Tongue blocking device for mouth rehabilitation
By designing an adjustable tongue stopper, the problems of tongue pressure and size fit of existing tongue stoppers have been solved, improving the fit and comfort of various patients and ensuring cleanliness and stability during the oral restoration process.
Patent Information
- Authority / Receiving Office
- CN · China
- Patent Type
- Utility models(China)
- Current Assignee / Owner
- STOMATOLOGICAL HOSPITAL AFFILIATED TO WENZHOU MEDICAL UNIV
- Filing Date
- 2026-04-17
- Publication Date
- 2026-05-15
AI Technical Summary
Existing tongue depressors are designed with a fixed tongue-pressing mode, which causes continuous pressure and discomfort on the tongue. They also lack personalized adjustment capabilities and cannot adapt to the differences in oral cavity volume among different people. In particular, their adaptability is extremely poor in cases of oral malformation or tongue abnormalities.
A tongue stopper was designed, comprising an opening support and a tongue-blocking isolator. It employs a threaded adjustment assembly and a snap-fit block structure to achieve flexible adjustment of mouth opening and oral cavity width. Combined with medical-grade silicone material and an arc-shaped isolation plate, it provides flexible fit and stable limiting, and constructs a double-sided drainage channel to ensure comfort and cleanliness.
It has improved adaptability to various patient groups, reduced clinical management costs, enhanced operational flexibility and comfort, and ensured cleanliness and stability during the oral restoration process.
Smart Images
Figure CN224235571U_ABST
Abstract
Description
Technical Field
[0001] This application relates to the field of oral medical device technology, and in particular to a tongue stopper for oral restoration. Background Technology
[0002] Tongue stoppers are commonly used auxiliary medical devices in oral diagnosis and treatment. They are usually made of biocompatible materials such as medical-grade silicone, resin, stainless steel or disposable plastic. They are mostly arc-shaped, sheet-shaped or wedge-shaped, and some have a handle or fixing structure. The size is adapted to the oral volume of patients of different ages. The core function is to physically isolate and limit the tongue, creating a stable and safe operating environment for oral diagnosis and treatment.
[0003] Existing tongue depressors for oral restorations, in clinical practice, largely adhere to the traditional logic of forcibly fixing the tongue. They generally employ a tongue-pressing fixation mode rather than a more ergonomic isolation and guidance concept. Furthermore, they suffer from significant drawbacks such as standardized dimensions and a lack of personalized adjustment capabilities. These combined factors lead to particularly prominent clinical pain points. From a fixation perspective, the essence of the tongue-pressing fixation mode is to apply continuous mechanical pressure to the tongue through the main body of the tongue depressor, forcibly pressing the tongue to the floor or sides of the mouth to restrict its movement. This design does not adequately consider the tongue as a body rich in blood vessels and nerves. The physiological characteristics of soft muscle tissue; and the design flaw of fixed size further amplifies the negative impact of the above problems. There are significant individual differences in the volume of the human oral cavity: the depth and width of the oral cavity of adults and children can differ by more than 50%. Even among adults, there are obvious differences in the horizontal volume of the oral cavity and the size of the tongue between men and women. In addition, some patients have special conditions such as oral malformation, missing teeth leading to abnormal oral space, enlarged tongue or short frenulum, which put forward higher requirements for the size adaptability of tongue stoppers. Most existing tongue stoppers adopt a universal size design and lack adjustable structure, resulting in extremely poor adaptability.
[0004] Therefore, it is necessary to propose a tongue deflector for oral restoration to solve the above problems. Utility Model Content
[0005] This application provides a tongue depressor for oral restoration. It aims to address the technical problems of most tongue depressors in related technologies, which use tongue pressing and fixing instead of isolation and guidance, resulting in continuous pressure on the tongue, causing discomfort and difficulty in swallowing. At the same time, the size is relatively fixed and it is difficult to adjust according to the volume of different people's oral cavity.
[0006] This application provides a tongue stop for oral restoration, including an opening support and a tongue-stopping isolation member disposed on the opening support. The opening support includes an upper abutment and a lower abutment, and an adjustment component disposed between the upper abutment and the lower abutment to adapt to different oral opening degrees.
[0007] The tongue-stopping isolation component includes an extension plate and an isolation plate. The extension plate can drive the isolation plate to be adjusted and inserted into the snap-fit hole on the lower abutment to adapt to different oral cavity widths.
[0008] The technical solutions described above in this application embodiment have at least the following technical effects: Through the dual adjustment structure of adjustable mouth opening and adjustable oral cavity width, one device can be adapted to multiple types of patients, which not only improves patient comfort, better adaptability and weaker pressure, but also reduces the management cost of clinical devices. At the same time, it adapts to the diverse operational needs in oral restoration scenarios, making the auxiliary functions of tongue blocking and mouth opening more flexible and practical.
[0009] In this embodiment, the adjustment assembly includes a rotating seat disposed on the lower abutment and a threaded post rotatably disposed on the rotating seat, and a threaded hole matching the threaded post is provided on the lower end face of the upper abutment.
[0010] This technical solution utilizes the spiral engagement between the threaded column and the threaded hole of the upper abutment to rotate the threaded column, thereby driving the upper abutment to rise and fall along the axial direction of the threaded column. This changes the vertical distance between the upper and lower abutments, ultimately achieving flexible and controllable adjustment of the mouth opening.
[0011] In this embodiment, the extension plate is provided with snap-fit blocks in a uniform array, and the extension plate is movably and limitedly inserted into the snap-fit holes through the snap-fit blocks.
[0012] This technical solution utilizes the elastic limiting action of the evenly arrayed snap-fit blocks on the extension plate and the snap-fit holes on the lower abutment to achieve multi-level adjustable insertion depth of the extension plate. This allows for precise control of the lateral extension distance of the isolation plate within the oral cavity, ultimately adapting to the oral cavity width, tongue size, and required tongue-blocking isolation range of different patients, while ensuring the stable and fixed position of the isolation plate after adjustment.
[0013] In this embodiment, the snap-fit block, the extension plate, and the isolation plate are integrally formed and are all made of medical-grade silicone material.
[0014] This technical solution, through the design of medical-grade silicone material and integrated molding structure, not only ensures the lateral adjustment and stable positioning of the tongue-blocking isolation function, but also further optimizes the contact safety, compatibility and durability with oral tissues. It utilizes the soft properties of silicone to reduce irritation to the tongue and oral mucosa, and eliminates structural splicing risks through integrated molding, ensuring the reliability of snap-fit adjustment and the hygiene and safety of clinical use.
[0015] In this embodiment, the lower abutment is provided with a saliva suction hole for connecting to a saliva suction tube. The lower abutment is also provided with a first connecting hole, one end of which is connected to the saliva suction hole, and the other end of which is connected to the lower end face of the lower abutment near the tongue, for discharging saliva and cleaning fluid from one side of the tongue.
[0016] This technical solution constructs a dedicated drainage channel on the tongue side through the flow guiding structure design of the saliva suction hole and the first connecting hole: the saliva suction hole serves as the connection interface with the saliva suction tube, providing a source of negative pressure suction; the first connecting hole acts as a flow guiding bridge, precisely guiding the saliva accumulated on one side of the tongue and the cleaning solution used in the oral restoration process into the saliva suction hole, and finally expelling it from the body through the saliva suction tube, thus achieving directional drainage and real-time cleaning of the tongue side area.
[0017] In this embodiment, the tongue-blocking isolator is provided with a second connecting hole. One end of the second connecting hole is connected to the saliva suction hole through the snap-fit block, and the other end of the second connecting hole is connected to the lower end face of the isolator plate near the tongue. This is used to discharge saliva and cleaning fluid from the other side of the tongue.
[0018] This technical solution constructs a double-sided, fully covered drainage channel for the tongue through the coordinated design of the second connecting hole, the snap-fit block for drainage, and the suction hole. One end of the second connecting hole is connected to the suction hole under negative pressure via the snap-fit block, while the other end reaches the lower end of the isolation plate near the tongue. This forms a drainage layout that sandwiches the first connecting hole from both sides, allowing saliva and oral repair cleaning solution accumulated on both sides of the tongue to be simultaneously introduced into the suction hole and finally discharged through the suction tube, achieving real-time cleaning of the tongue perioral area without any blind spots or dead angles.
[0019] In this embodiment, the isolation plate is an arc-shaped plate, wherein the arc at the front end of the isolation plate is greater to adapt to the patient's mouth and tongue.
[0020] This technical solution uses an ergonomically designed isolation plate with an overall arc shape and a larger arc at the front end. The core is to precisely adapt to the natural physiological curve of the tongue and the spatial shape of the front of the oral cavity: the arc-shaped contour forms a large area of flexible fit with the side of the tongue, while the larger arc at the front end adapts to the rounded shape of the tip of the tongue and the narrow space of the upper and lower lips in the oral vestibule, achieving guided isolation. Without compressing the tongue, the tongue is stably confined to the lateral area of the tongue, which not only avoids the tongue from obstructing the surgical field, but also ensures the compatibility of the isolation plate with the tongue and oral tissues, while also improving isolation stability while being compatible with lateral adjustment function. Attached Figure Description
[0021] Figure 1 A three-dimensional structural diagram of a tongue deflector for oral restoration provided in an embodiment of this application;
[0022] Figure 2 An exploded view of the tongue stopper for oral restoration and a cross-sectional view of the upper abutment provided in the embodiments of this application;
[0023] Figure 3 A three-dimensional structural diagram of a lower abutment provided in an embodiment of this application;
[0024] The following are the labeling elements in the figure:
[0025] 1. Opening support; 11. Upper abutment; 12. Lower abutment; 121. Snap-fit hole; 13. Adjustment component; 131. Rotating seat; 132. Threaded post; 133. Threaded hole; 2. Tongue stop isolation component; 21. Extension plate; 22. Isolation plate; 23. Snap-fit block; 3. Saliva suction tube; 31. Saliva suction hole; 32. First connecting hole; 33. Second connecting hole. Detailed Implementation
[0026] Existing tongue depressors for oral restorations, in clinical practice, largely adhere to the traditional logic of forcibly fixing the tongue. They generally employ a tongue-pressing fixation mode rather than a more ergonomic isolation and guidance concept. Furthermore, they suffer from significant drawbacks such as standardized dimensions and a lack of personalized adjustment capabilities. These combined factors lead to particularly prominent clinical pain points. From a fixation perspective, the essence of the tongue-pressing fixation mode is to apply continuous mechanical pressure to the tongue through the main body of the tongue depressor, forcibly pressing the tongue to the floor or sides of the mouth to restrict its movement. This design does not adequately consider the tongue as a body rich in blood vessels and nerves. The physiological characteristics of soft muscle tissue; and the design flaw of fixed size further amplifies the negative impact of the above problems. There are significant individual differences in the volume of the human oral cavity: the depth and width of the oral cavity of adults and children can differ by more than 50%. Even among adults, there are obvious differences in the horizontal volume of the oral cavity and the size of the tongue between men and women. In addition, some patients have special conditions such as oral malformation, missing teeth leading to abnormal oral space, enlarged tongue or short frenulum, which put forward higher requirements for the size adaptability of tongue stoppers. Most existing tongue stoppers adopt a universal size design and lack adjustable structure, resulting in extremely poor adaptability.
[0027] Based on this, in order to improve the technical problems existing in the related technologies, most tongue depressors use tongue pressing and fixing rather than isolation and guidance, which causes continuous pressure on the tongue, causing discomfort and difficulty in swallowing, and the size is relatively fixed and difficult to adjust according to the volume of different people's oral cavity, the embodiments of this application provide the following solutions.
[0028] Please refer to the following: Figures 1 to 3 This application provides a tongue stop for oral restoration. The tongue stop for oral restoration includes an opening support 1 and a tongue-stopping isolation member 2 disposed on the opening support 1. The opening support 1 includes an upper abutment 11 and a lower abutment 12, and an adjustment component 13 disposed between the upper abutment 11 and the lower abutment 12 to adapt to different oral opening degrees.
[0029] The tongue-blocking isolation member 2 includes an extension plate 21 and an isolation plate 22. The extension plate 21 can drive the isolation plate 22 to be adjusted and inserted into the snap-fit hole 121 on the lower abutment 12 to adapt to different oral cavity widths.
[0030] The tongue deflector for oral restoration provided in this application embodiment changes the distance between the upper abutment 11 and the lower abutment 12 by adjusting the component 13, thereby adapting to the mouth opening degree of different patients. It avoids the problems of traditional fixed-size tongue deflectors having too much support, causing muscle soreness, or insufficient support, preventing exposure of the surgical field. It adapts to the mouth opening ability of different patients. The extension plate 21 drives the isolation plate 22 to adjust the insertion depth within the snap-fit hole 121, changing the lateral extension range of the isolation plate 22 in the oral cavity, thereby adapting to the oral cavity width of different patients. It avoids the problems of traditional tongue deflectors being too wide and squeezing the oral cavity or too narrow and not blocking the tongue. The isolation plate 22 fits the tongue side area perfectly, isolating the tongue without occupying extra operating space. Through the dual adjustment structure of adjustable mouth opening degree and adjustable oral cavity width, one device can adapt to multiple types of patients, improving patient comfort, better adaptability, and less pressure, while reducing the management cost of clinical devices. At the same time, it adapts to the diverse operational needs in oral restoration scenarios, making the auxiliary functions of tongue deflection and mouth opening more flexible and practical.
[0031] In this embodiment, the adjustment component 13 includes a rotating seat 131 disposed on the lower abutment 12 and a threaded post 132 rotatably disposed on the rotating seat 131. A threaded hole 133 matching the threaded post 132 is provided on the lower end face of the upper abutment 11.
[0032] This configuration allows for flexible and controllable adjustment of oral cavity opening by rotating the threaded post 132 and utilizing the helical engagement between the threaded post 132 and the threaded hole 133 of the upper abutment 11. This movement drives the upper abutment 11 to rise and fall axially along the threaded post 132, thereby changing the vertical distance between the upper abutment 11 and the lower abutment 12. The thread pitch is fixed, and the angle of rotation of the threaded post 132 corresponds linearly to the rising and falling distance of the upper abutment 11, enabling small-amplitude, precise adjustments to the opening. This avoids the problems of sudden changes and lack of fine-tuning inherent in traditional snap-fit adjustments. The threaded structure has a self-locking function; unless the threaded post 132 is actively rotated, the friction of the threaded engagement will fix the position of the upper abutment 11. The adjusted opening will not loosen due to slight patient movements or instrument contact during treatment, maintaining a stable opening state and ensuring the continuity and safety of the operation. Doctors can easily adjust the distance by rotating the threaded post 132; the operation logic is intuitive and can be completed with one hand, eliminating the need for complex snap-fit unlocking and locking steps, thus meeting the clinical need for rapid adjustment of oral cavity opening.
[0033] In this embodiment, the extension plate 21 is provided with a uniform array of snap-fit blocks 23, and the extension plate 21 is movably and limitedly inserted into the snap-fit hole 121 through the snap-fit blocks 23.
[0034] This design, with its uniform array of locking blocks 23, creates clear adjustable levels. Doctors can switch positions by simply pushing and pulling the extension plate 21, unlocking it via the locking blocks 23 and locking holes 121. The operation is intuitive and can be completed with one hand. The uniform array of locking blocks 23 makes the adjustment range predictable, allowing doctors to quickly determine and adjust to a position suitable for the patient's mouth. This avoids the inefficiency of traditional continuous sliding structures that require repeated trial and error for positioning, making it suitable for rapid preparation and efficient treatment in clinical settings. Through the elastic limiting action of the uniform array of locking blocks 23 on the extension plate 21 and the locking holes 121 on the lower abutment 12, the insertion depth of the extension plate 21 can be adjusted in multiple levels. This allows for precise control of the lateral extension distance of the isolation plate 22 within the oral cavity, ultimately adapting to different patients' oral cavity widths, tongue sizes, and the required tongue-blocking isolation range, while ensuring the stable and fixed position of the isolation plate 22 after adjustment.
[0035] In this embodiment, the snap-fit block 23, the extension plate 21, and the isolation plate 22 are integrally formed and are all made of medical-grade silicone material.
[0036] This design utilizes the soft and highly elastic medical-grade silicone, which forms a flexible buffer upon contact with the tongue and oral mucosa, dispersing contact pressure and avoiding friction or compression damage to the tongue and gums caused by traditional hard plastic or metal snap-fit structures. It is particularly suitable for prolonged treatment, significantly reducing the patient's foreign body sensation and soreness, and decreasing nausea and vomiting reflexes in individuals with sensitive throats. Through the design of medical-grade silicone material and a one-piece molded structure, while ensuring the lateral adjustment and stable positioning of the tongue-blocking isolation function, it further optimizes the contact safety, compatibility, and durability with oral tissues. It utilizes the soft properties of silicone to reduce irritation to the tongue and oral mucosa, and the one-piece molding eliminates potential structural splicing risks, ensuring the reliability of snap-fit adjustment and the hygiene and safety of clinical use.
[0037] In this embodiment, the lower abutment 12 is provided with a saliva suction hole 31 for connecting the saliva suction tube 3. The lower abutment 12 is also provided with a first connecting hole 32. One end of the first connecting hole 32 is connected to the saliva suction hole 31, and the other end of the first connecting hole 32 is connected to the lower end face of the lower abutment 12 near the tongue, for discharging saliva and cleaning fluid from one side of the tongue.
[0038] This design, through the flow-guiding structure of the suction hole 31 and the first connecting hole 32, constructs a dedicated drainage channel on the tongue side: the suction hole 31 serves as the connection interface with the suction tube 3, providing a source of negative pressure suction; the first connecting hole 32 acts as a flow-guiding bridge, precisely guiding saliva accumulated on the tongue side and cleaning solutions used during oral restoration into the suction hole 31, which is then discharged through the suction tube 3, achieving directional drainage and real-time cleaning of the tongue side area; the first connecting hole 32 directly connects the lower end face of the tongue side with the suction hole 31, using negative pressure to precisely aspirate accumulated fluid, avoiding interference from accumulated fluid on the tongue side from the source, ensuring that the surgical field remains dry and clean, providing a stable operating environment for oral restoration, and significantly improving the fit of the prosthesis and the success rate of treatment.
[0039] In this embodiment, the tongue-blocking isolator 2 is provided with a second connecting hole 33. One end of the second connecting hole 33 is connected to the saliva suction hole 31 through the snap-fit block 23, and the other end of the second connecting hole 33 is connected to the lower end face of the isolator plate 22 near the tongue. It is used to discharge saliva and cleaning fluid from the other side of the tongue.
[0040] This design, through the coordinated design of the second connecting hole 33, the snap-fit block 23 for drainage, and the suction hole 31, constructs a drainage channel that fully covers both sides of the tongue: one end of the second connecting hole 33 is connected to the suction hole 31 by the snap-fit block 23 to achieve negative pressure communication, and the other end reaches the lower end face of the isolation plate 22 near the tongue side, forming a drainage layout that sandwiches the first connecting hole 32 on both sides. This allows saliva and oral restoration cleaning solution accumulated on both sides of the tongue to be simultaneously introduced into the suction hole 31 and finally discharged through the suction tube 3, achieving real-time cleaning of the perilingual area without dead angles and within the entire range. This not only further ensures the dryness and cleanliness of the surgical field, but also optimizes the efficiency of medical and nursing operations and the patient's treatment experience by simplifying operations and reducing tissue irritation. At the same time, its seamless compatibility with adjustable mouth opening, adjustable oral cavity width, and medical silicone tongue guards allows the tongue guard to form a complete functional closed loop of opening support, tongue isolation, and bilateral saliva suction, fully adapting to the diverse patient needs and operating scenarios in oral restoration, significantly improving the product's clinical practicality, innovation, and core competitiveness.
[0041] In this embodiment, the isolation plate 22 is an arc-shaped plate, wherein the front end of the isolation plate 22 has a larger arc to adapt to the patient's mouth and tongue.
[0042] With this design, the isolation plate 22 is an ergonomic structure with an overall arc shape and a larger arc at the front end. The core is to precisely adapt to the natural physiological curve of the tongue and the spatial shape of the front of the oral cavity: the arc contour forms a large area of flexible fit with the side of the tongue, while the larger arc at the front end adapts to the rounded shape of the tip of the tongue and the narrow space of the upper and lower lips in the oral vestibule, so as to achieve guided isolation. Without compressing the tongue, the tongue is stably limited to the side area of the tongue, which not only avoids the tongue from obstructing the surgical field, but also ensures the compatibility of the isolation plate 22 with the tongue and oral tissues, and improves the isolation stability while being compatible with the lateral adjustment function.
[0043] The above description is merely a preferred embodiment of this application and is not intended to limit this application. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, and improvements made within the spirit and principles of this application should be included within the protection scope of this application.
Claims
1. A tongue stopper for oral restoration, comprising an opening support (1) and a tongue-stopping separator (2) disposed on the opening support (1), characterized in that: The opening support (1) includes an upper abutment (11) and a lower abutment (12), and an adjustment component (13) disposed between the upper abutment (11) and the lower abutment (12) to adapt to different oral cavity opening degrees; The tongue-blocking isolation member (2) includes an extension plate (21) and an isolation plate (22). The extension plate (21) can drive the isolation plate (22) to be adjusted and inserted into the snap-fit hole (121) on the lower abutment (12) to adapt to different oral cavity widths.
2. The tongue stopper for oral restoration according to claim 1, characterized in that: The adjustment assembly (13) includes a rotating seat (131) disposed on the lower abutment (12) and a threaded post (132) rotatably disposed on the rotating seat (131). The lower end face of the upper abutment (11) is provided with a threaded hole (133) that matches the threaded post (132).
3. The tongue stopper for oral restoration according to claim 1, characterized in that: The extension plate (21) is provided with a uniform array of snap-fit blocks (23), and the extension plate (21) is movably and limitedly inserted into the snap-fit hole (121) through the snap-fit blocks (23).
4. A tongue stopper for oral restoration according to claim 3, characterized in that: The snap-fit block (23), the extension plate (21), and the isolation plate (22) are integrally formed and are all made of medical silicone material.
5. A tongue stopper for oral restoration according to claim 4, characterized in that: The lower abutment (12) is provided with a saliva suction hole (31) for connecting to the saliva suction tube (3). The lower abutment (12) is also provided with a first connecting hole (32). One end of the first connecting hole (32) is connected to the saliva suction hole (31), and the other end of the first connecting hole (32) is connected to the lower end face of the lower abutment (12) near the tongue, for discharging saliva and cleaning fluid from one side of the tongue.
6. A tongue stopper for oral restoration according to claim 5, characterized in that: The tongue-blocking isolator (2) has a second connecting hole (33). One end of the second connecting hole (33) is connected to the saliva suction hole (31) through the snap-fit block (23), and the other end of the second connecting hole (33) is connected to the lower end face of the isolator plate (22) near the tongue. It is used to discharge saliva and cleaning fluid from the other side of the tongue.
7. A tongue stopper for oral restoration according to claim 1, characterized in that: The isolation plate (22) is an arc-shaped plate, wherein the front end of the isolation plate (22) has a larger arc to adapt to the patient's oral cavity and tongue.