Disposable ostomy bag liner

• US 5,423,782 A
• Filed: 06/17/1994
• Issued: 06/13/1995
• Est. Priority Date: 06/17/1994
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Douglas H. Wolrich
• Original Assignee: Douglas H. Wolrich
• Inventors: Wolrich, Douglas H.
• Primary Examiner(s): KRUTER, JEROME
• Application Number:
  US08/262,160
• Time in Patent Office: 361 Days
• Field of Search: 604/333, 604/334, 604/338, 604/339
• US Class Current: 604/339
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2005/4402 disposable
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 5/445 Colostomy, ileostomy or urethrostomy devices A61F5/441, A61F5/442, A61F5/443 take precedence

Abstract

A disposable ostomy bag liner apparatus including a unitary flexible bag having a main body portion, a tapered portion, a narrowed portion and a flange portion. The tapered portion is disposed adjacent the main body portion and together, the main body portion and tapered portion define an interior portion of the bag for receiving and hold intestinal waste material. The narrowed portion is disposed adjacent the tapered portion and is for holding the bag in place during insertion of the bag in an opening of a bag flange of a conventional ostomy bag. The narrowed portion defines a mouth opening in the bag for admitting intestinal waste material into the interior portion. The flange portion is adjacent the narrowed portion, and cooperates with the bag flange to secure and seal the liner to an ostomy flange on the patient. A guard is disposed in the flexible bag to define a guarded region in the bag and guards the waste material received in the mouth opening from the guarded region to generally inhibit access of the waste material to the guarded region to prevent movement of the waste material into the guarded region.

Claims

1. A disposable ostomy bag liner apparatus including:

a) a unitary flexible bag having;

i) a main body portion defined by first and second joined opposite side edge portions and a bottom joined edge portion extending between the first and second opposite joined edge portions;

ii) a tapered portion adjacent the main body portion, the tapered portion being defined by first and second tapered joined edges extending from and at respective angles to the first and second joined opposite side edge portions, said main body portion and said tapered portion defining an interior portion of the bag for receiving and holding intestinal waste material;

iii) a narrowed portion adjacent the tapered portion, for holding the bag in place in an opening of a bag flange on a conventional ostomy bag, said narrowed portion defining a mouth opening in the bag for admitting said intestinal waste material into said interior portion, said tapered portion tapering toward said narrowed portion; and

iv) a flexible flange portion adjacent the narrowed portion, for cooperating with the ostomy flange to secure and seal the liner to an ostomy flange, the flexible flange portion being at least partially defined by first and second angled, joined flange edges extending from and at respective angles to the first and second tapered joined edges respectively such that said flange portion has an inverse taper and generally extends about said mouth opening; and

v) a guard disposed in the flexible bag, the guard defining a guarded region in the bag and guarding the waste material received in the mouth opening from said guarded region to generally inhibit the access of the waste material to said guarded region to prevent movement of said waste material into said guarded region.

2. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein said flexible bag is formed from first and second flexible sheet portions, the first and second flexible sheet portions having joined and unjoined perimeter edge portions, said joined perimeter edge portions generally defining said main body portion, said tapered portion and said narrowed portion, and at least two of said joined perimeter edge portions and said joined perimeter edge portions generally defining said flange portion.

3. An apparatus as claimed in claim 2 wherein said joined edges are laminated together to join corresponding edges on the first and second sheets together.

4. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein the flange portion extends generally radially beyond the mouth opening by at least approximately 0.5 inches.

5. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein the angle between the first joined tapered edges and the first joined flange edges is between 60 and 120 degrees.

6. An apparatus as claimed in claim 5 wherein the angle between the first joined tapered edges and the first joined flange edges is approximately 90 degrees.

7. An apparatus as claimed in claim 1 wherein the flexible bag is formed from a disposable material.

8. An apparatus as claimed in claim 7 wherein the disposable material includes a transparent polyethylene plastic having a thickness of between 0.001 and 0.002 inches.

9. A disposable ostomy bag liner apparatus including a unitary flexible bag formed from first and second flexible sheet portions, the first and second flexible sheet portions having joined and unjoined perimeter edge portions, said joined perimeter edge portions generally defining:

a) a main body portion;

b) a tapered portion disposed adjacent the main body portion, the main body portion and tapered portion defining an interior portion of the bag for receiving and holding intestinal waste material said tapered portion having a guard disposed therein to define a guarded region in the bag to generally inhibit the access of waste material to said guarded region to prevent movement of said waste material into said guarded region, said guard including a joint line joining the first and second sheet portions together along a line, the guarded portion having at least one gas vent opening disposed therein to vent gas from the interior portion of the bag directly to an interior of a conventional ostomy bag in which the liner may be installed;

c) a narrowed portion disposed adjacent the tapered portion, for holding the bag in place in an opening of a bag flange on said conventional ostomy bag, said narrowed portion defining a mouth opening in the bag for admitting said intestinal waste material into said interior portion; and

d) a flexible flange portion adjacent the narrowed portion, defined by at least two of said joined perimeter edge portions, for cooperating with an ostomy flange to secure and seal the liner to said ostomy flange.

10. An apparatus as claimed in claim 9 wherein said at least one gas vent opening includes first and second pairs of gas vent openings.

11. An apparatus as claimed in claim 9 wherein said at least one gas vent opening has a diameter of between approximately 0.02 and 0.03 inches.

12. An apparatus as claimed in claim 9 wherein said joint line extends from a joined perimeter edge portion into the interior portion of the bag.

13. An apparatus as claimed in claim 12 wherein the joint line includes a laminated joint.

14. An apparatus as claimed in claim 9 wherein said flexible bag is formed from a membrane having a thickness of between 0.001 and 0.102 inches, said flange portion having a thickness no greater than the thickness of said membrane, to permit the flange portion to be received between cooperating flanges of a conventional ostomy flange and a conventional ostomy bag.

15. A method of receiving intestinal waste material in a disposable ostomy bag liner, the method comprising the steps of:

a) inserting a main body portion of said ostomy bag liner in an opening in a conventional ostomy bag until a narrowed portion of said liner is axially aligned with a bag coupling on said conventional ostomy bag such that said main body portion is disposed inside said conventional ostomy bag while a flexible flange portion of said liner extends outside the conventional ostomy bag;

b) spreading said flange portion about said bag coupling such that it generally lies flat in a plane parallel to a plane in which the bag coupling lies;

c) pressing the bag coupling with the flange portion spread thereabout, onto the flange coupling such that the flange portion is received between the bag coupling and the flange coupling

d) receiving intestinal waste material, in a mouth opening of an ostomy bag liner disposed in an ostomy bag; and

e) guarding the waste material, received in said mouth opening, from at least one gas vent opening in said liner to generally inhibit the access of said waste material to said at least one gas vent opening to prevent said waste material from exiting said at least one gas vent opening.

16. A disposable ostomy bag liner comprising:

a) a unitary flexible bag formed from first and second flexible sheet portions respectively, the first and second flexible sheet portions having laminated and unlaminated perimeter edge portions, said laminated perimeter edge portions generally defining;

i) a main body portion;

ii) a tapered portion adjacent the main body portion, the main body portion and tapered portion defining an interior portion of the bag for receiving and hold intestinal waste material;

iii) a narrowed portion adjacent the tapered portion, for holding the bag in place during insertion of the bag in an opening of a bag flange on a conventional ostomy bag, said narrowed portion defining a mouth opening in the bag for admitting said intestinal waste material into said interior portion; and

i) a flange portion adjacent the narrowed portion, for cooperating with an ostomy flange to secure and seal the liner to the ostomy flange, the flange portion being defined by at least two of said joined perimeter edge portions and said joined perimeter edge portions

b) first and second pairs of gas vent openings disposed generally adjacent respective laminated edge portions generally on opposite sides of said bag; and

c) first and second laminated joints joining the first and second flexible sheet portions together along first and second lines respectively, said first and second lines being disposed between said first and second pairs of gas vent openings and said interior portion of said bag respectively and extending from respective laminated edge portions adjacent said first and second pairs of openings respectively, said first and second laminated joints acting to guard the waste material received in the mouth opening from said first and second pairs of gas vent openings respectively to generally inhibit the access of the waste material to said first and second gas vent openings respectively to prevent said waste material from exiting said gas vent openings.