Medical dressings with valve and kits containing same
View Patent ↗Medical dressings and medical dressing kits that can be used to provide negative pressure wound therapy. The medical dressings include one or more normally-closed valves, and may include stand-off elements, barrier elements, closure elements, and septum elements. The medical dressing kits may further include pumps, fluid traps, and/or fittings.
1. A medical dressing comprising:
a backing comprising an interior surface and an external surface;
adhesive on at least a portion of the interior surface, wherein the adhesive extends around a perimeter of the interior surface of the backing to adhere the medical dressing to a subject over a wound;
a normally-closed valve attached to the backing over an opening formed through the backing, wherein fluid flow through the opening is controlled by the normally-closed valve, and wherein a dead volume between the normally-closed valve and the backing is 10 mm 3 or less;
wherein, when the medical dressing is attached over the wound, the medical dressing defines a sealed environment over the wound, and further wherein application of a vacuum to the external surface of the backing over the normally-closed valve opens the normally-closed valve such that fluid within the sealed environment can be removed through the opening in the backing,
and wherein the normally-closed valve is flexible and comprises at least a flexible base layer that is attached to the backing and a flexible flap layer that is attached to the flexible base layer.
2. A medical dressing according to claim 1 , wherein the normally-closed valve comprises a one-way normally-closed valve that permits fluid flow out of the sealed environment when in an open configuration and restricts fluid flow into the sealed environment when in a closed configuration.
3. A medical dressing according to claim 1 , wherein the medical dressing further comprises a stand-off element, wherein the stand-off element defines plurality of fluid pathways to the opening on the interior surface of the backing when the stand-off element is positioned proximate the interior surface of the backing in the sealed environment.
4. A medical dressing according to claim 3 , wherein the stand-off element comprises structures formed directly in the interior surface of the backing.
5. A medical dressing according to claim 3 , wherein the stand-off element comprises a separate article attached to the interior surface of the backing.
6. A medical dressing according to claim 3 , wherein the stand-off element comprises a separate article attached to the interior surface of the backing, and further wherein the stand-off element comprises fluid pathway-forming structures on two major surface of the separate article.
7. A medical dressing according to claim 1 , wherein the medical dressing further comprises a septum element attached to the backing.
8. A medical dressing according to claim 1 , wherein the medical dressing comprises a closure element attached to the medical dressing.
9. A medical dressing according to claim 1 , wherein the medical dressing comprises a closure element attached to the medical dressing over the normally-closed valve, wherein the closure element seals the normally-closed valve shut.
10. A medical dressing according to claim 1 , wherein the medical dressing further comprises a barrier element attached to the medical dressing proximate the interior surface of the backing.
11. A method of treating a wound, the method comprising:
applying a medical dressing over a wound,
wherein the medical dressing comprises:
a backing comprising an interior surface and an external surface,
adhesive on at least a portion of the interior surface, wherein the adhesive extends around a perimeter of the interior surface of the backing to adhere the medical dressing to a subject over a wound, and
a normally-closed valve attached to the backing over an opening formed through the backing, wherein fluid flow through the opening is controlled by the normally-closed valve, and wherein a dead volume between the normally-closed valve and the backing is 10 mm 3 or less, and
wherein, when the medical dressing is attached over the wound, the medical dressing defines a sealed environment over the wound, and further wherein application of a vacuum to the external surface of the backing over the normally-closed valve opens the normally-closed valve such that fluid within the sealed environment can be removed through the opening in the backing;
applying a vacuum to the external surface of the backing that opens the normally-closed valve in the medical dressing, and
removing fluid from the sealed environment through the normally-closed valve.
12. A method according to claim 11 , wherein the fluid removed from the sealed environment comprises air such that a pressure within the sealed environment is below atmospheric pressure.
13. A method according to claim 11 , wherein the fluid removed from the sealed environment comprises wound exudate from the wound.