Inflatable cuff used for blood pressure measurement

• US 6,478,745 B2
• Filed: 01/25/2001
• Issued: 11/12/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 08/04/1998
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Omron Healthcare Company Limited (Omron Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Colin Corporation (Fukuda Denshi Company Limited)
• Inventors: Kurosaki, Takeshi, Nakagawa, Tsuneo
• Primary Examiner(s): Nasser, Robert L.
• Application Number:
  US09/768,252
• Publication Number:
  US 20010005777A1
• Time in Patent Office: 656 Days
• Field of Search: 600/499, 606/202
• US Class Current: 600/499
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/021 Measuring pressure in heart or blood vessels A61B5/0205 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/02233 Occluders specially adapted therefor tourniquets A61B17/132
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0225 the pressure being controlled by electric signals, e.g. derived from Korotkoff sounds

Abstract

An inflatable cuff for being wound and inflated around a body portion of a living subject to press the body portion in measuring a blood pressure of the subject, the cuff comprising: an inflatable bag; and an inner sheet member and an outer sheet member which are positioned inside and outside the inflatable bag, respectively, when the cuff is wound around the body portion of the subject; wherein at least a portion of the inner sheet member that is positioned inside the inflatable bag includes at least two layers which are separate from, and superposed on, each other.

Claims

1. An inflatable cuff for being wound and inflated around a body portion of a living subject to press said body portion in measuring a blood pressure of the subject, the cuff comprising:

an inflatable bag; and

an inner sheet member and an outer sheet member which are positioned inside and outside said inflatable bag, respectively, when the cuff is wound around said body portion of the subject;

wherein at least a portion of said inner sheet member that is positioned inside said inflatable bag includes at least two layers which are separate from, and superposed on, each other;

wherein said at least two layers of said inner sheet member are bonded to each other at respective peripheral portions thereof, so that a remaining portion of at least one of said at least two layers is slidable relative to a remaining portion of the other of said at least two layers;

wherein said two layers comprise a bag-side layer which is located on the side of said inflatable bag, and a contact layer which is adapted to be held in close contact with said body portion of the living subject when the cuff is wound around said body portion, said bag-side layer being formed of a stretchable material; and

wherein said contact layer comprises a fabric layer and a synthetic-resin layer, said fabric layer having opposite surfaces, one of which is located on the side of said bag-side layer and lined with said synthetic-resin layer, so that said bag-side layer is slidable relative to said contact layer.

2. An inflatable cuff according to claim 1, wherein said bag-side layer is formed of a material selected from the group consisting of a natural fiber woven fabric, a natural fiber unwoven fabric, a synthetic fiber woven fabric, and a synthetic fiber unwoven fabric, said contact layer being formed of a material selected from the group consisting of a long-fiber woven fabric and a long-fiber unwoven fabric.

3. An inflatable cuff according to claim 1, wherein at least one of said natural fiber woven fabric and said natural fiber unwoven fabric comprises at least one of a cotton fabric, a silk fabric, and a wool fabric.

4. An inflatable cuff according to claim 1, further comprising a connector to which a gas-supply pipe is connected for supplying a pressurized gas to said inflatable bag.

5. An inflatable cuff according to claim 4, wherein said connector is located at an intermediate position of the cuff in a width direction therefore, such that said connector is distant, by a suitable distance, from a distal end of the cuff.