Chest Wall Negative Pressure Support Device for Flail Chest Stabilization
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current first aid methods for flail chest, such as cotton pad packing and skin/external rib traction, often cause chest compression and severe pain, making them difficult to perform effectively, especially in field settings.
Innovation Solution
A chest wall negative pressure support device with a plastic support body attached to the chest wall, featuring a flow guide groove and negative pressure aspirator, which creates a sealed attachment to prevent mediastinal swing and alleviate pain by simulating rib support without compressing the chest cavity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Stability of the object's composition
If cotton pad packing is used for flail chest first aid, then the mediastinal swing can be restrained, but the patient experiences chest compression and discomfort
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a plastic support body as an intermediary device between the chest wall and the external environment. This support body provides structural stability to restrain mediastinal swing without directly compressing the chest cavity, thus resolving the contradiction between stability and harm avoidance
Solution Approach 2:
The invention extracts the harmful compression effect from the traditional cotton pad packing method by replacing it with a rigid plastic support structure that provides stability through its own structural integrity rather than through compression of the chest wall
2Stability of the object's composition
If skin/external rib traction is applied to treat flail chest, then the rib fragment movement can be controlled, but the patient suffers from severe pain and the operation is difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The patent removes the complex and painful external rib traction operation by extracting the essential function of rib fragment control and achieving it through a simpler plastic support body that provides structural stability without requiring complex manipulation or causing severe pain
Solution Approach 2:
The plastic support body acts as a copy or substitute for the natural rib structure, providing the necessary mechanical support and stability to control rib fragment movement without requiring the complex external traction operations that cause pain
3Reliability
If traditional first aid methods are used for flail chest, then some level of support can be provided, but the treatment process is complex and not suitable for field conditions
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the essential support function from complex traditional first aid methods and implements it through a simple plastic support body that can be easily applied in field conditions while maintaining reliability of chest wall stabilization
Solution Approach 2:
The plastic support body is designed as a simple, potentially disposable device that provides reliable support without the complexity of traditional methods, making it suitable for field first aid where simplicity and ease of application are critical
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The device provides a simple and pain-relieving on-site treatment by forming a sealed attachment to the chest wall, preventing mediastinal swing and reducing the risk of secondary injury through negative pressure, thus facilitating easier field first aid for flail chest patients.
Implementation Method 1
a negative pressure aspirator is provided on the side surface of the plastic support body away from the outer side of the chest wall, an air inlet of the negative pressure aspirator is communicated with the flow guide groove by means of a negative pressure air outlet formed in the plastic support body
Data Source
AI summary
A chest wall negative pressure support device, comprising a plastic support body (1) attached to the outer side of a chest wall in a sealed mode. A flow guide groove (2) is formed in the middle of the side surface of the plastic support body (1) in contact with the outer side of the chest wall, and a negative pressure aspirator (3) is provided on the side surface of the plastic support body (1) away from the outer side of the chest wall. An air inlet of the negative pressure aspirator (3) is communicated with the flow guide groove (2) by means of a negative pressure air outlet (4) formed in the plastic support body (1), and an exhaust port of the negative pressure aspirator (3) is communicated with an exhaust pipe (5). The plastic support body (1) is tightly attached to the outer side of the chest wall in a sealed mode, the plastic support body (1) forms an outer bracket on the outer side of the chest wall to simulate ribs for supporting, swing of a mediastinum is prevented, and the process of an on-site treatment operation is simple. In addition, the chest cavity of a patient cannot be compressed, secondary injury to the patient cannot be caused, and the pain of the patient is greatly relieved.