Hip joint-free orthoses are made of metal or hard resin, but they impede daily activities and are not practical. On the other hand, there are slow pressure / fixation for spinal degenerative diseases and osteotomy and artificial joint replacement for hip degenerative diseases, both of which are invasive and less applicable to the elderly.

  In addition, after the onset of hemiplegia after a stroke, patients who have recovered flexor strength of their fingers and wrist joints but have not fully recovered their extensor strength, have their fingers and wrist joints spasticity of the flexors. In many cases, it will be clamped and bent. If this happens, contracture of the joint capsule / ligament will eventually occur (the joint loses its flexibility), and it will not move even if the extensor strength is restored. In order to prevent this, it is necessary to keep the joint flexible by moving it by using another person such as a trainee or a hand that is not paralyzed. However, it is difficult to carry out this frequently in daily life. In addition, in the case of a patient who can hold a hand that has been opened dynamically by his / her own intention, if he / she can open the paralyzed hand by some method, an operation such as grasping a handrail or grasping an object becomes possible. A joint contracture prevention / improvement training tool that can always be worn on the hemiplegic upper limb after a stroke or a device that assists the hand gripping movement has not yet been developed. The training equipment that passively extends the fingers and wrist joints by inflating the air bag on the palm is disclosed in Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2, but the palm side is occupied by the equipment, so the hand / palm The used object grasping / gripping operation is impossible. Even when used for finger and wrist extension training, the device is large and heavy, and because of the power cord type power supply system, the patient cannot leave the front of the device during training. For this reason, the hands of many hemiplegic patients are often left untouched.

  In general, the degree of kyphosis deformity increases with aging, and back pain and visceral pressure disorders tend to appear with age. There are conservative treatments (correction exercises, orthosis correction) and surgical treatments to correct the kyphosis deformity. Conservative therapy is performed when the deformity correction is successfully obtained with the correction force applied from outside the body, and if it is insufficient, it is the subject of surgical therapy.

  However, the correction force due to corrective exercises is weak, and when the deformed portion of the spine is the thoracic vertebra, the movable portion of the spine is often the lumbar vertebra below the deformed portion. There is a drawback that the correction force does not act on the deformed portion.

  On the other hand, a soft brace is a brace composed of leather, a pad, a belt, etc., and becomes a hard brace when a metal frame or a resin monocoque is added. The use of rigid braces reduces spinal mobility, atrophy of the paraspinal muscles, and greatly impedes daily living activities. In addition, there is great discomfort during use. In particular, there are few indications of rigid appliances for the elderly. Surgical therapy is often not applicable for elderly people due to physical conditions. In the elderly spine deformities, the effect of the soft orthosis is insufficient, but the rigid orthosis often provides good correction.

Accordingly, there is a demand for the development of a body orthosis that has a corrective force comparable to that of a rigid orthosis and at the same time allows the spinal column to be movable like a soft orthosis.
Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 60-10636 Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 62-74824

  In the case of the above-described conventional technology, a device made of metal, resin, chemical fiber or the like has a strong contact with the body and it is difficult to adjust the holding force. The function improvement device trained by the air bag disclosed in Patent Documents 1 and 2 simply improves the function of the fingers, and does not improve the function of other parts of the body or corrective effects. Moreover, although the structure of patent documents 1 and 2 is soft to the body, the device is large and heavy, and because of the power supply system using a power cord, the user cannot leave the front of the device during training. For this reason, there has been a demand for a device that can be easily worn on a daily basis, and that can be used for easy and effective functional recovery training and correction by living while taking a walk or going out.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems of the prior art, has a good feeling of wearing and can be easily worn on a daily basis, and is comfortable by living a walk or the like while wearing. An object of the present invention is to provide a body prosthesis capable of effective function recovery training.

  The present invention is provided with an air bag made of a fabric having low stretchability and high airtightness, and a vest portion for attaching the air bag in close contact with the trunk of a wearer. A pair of shoulder ring members that circulate around the shoulder ring, a pair of fastening members attached to the back side of each shoulder ring member, the vertebral columnar apex near the center of the wearer's back, the wearer's spine and pelvis Guides are provided at two locations on the base of the spinal column near the junction of the two, and are attached so that they can be inserted vertically. The pair of tightening members are inserted into the guides and from the shoulder ring member to the posterior spinal column apex A rod-like body that is long in the longitudinal direction and is provided on the left and right sides between the shoulder ring member and the front part of the iliac on the front side of the vest part. And said air bag Tightening the clamping member with add air, it is the body prosthesis to extend along the spine of the wearer to the air bag.

  The present invention also includes an air bag made of a fabric having low stretchability and high airtightness, a sheath portion for attaching the air bag to a wearer's finger, and the air bag is on the back side of the wearer's finger / joint. A first air bag or a second air bag attached to the first air bag, wherein the first air bag and the second air bag are attached adjacent to each other along the wearer's fingers and wrist joints. The bag is formed in a straight rod shape, and when air is introduced, it becomes a straight shape, and the fingers and wrist joints are stretched and held in an intermediate position, and the fingers are freed by discharging air, and the second air bag faces the finger joints The first air bag and the second air bag are formed in a bent shape when the air is put in, and the bent shape is bent and the fingers are bent and held in a bent position, and the fingers are released by discharging air. Repeatedly putting air in and out It becomes a body prosthesis to move the user's hand fingers, wrist, if you have installed the first air bag or the second air bag alone, stretched out finger, wrist, or a body prosthesis to bend the finger.

  Further, the present invention is provided with an air bag made of a fabric having low stretchability and high airtightness, and an attachment member for attaching the air bag to a wearer's body, wherein the air bag is formed in a linear shape. The books are provided in parallel to each other, and the pair of air bags are twisted in opposite directions, and the lower end and the upper end are connected by a connecting member, and the air bag is twisted in a direction to eliminate the twist when air is introduced. It is a body accessory that operates, wears the air bag on the wearer's body, and causes the wearer's body to twist and move by alternately taking air in and out of the pair of air bags.

  The air bag is flexible before the air is introduced, and the air bag is inflated and has a rigid shape by the introduction of the air, and the shape of the air bag is a linear shape depending on the application. A letter shape, a U shape, etc. are considered. That is, a straight air bag is used to extend a joint that is difficult to bend due to bending, and a bent shape such as an L-shape or U-shape is used to bend a joint that is difficult to bend. If necessary, an air bag having a bifurcated shape, a trifurcated shape, an annular shape, a flat shape or the like is also used.

  The air bag is formed in a cylindrical shape, exhibits bending strength and compressive strength according to the radius and air pressure, and changes the bending strength and compressive strength by partially changing the diameter. By reducing the diameter, the flexibility is increased, and it is possible to adjust the balance between the holding ability and the ease of movement by attaching to the human body.

  The body prosthesis according to the present invention is light and flexible, so it is comfortable to wear and can be worn under clothing, etc., and can be used to correct joint deformation, maintain the correct position, and move the joint. Strengthening muscular strength and giving load-unloading effect to the load joint. Furthermore, the contact with the body is soft and the holding force can be easily adjusted, so that it can be used in a wearing state suitable for each wearer.

  A first embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIG. The body prosthesis 40 of this embodiment is used for treatment, rehabilitation training, and operation assistance for patients with paralysis of fingers and wrist joints as a sequela of hemiplegia after stroke, resulting in inconvenience in movement of fingers and wrist joints. Is what you do.

  As shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, the body accessory 40 is provided with a first air bag 42 and a second air bag 44. The first air bag 42 and the second air bag 44 are formed long in one direction, and are provided adjacent to each other along the dorsal side of the finger from the forearm of the wearer 16 or independently. The first air bag 42 and the second air bag 44 are sized to reach the vicinity of the first joint of the finger from the upper forearm through the wrist joint. The first air bag 42 and the second air bag 44 are provided with a cylindrical sheath 46, which is an attachment member attached to the fingers, between the first joint and the second joint and between the second joint and the root. One is provided. The sheath portion 46 is made of a hook-and-loop fastener or the like and can be attached with one hand.

  The first air bag 42 is provided in the shape of a straight rod having a diameter of about 2 cm, is flexible before the air is introduced, expands to become a linear shape when the air is introduced, increases rigidity, extends the fingers, and is in an intermediate position. Hold in (straight position) and release fingers by releasing air. The second air bag 44 is provided in a shape such as an L shape in which a portion that opposes the joint of the finger is bent, is flexible before air is added, and is inflated and bent when air is supplied, The rigidity is increased, the fingers are bent and held in a bent position, and the fingers are released by releasing air.

  A pipe 48 is connected to the first air bag 42 and the second air bag 44, and a small and light hand pump (not shown) is provided at the tip of the pipe 48. The first air bag 42 and the second air bag 44 can be put in and out of air separately. A small electric pump or exhaust valve may be combined.

  In the case of “the finger can be grasped by itself but the finger cannot be opened” which is often seen as a sequelae of cerebral hemorrhage hemiplegia, only the first air bag 42 can be used as shown in FIG.

  The body prosthesis 40 may be attached to one or both hands of the wearer 16 and may be attached to all five fingers or only some fingers. The sheath 46 of the body prosthesis 40 is attached to the finger and fixed. Since the sheath part 46 is made of a hook-and-loop fastener, it can be attached with one hand. In addition, when the finger is in the clamped position, the spasticity is reduced and the finger is extended by passively extending the heel / middle finger with the healthy finger for a short time (mostly around 1 minute). The wearer 16 can use the body prosthesis 40 by using it.

  When air is introduced into the first air bag 42, the first air bag 42 becomes a linear shape, and the fingers are extended from the bent position to the intermediate position (straight position), and the fingers are opened. In this state, the finger is placed on the target object, and the object is grasped while taking out air. When the air comes out, the first air bag 42 becomes flexible and the fingers can be grasped by one's own will. Further, when it is difficult to bend with the fingers open, when the air is introduced into the second air bag 44, the second air bag 44 is bent, and the fingers are bent to the bent position.

  The body prosthesis 40 according to this embodiment is small and lightweight and can be worn on its own, assists hand gripping operations on a daily basis, performs muscle strength training and joint contracture training, and prevents joint contracture of the fingers. Improvements can be made. Fingers and wrist joints can be stretched at all times to increase the effectiveness of finger and wrist flexure contracture prevention and extension training. In addition, fingers and wrist joints can be extended even during gait training in which the entire upper limb tends to bend in a reflective manner. A first air bag 42 that has a linear shape when air is introduced and a second air bag 44 that has a bent shape are mounted side by side, and by alternately taking in and out air, either or both of the flexion and extensor Even when the muscular strength is not sufficiently recovered, the operation assistance can be surely performed. Since air is supplied by a small and light hand pump 45, it is easy for elderly people to handle. If a small electric pump, an exhaust valve, or the like is combined, it is possible to perform a certain pattern operation such as opening and closing, and to perform an emphasis operation on both hands. Further, power assist for finger operation can be performed by feedback control.

  In addition, as for the body accessory 40 of this embodiment, the 1st air bag 42 and the 2nd air bag 44 can set a dimension and a shape freely according to the state of each wearer's 16 joint. The first air bag 42, the second air bag 44, and the pipe 48 may be integrated into a glove shape. Putting on and taking off gloves makes it easier to attach and detach. Moreover, you may attach the air bag for opening a finger laterally between fingers.

  Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. The body prosthesis 50 according to this embodiment is for correcting and maintaining the kyphosis deformity, and for alleviating pain caused by the deformation.

  The body prosthesis 50 is provided with a vest portion 52 that is in close contact with the upper body of the wearer 16 as an attachment member. The vest 52 is provided with a rear body 52a that covers the back side of the trunk of the wearer 16 and a front body 52b that covers the front side of the trunk. The front body 52b is divided at the front center and is opened and closed with a button or hook and loop fastener. It is provided freely.

  The vest portion 52 is provided with a pair of shoulder ring members 54 such as a set belt that circulates from the shoulder to the armpit. Air bags 56 are provided on the left and right sides of the front body 52 b of the vest 52. The air bag 56 is provided in the shape of a long bar in the longitudinal direction between the front surface of the shoulder ring member 54 and the front portion of the iliac, that is, from the chest to the waist. A portable pump (not shown) is connected to the air bag 56. The pump may be a rubber ball pump for a blood pressure monitor.

  In the back body 52a of the best portion 52, a connecting portion 60 for connecting the pair of shoulder ring members 54 is provided in the middle of the shoulder ring member 54, and is formed in an H shape. A belt 62 that is a cloth fastening member is attached to the shoulder ring member 54 slightly above the position where the connecting portion 60 continues. The belt 62 may be stretchable using rubber or the like, and may be made partly with rubber and a tip portion with a string. The back body 52a of the vest 52 is provided with a belt loop 63 that can be inserted in the vertical direction and is positioned at two locations, the vertebral apex of the back of the spine near the center of the back and the base of the spine near the junction of the spine and pelvis. It has been. The pair of belts 62 is inserted into belt guides 63 which are two guides, and is pulled out from the shoulder ring member 54 to the front of the pelvis through the vertebral columnar apex and the spinal column base. The ends of the belt 62 drawn out to the front of the pelvis are tied together and fixed.

  The method of using the body prosthesis 50 causes the vest 52 to be worn on the upper body of the wearer 16. Then, air is introduced into the air bag 56. Then, the air bag 56 is straightened and becomes a support column for correcting and holding, and supports the curvature on the front side of the chest and extends upward. Further, the belt 62 acts to stretch the curved spinal column by pulling the shoulder ring member 58 rearward. The belt 62 acts as a correction force supply source. The pump connected to the air bag 56 is sandwiched under the vest 52 and self-regulates the air pressure. Then, while pulling the tip of the belt 62, the spinal column deformation is corrected by the self-back muscle force, the belt 62 is tied at the front of the pelvis, and the tension of the belt 62 (correction force acting on the deformation vertex) is adjusted.

  According to the body prosthesis 50 of this embodiment, it has higher posterior scoliosis correction force than the soft orthosis, and is useful for correcting and maintaining the posterior scoliosis deformity of the elderly. The body prosthesis 50 is small and lightweight, can be self-attached, provides spinal mobility to the extent necessary for daily life operations even during wearing, and can prevent the negative effects seen with firm fixation. Since the body prosthesis 50 has flexible mobility, the spinal column standing-up training can be performed in the mounted state. If the spinal column standing muscle acquires sufficient muscular strength, it is possible to maintain the corrected position without attaching the body prosthesis 50. The body prosthesis 50 can provide spinal mobility as well as a deformation correction / maintenance effect comparable to a rigid orthosis.

  In addition, the body accessory of this invention can set the shape of an air bag or an attachment member so that various operation | movement may be carried out according to each part of the body. For example, FIG. 5 shows a body prosthesis 64 that performs a twisting motion. The body prosthesis 64 is provided with two air bags 66 and 68 formed in a straight line in parallel with each other. The air bag 66 is twisted clockwise in the upper part of the drawing. It is twisted counterclockwise toward the top. In this state, the lower ends and the upper ends of the air bags 66 and 68 are connected by the connecting member 70. The method of using the body prosthesis 64 is one in which air is alternately put into the air bag 66 and the air bag 68 and the spin operation is performed in a desired direction. When air is introduced into the air bag 66, as shown in FIG. 5A, the upper connecting member 70 rotates counterclockwise in the direction to eliminate twisting, that is, with respect to the lower connecting member 70. . When the air in the air bag 68 is removed, the air bag 68 rotates clockwise as shown in FIG. The pair of air bags 66 and 68 can be alternately turned in and out to rotate the body of the wearer 16 in the twisting direction. For example, when this is attached to the forearm, it can be applied to the pronation / extraction movement of the hand (the movement of making the elbow a right angle and the palm up and down).

  Further, as shown in FIG. 6, one air bag 66 formed in a straight line may be twisted and attached to the wearer's 16 forearm (elbow to wrist) to perform a twisting operation. The air bag 66 is helically attached in the direction opposite to the direction in which the air bag 66 is to be twisted in a flexible state where air is not introduced. When air is introduced, the air bag 66 becomes hard and has a shape close to a straight line, and the forearm can be rotated in the direction to be twisted. As a result, the function recovery training for forearm rotation is performed while repeatedly taking air in and out of the air bag 66.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 7, the shape of the air bag can be appropriately set according to the shape of the body part or the target shape. For example, a straight air bag 70, an L-shaped air bag 72, a U-shaped air bag 74, and the like are conceivable. The straight air bag 70 is used when extending a bent joint of the body, and the L is used when bending an extended joint. A bent shape such as a letter-shaped air bag 72 or a U-shaped air bag 74 is employed. In addition, a bifurcated air bag 76, a trifurcated air bag 78, an annular air bag 80, a flat air bag 82, and the like are employed depending on the shape of the part to be used.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 8, the bending strength and the compressive strength can be adjusted by partially changing the diameter of the air bag. For example, the air bag 84 of FIG. 8A is formed with a small diameter portion 84a having a small diameter at an intermediate portion in the major axis direction. The air bag 84 has high flexibility at the small-diameter portion 84a, and is attached to the body to adjust the balance between the holding property and the ease of movement of the joint portion. On the other hand, the air bag 86 of FIG. 8B has small diameter portions 86a having small diameters at both end portions in the long axis direction. Thereby, the rigidity of an intermediate part can be improved. Furthermore, characteristics such as elasticity and rigidity can be further added by combining the air bag with a member made of an appropriate material (for example, rubber, spring, resin, etc.).

  The body prosthesis according to the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and can be changed as appropriate.

The perspective view (a) which shows the state which bent the finger | toe and the wrist joint of the body accessory of 1st embodiment of this invention, and the perspective view (b) which shows the state which extended the finger and the wrist joint, A perspective view (c) ) Is a diagram showing an example in which an air bag is used alone. It is a front view of the body prosthesis of 2nd embodiment of this invention. It is a rear view of the body prosthesis of this embodiment. It is the right view (a) which shows the state of the spinal column lateral deformity of the body prosthesis of this embodiment, and the right view (b) which shows the state which extended the spine and corrected. It is a front view which shows the other example of the body prosthesis of this invention. It is a front view which shows the other example of the body prosthesis of this invention. It is a front view which shows the other example of the body prosthesis of this invention. It is a front view which shows the other example of the body prosthesis of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

16 Wearer 50 Body prosthesis 52 Vest 54 Shoulder ring member 56 Air bag 62 Belt 63 Belt loop

Claims (3)

  An air bag made of a fabric having low elasticity and high airtightness, and a vest portion for attaching the air bag in close contact with the trunk of the wearer are provided, and the vest portion includes a pair that goes around from the shoulder to the armpit. Shoulder ring members, a pair of fastening members attached to the back side of each shoulder ring member, and the apex of the spinal column near the center of the wearer's back and the joint between the wearer's spine and pelvis Guides are provided at two positions on the spine base of the spine so that they can be inserted vertically. The pair of tightening members are inserted into the guides and pass from the shoulder ring member through the vertebral vertebral apex and the spine base. The air bag is drawn out to the front of the pelvis and fixed to each other, and the air bag is a vertically long rod-like body provided on the left and right sides between the shoulder ring member and the front part of the iliac at the front side of the vest part, Put air in the air bag Body prostheses tightening the fastening member, characterized in that extending along the spine of the wearer to the bladder with.   An air bag made of a fabric with low elasticity and high airtightness, a sheath part that attaches the air bag to the wearer's finger, and the air bag is attached to the back side of the wearer's finger, wrist joint, and forearm A first air bag and a second air bag, wherein the first air bag and the second air bag are attached adjacent to each other or independently of each other, and the first air bag is provided in the form of a straight bar. If you insert a straight line, the fingers and wrist joints will be stretched and held in the middle position, and the fingers will be freed by discharging air, and the second air bag is provided in a shape where the part facing the finger joints is bent. When the air is introduced, it becomes a bent shape, the fingers are bent and held in a bent position, and the fingers are freed by discharging the air. Repeatedly putting air in and out The person's fingers and wrist joints can be moved, and when attached alone, the first air bag can be used to extend the fingers and wrist joints, and the second air bag can be used to bend the fingers and wrist joints. Body prosthesis characterized by. An air bag made of a fabric having a small stretchability and a high airtightness and an attachment member for attaching the air bag to a wearer's body are provided, and the two air bags formed in a straight shape are parallel to each other. The pair of air bags are twisted in opposite directions to each other, and a lower end portion and an upper end portion are connected by a connecting member, and the air bag is twisted in a direction to eliminate the twist when air is introduced. A body prosthesis characterized in that a bag is attached to a wearer's body, and the wearer's body is twisted by repeatedly taking air in and out of a pair of air bags.

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