MXPA00010788A - Absorbent articles having a skin care composition disposed thereon - Google Patents

Abstract

An absorbent article, such as a diaper, containing cuffs with a skin care composition disposed thereon. The skin care composition disposed on the cuffs is transferable to the wearer's skin by normal contact and/or wearer motion and/or body heat. The cuffs are at least partically assembled using an oil resistant adhesive that is both material friendly and process friendly.

Description

ABSORBENT ARTICLES THAT HAVE A COMPOSITION FOR SKIN CARE PROVIDED THEREIN TECHNICAL FIELD The present application relates to absorbent articles such as diapers, training pants, adult incontinence devices, sanitary napkins, feminine garments and the like, which have folds, including elastic leg cuffs. More particularly, the present invention relates to absorbent articles having a skin care composition disposed on the folds or the folds and the top sheet which is transferable to the wearer's skin by normal contact and / or movement of the skin. use and / or heat of the body and means for assembling these absorbent articles that are resistant to the oleaginous components of the skin care composition.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The main function of absorbent articles such as disposable and truss incontinence diapers and undergarments, is to absorb and contain exudates from the body. These items are thus intended to prevent body exudates from staining, wetting or otherwise contaminating clothing or other items, such as sheets, that come into contact with the wearer, the most common mode of failure of these products occurs when the body exudates leak out from the spaces between the article and the user's leg or the user's waist toward the adjacent garment, because these are not immediately absorbed within the article and the absorbent article is not capable of sustaining a good fit in the user in such a way that spaces are created that allow the exudates to drain or flow out of the article. For example, the urine tends to be deposited on the upper sheet in jets, such that the urine migrates towards the spaces between the article and the user where these can come into contact with the garments or other articles and be absorbed by these articles. Additionally, watered fecal matter that is not readily absorbed by the absorbent article tends to "float" on the liquid receiving surface and induces its path by passing spaces in the article in the user's legs or waist. Contemporary disposable diapers have a top sheet, a back sheet, an absorbent core, and one or more folds, typically elastic folds, placed to be in contact with the user's legs and / or waist.

These elastic folds prove effective generally by avoiding capillary action and overflow from the diaper loaded with fluid to the garment that contacts the edges of the diaper in which the elasticized folds present a barrier between the edge of the diaper and the clothing that is in contact, and generally in addition, they provide a packing action around the user's legs or waist to maintain a seal around the leg or waist and minimize separation or cupping. However, because the forces generated by the elastic members are concentrated along a narrow area resulting in localized high pressures, these elastic bends have an increased tendency to nick and mark the wearer's skin. These effects on the skin are particularly acute for products used by infants and incontinent older adults due to the delicacy of their skin and their sensitivity to even slight pressure or rubbing actions. These effects on the skin are even more acute due to the occlusion of the skin caused by these products. The occlusion of the skin by the diaper can potentially lead to excessive skin hydration. As a result, excess hydrated skin is more susceptible to damage to abrasion due to friction caused by normal user movements and contact with elastic folds. It is also generally known that excess hydrated skin is more susceptible to skin diseases, including diaper rash, erythema, heat rash, abrasion, pressure marks, and loss of skin barrier. The reduced efficiency of the barrier for excessively hydrated, scraped skin can also cause an increase in the rash through the diaper. (21 CFR 333.503 defines the diaper rash as "an inflammatory condition of the skin in the diaper area (perineum, buttocks, lower abdomen, and inner thighs) caused by one or more of the following factors: moisture, occlusion , excoriation, continuous contact of urine or feces or both or mechanical or chemical irritation. ") To address the interests of skin diseases associated with diapers of use and other absorbent articles, the caregiver or the user often applies protective and / or therapeutic products of the skin to the buttocks, genital organs, anus and / or other regions before placing the absorbent article on the user. This procedure usually involves the caregiver applying the skin's protective product to their hands, and then spreading it over the user's skin. To eliminate the need for this wasteful, dirty, time-consuming and easily forgotten procedure, there have been attempts to prepare absorbent articles containing a skin care substance on the top sheet of the article. The technique has also responded to the deleterious effects on the skin due to the use of folds by providing absorbent articles that have folds with a skin care composition disposed on the folds to provide the improved benefits for skin care, particularly in the regions of the skin in contact with the fold during its use. These skin care compositions are transferable to the user's skin to provide these benefits to the skin. Particularly useful skin care compositions and folds absorbent articles having said skin care compositions deposited thereon are described in United States of America patent application Serial No. 08 / 962,310 filed. In the name of Schulte et al. on October 31, 1997. However, while these skin care compositions and absorbent articles provide substantial benefits of skin care, further improvements are needed. For example, it is important that the skin care composition does not inhibit the folding functionality in the absorbent article. However, the oleaginous components of the skin care composition can diffuse from the body surface of the bend to an inner surface where the components can come into contact with the building adhesive used to assemble the bend. If this contact occurs, the oleaginous components can plasticize the adhesive causing a modulus reduction therein with the resulting accrete due to the force of contraction of the elastic members within the folds. This accretion may eventually cause the separation of the bending material and the elastic member with the resultant loss of contraction force and the increase of leakage around the bend. Although the technique has, up to the aforementioned US Patent Application Serial No. 08 / 962,310, failed to recognize the value of applying skin care compositions to the folds in an absorbent article, it has been recognized the interaction between construction adhesives for absorbent articles and topically applied lotions and ointments. For example, PCT application serial number WO 97/38739, published in the name of Zacharias et al. On October 23, 1997, discloses elastic composite materials assembled using an adhesive said to have desirable oil resistance and processing properties. Elastic composite materials comprising two substrates are claimed wherein the first substrate is fixed to the second substrate using an adhesive having a minimum elastic dynamic modulus both before and after exposure to a commercial baby lotion, a maximum viscosity at a first temperature, and a minimum viscosity at a second lower temperature. Although elastic composite materials made using these adhesives may have improved resistance to the oleaginous components of the topically applied lotions during a relatively short exposure time that the absorbent article is worn (eg, a diaper is typically worn for about three hours), improvements are needed. For example, the temperature required to achieve a sufficiently low adhesive viscosity for use in a typical adhesive spray apparatus can cause the adhesive temperature to be too high to be used with thermally sensitive absorbent article components (eg, films with basis weight). bass used for the subsequent sheets). In this way, there is a need for improved construction adhesives for absorbent articles. In particular, there is a need for adhesives having improved resistance to oil components of skin care compositions for the assembly of absorbent articles that may have skin care compositions disposed thereon and for adhesives that do not limit improperly the choice of materials that can be used as components of these absorbent articles or process flexibility when the adhesives are applied in the absorbent article assembly. These and other needs are addressed by the invention described below.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to an absorbent article, such as a disposable diaper, having one or more folds with a skin care composition disposed thereon (applied or capable of migrating towards) the body surface of the folds. In particular, the invention relates to absorbent articles, particularly folds thereof, which are assembled using adhesives that are resistant to oleaginous compounds used to formulate said skin care compositions. As used herein, the term "fold" includes leg folds that include barrier folds, packing folds, combinations and variations thereof; transverse barriers and bags / separators, side panels; as well as waist folds including waist flaps, waistbands, waist covers, and waistbands / unit waist covers; and combinations of all or some of these folds.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Figure 1 is a plan view of one embodiment of the disposable diaper of the present invention having portions cut away to reveal the underlying structure. Figure 2 is a fragmentary sectional view taken along section line 2-2 of Figure 1. Figure 3 is a fragmentary sectional view taken along section line 3-3 of the Figure 1. Figure 4 is a perspective view of an absorbent article in the form of a disposable diaper in accordance with the present invention. Figure 5 is a schematic representation illustrating a preferred process for applying the composition of the present invention to the diaper barrier folds.

Figure 6 is a graph comparing the apparent viscosity as a function of temperature for an oil resistant adhesive composition of the prior art and an oil resistant adhesive composition of the present invention. Figure 7 is a graph comparing the melting time with the melting temperature for various adhesive compositions. Figure 8 is a graph of thermal flow vs. temperature for various adhesive compositions.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION As used herein, the term "comprising" means that the various components, ingredients or steps, may be employed together in practicing the present invention, therefore, the term "comprising" encompasses the most restrictive terms "consisting of essentially "and" consisting of ". As used herein, the term "skin care composition" refers to any composition comprising one or more agents which, when transferred from an article to a user's skin, provides a therapeutic benefit and / or protector of the skin. The representative materials are discussed in detail below. All percentages, ratios and proportions used here are by weight unless otherwise specified.

A. Absorbent Article As used herein, the term "absorbent article" refers to devices that absorb and contain body exudates, and more specifically refers to devices that are placed against a user's skin to absorb and contain the various exudates discharged from the body. The term "disposable" is used herein to describe absorbent articles that are not intended to be washed or otherwise restored or reused as an absorbent article after a single use. Examples of disposable absorbent articles include products for female hygiene such as sanitary panties, sanitary napkins and panty liners; diapers incontinence products such as underwear or underwear; diaper bras; diaper inserts; fit diapers and training pants; and similar. Disposable absorbent articles typically comprise a chassis comprising an outer cover layer comprising a liquid-permeable top sheet, a liquid impermeable backsheet attached to the top sheet, and an absorbent core enclosed within the outer cover layer, preferably being positioned between the top sheet and the back sheet. Disposable absorbent articles and their components, including the topsheet, the backsheet, the absorbent core, and any of the individual layers of these components, have two major surfaces (a first surface and a second surface) generally designated a body surface and a garment surface. As used herein, "body surface" (also referred to as the surface that is in contact with the body or surface that is in contact with the skin), means that surface of the article or component that is intended for use toward or adjacent to the user's body, while the "garment surface" is on the opposite side that faces away from the wearer and is oriented towards the wearer's undergarments when the disposable absorbent article is used. The following description generally discusses the absorbent core materials of the topsheet and the backsheet that are useful in the disposable absorbent articles. It should be understood that this general description applies to these components of the specific absorbent articles shown in Figures 1 to 4 and described below, in addition to those of other disposable absorbent articles, which are generally described herein. In general, the absorbent core is capable of absorbing and retaining liquids (e.g., menses, urine, and / or other body exudates). The absorbent core i is preferably compressible, conformable and non-irritating to the wearer's skin. The absorbent core can be manufactured in a wide variety of sizes and shapes (eg, rectangular, hourglass, oval, T-shaped, dog bone, asymmetric, etc.). In addition to the absorbent composites of the present invention, the absorbent core can include any of a wide variety of liquid absorbent materials commonly used in absorbent articles, such as crushed wood pulp, which is generally referred to as an air filter. Examples of other absorbent materials suitable for use within the absorbent core include accreted cellulose wadding, meltblown polymers, including coform; chemically hardened modified or crosslinked cellulosic fibers, synthetic fibers such as pleated polyester fibers, peat moss; tissue, including tissue wraps and tissue laminates; absorbent foams; absorbent sponges; superabsorbent polymers; gelling absorbent materials; or any equivalent material or combinations of materials, or mixtures thereof. The configuration and construction of the absorbent core can also be varied (for example, the absorbent core can have zones of varying gauge, and / or have a profile to be thicker in the center, hydrophilic gradients; gradients of the absorbent composite of the present invention, superabsorbent gradients, or areas of lower average basis weight and lower average density, eg, acquisition zones, or may comprise one or more layers or structures). However, the total absorbent capacity of the absorbent core can be compatible with the design load and intended use of the absorbent article. In addition, the size and absorbent capacity of the absorbent core can be varied to encompass different uses such as diapers, incontinence pads, pantiliners, regular sanitary napkins, and nighttime sanitary napkins, and to suit users ranging from infants to adults. The absorbent core may include other absorbent components that are often used in the absorbent articles, for example, a dust-off layer, an acquisition or capillary action layer (wave handling layer), or a secondary top sheet to increase the user comfort. The topsheet is preferably docile, soft-feeling, and non-irritating to the wearer's skin. In addition, the top sheet is permeable to liquid, at least in certain regions, allowing liquids (eg, menstruation and / or urine) to easily penetrate through its thickness: A suitable top sheet can be manufactured from a wide range of materials such as woven and non-woven materials (e.g., a non-woven web of fibers), including nonwoven materials with openings; polymeric materials such as thermoplastic films formed with openings; plastic films with openings and hydroformed thermoplastic films; porous foams; cross-linked foams; crosslinked thermoplastic films; and thermoplastic canvases. Suitable woven and nonwoven materials may be composed of natural fibers (e.g., wood or cotton fibers), synthetic fibers (e.g., polymer fibers, such as polyester, polypropylene or polyethylene fibers), two-component fibers , or from a combination of natural and synthetic fibers. When the top sheet comprises a nonwoven web, the web can be manufactured by a large number of known techniques. For example, the weft can be spun bonded, carded, wet-laid, melt-blown, hydroentangled, hydroformed, hydro-perforated, combinations of the above, or the like.

The backsheet is preferably impervious to liquids (eg, menstruation and / or urine), at least in the crotch region of the absorbent article, and is preferably manufactured from a thin plastic film, although others may also be used. flexible materials impervious to liquid. As used herein, the term "flexible" refers to materials that are docile and that will readily conform to the contour and general shape of the human body. The backsheet prevents the exudates absorbed and contained within the absorbent core from wetting the articles that are in contact with the absorbent article, such as sheets, pants, pajamas and undergarments. The backsheet can thus comprise a woven or non-woven material, polymeric films such as polyethylene or polypropylene thermoplastic films, or composite materials such as a coated non-woven material or a non-woven film-coated material. A suitable backsheet is a polyethylene film having a thickness of from about 0.012 mm to about 0.051 mm. Exemplary polyethylene films are manufactured by Clopay Corporation of Cincinnati, Ohio, under the designation P18-1401 and by Tredegar Film Products of Terre Haute, Indiana, under the designation XP-39385. The backsheet is preferably embossed and / or finished without gloss to provide a more fabric-like appearance. In addition, the backsheet can allow the vapors of the absorbent core to escape (ie, the backsheet is breathable), while still preventing the exudates from passing through the backsheet. (An example of a breathable backsheet suitable for use herein is disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 5,571,096"Absorbent Article Having Breathable Side Panels", issued to Dobrin, Davis and Weirich on November 5, 1996, whose patent it is incorporated here by reference). The size of the backsheet is dictated by the size of the absorbent core and the exact design of the selected absorbent article.

The backsheet and the topsheet are positioned adjacent to the garment surface and to the body surface, respectively, of the absorbent core. The absorbent core is preferably attached to the topsheet, the backsheet, or both in any manner as known by attachment means, such as those well known in the art. However, embodiments of the present invention are contemplated wherein parts of the entire absorbent core are disengaged from either the top sheet, the back sheet, or both. The backsheet and / or the top sheet can be secured to the absorbent core or to each other, by a continuous uniform adhesive layer, a patterned adhesive layer, or an array of separate lines, spirals or dots of adhesives.

Adhesives that have been found to be satisfactory for applications, such as attaching the backsheet or a top sheet to an absorbent core where exposure to oleaginous materials is minimal, are manufactured by H.B. Fuller Company of St. Paul Minnesota, under the designation HL-1358. Suitable oil-resistant adhesives are discussed in detail in part C below. The joining members preferably will comprise an open-pattern network of filaments of adhesives as disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 4,573,986, issued to Mientola et al., March 4, 1986, and which is incorporated herein by reference. . An exemplary attachment or binding means of an open-filament pattern network comprises several lines of adhesive filaments twisted in a spiral pattern as illustrated by the apparatus and method shown in United States Patent No. 3,911,173. issued to Sprague, Jr. on October 7, 1975, United States Patent No. 4,785,996 issued to Zwieker et al. on November 22, 1978; and U.S. Patent No. 4,842,666 issued to Werenicz on June 27, 1989. Each of these patents is incorporated herein by reference. Alternatively, the joining means may comprise heat bonds, pressure joints, ultrasonic joints, mechanical dynamic joints, or any other suitable joining means or combinations of these joining means as are known in the art. A preferred disposable absorbent article in which "treated folds" can be used ("treated folds" being used herein to designate the folds that one or more skin care compositions disposed thereon) of the present invention It is a diaper. As used herein, the term "diaper" refers to an absorbent article generally worn by infants and incontinent persons that is worn around the wearer's lower torso. In other words, the term "diaper" includes baby diapers, training pants, adult incontinence devices, etc. The present invention is also applicable to other types of disposable products such as sanitary napkins and pantiliners containing folds. Figure 1 is a plan view of a preferred embodiment of the diaper 20 of the present invention in its flat, non-contracted state (ie, with the contraction induced by the elastic, pulled outward), with parts of the structure that are cut to show more clearly the construction of the diaper 20 and with the part of the diaper 20 that is in contact with the wearer (the body surface) facing the viewer. The diaper 20 is shown in Figure 1 to have a waist front region 22, a waist rear region 24, a crotch region 26, and a periphery that is defined by the outer edges of the diaper which the longitudinal edges are designated 30 and the end edges are designated 32. The diaper 20 additionally has a lateral center line which is designated 34 and a longitudinal center line designated 36. The diaper comprises a chassis comprising (i) an outer cover layer comprising a liquid-permeable upper sheet 38 and a liquid-impermeable back sheet 42; and (ii) an absorbent core 44 having side edges 46; a fastening system preferably comprising a pair of tape tab fasteners 54 and a tie member 55; packing folds 56 each comprising a side flap 58 and elastic fin members 60; barrier folds 62 comprising a barrier fold member 63 having a proximal edge 64, a distal edge 66, and ends 74; and separation means such as the elastic separation member 76 for separating the distant edge 66 away from the upper sheet 40. The diaper 20 further comprises closure members 78 to secure by closing the ends 74 of each barrier fold 62. Although the components of the diaper can be assembled in a variety of well-known configurations, a preferred diaper configuration is generally described in U.S. Patent No. 4,965,278 issued to Lawson on September 22, 1987, and whose patent is incorporated herein by reference. Figure 1 shows a preferred embodiment of the diaper 20, in which the topsheet 38 and the backsheet 42 are coextensive and have length and width dimensions generally greater than those of the absorbent core 44., the topsheet 38 is bonded with and superimposed on the upper sheet 42 to thereby form the periphery of the diaper 20. The diaper 20 has front and rear waist regions 22 and 24 extending respectively, from the extreme edges 32 of the periphery of the diaper 20 to the center line 34 of the diaper 20 The waist regions comprise those portions of the diaper 20, which when worn, provide the wearer's waist, the crotch region 26 is that part of the diaper 20 between the waist regions and comprises that part of the diaper 20., which, when worn, is placed between the user's legs and covers the user's lower torso. As shown in Figure 1, a skin care composition 72 is disposed on each barrier fold 72. The skin care composition 72 is preferably arranged on the body surface of the barrier fold in such a way that the composition for skin care, can easily transfer to the skin of the user during use. In the embodiment shown, the skin care composition 72 is disposed adjacent the distant edge 66, preferably, at least in the crotch region 26. More preferably, the skin care composition is disposed on the skin. Distant bank 66. Barrier fold 62 most preferably comprises one or more strips of skin care composition 72 disposed thereon. In the embodiment shown, the skin care composition 72 is disposed on only one segment of the barrier fold 62. For certain skin care compositions, it is preferred to avoid the application of the composition for the care of the skin. skin to the portions of the barrier fold adjacent the ends of the elastic separation members to ensure that there is no movement or elastic sliding resulting from the interaction of the skin care composition and the adhesive. As shown in Figure 1, in a preferred embodiment the skin care composition 72 is not disposed adjacent the end of the elastic spacing member 76 in the front waist region (although it may also alternatively not be disposed adjacent the end). in the posterior waist region As discussed herein, the skin care composition can be applied alternately to the garment surface of the barrier fold and allowed to "transfer through" to the surface of the body to increase the hydrophobic capacity of the barrier folds, as well as to be arranged on the body surface to provide the benefits of skin care.In addition, the composition for skin care can be applied to other parts of the body. barrier fold, entire barrier fold, elastic separation members, or any other component of the barrier fold. The skin die may also be arranged in any pattern, including discontinuous or continuous patterns, or in any amount as described hereinafter.

The diaper 20 is shown in Figure 2 to have a garment surface 86, and a body surface 84 opposite the garment surface 86., the body surface 84 of the diaper 20 comprises that portion of the diaper 20 that is placed adjacent to the diaper 20. to the user's body during use (i.e., the body surface 84 is generally formed by at least a portion of the topsheet 38 and other components that can be attached to the topsheet 38. The pledge surface 86 comprises that portion of the diaper 20 that is placed away from the wearer's body (i.e., the garment surface 86, is generally formed by at least a portion of the backsheet 42 and other components that can be attached to the backsheet 42). 2 is a fragmentary sectional view taken along line 2-2 of Figure 1, and depicts the construction of the diaper in the rear waist region 24 of the diaper 20. (It should be understood that the construction of the diaper in the r The frontal waist region 22 is identical to the construction in the posterior waist region 24). The absorbent core comprises an absorbent layer 48 which is shown as being completely enveloped by layers of tissue, 50 and 52. The absorbent core 44 is disposed between the topsheet 38 and the backsheet 42, both the topsheet 38 and the backsheet 42 extend beyond the lateral edge 46 of the absorbent core 44 to define the side flap 58. The juxtaposed areas of the topsheet 38 and the backsheet 42 are preferably secured together by a fin attachment member 88 such as an adhesive . In a preferred embodiment, the elastic fin members do not extend towards the rear waist region 24 such that the packing fold 56 is not formed in this region. The barrier fold 62 is shown as being a separate element, a member of the barrier fold 63, secured to the top sheet 38; the proximal edge 64 being formed by securing the element to the upper sheet 38 by the proximal securing member 92. The garment surface 68 of the barrier fold 62 (also referred to herein as the inward surface of the barrier fold), is secured to the body surface 40 by the closure members 78. Therefore, the distant edge 76 is closed say, it is not separated away from the body surface 40). It should be noted that the elastic separation member is not disposed in this region because the distant edge 76 is not designed to separate away from the body surface 40 in these waist regions. Therefore, the barrier fold 62 is not open or ready to limit the flow of body exudates in this region. The skin care composition is preferably not disposed over the barrier fold in the posterior waist region in this particular embodiment. Figure 3 is a fragmentary sectional view taken along line 3-3 of Figure 1 and depicting the construction of the diaper in the crotch region 26 as it is formed before being applied to the wearer (i.e. the diaper 20 is subjected to elastic contraction). The absorbent core 44 comprises the absorbent layer 48 which is shown to be completely enveloped by the tissue layers 50 and 52. The absorbent core 44 is disposed between the topsheet 38 and the topsheet 42; both the topsheet 38 and the backsheet 42 extend beyond the side edge 46 of the absorbent core 44 to define the side flap 58. The juxtaposed areas of the topsheet 38 and the backsheet 42 are preferably secured together by a member fastener 88 such as an adhesive. The upper sheet 38 and the rear sheet 42 also enclose the elastic fin members 60 adjacent the longitudinal edge 30. The elastic fin members 60 are secured in the side flap 58 formed by the top sheet and a back sheet preferably by the elastic fastening members 90. The elastically shrinkable packing fold 56 is thus formed by the side flap 58 and the elastic fin members 60. The packing fold has a body surface 57 facing the wearer's skin when the diaper is worn, and a garment surface 59 opposite the body surface 57. The barrier fold 62 is shown as being formed by securing a separate element, the barrier fold member 63, to the top sheet 38 preferably between the elastic members of the barrier. flap 60 and side edge 46 of absorbent core 44. Proximal edge 64 of barrier fold 62 is formed by securing barrier fold member 63 to top sheet 38 by proximal securing member 92. Elastic separation member 76 is encased in a tunnel that is formed when one end of the barrier fold member 63 is bent back on itself; the elastic separation member 76 being secured in the tunnel by the elastic fastening members 94. The distant edge 76 of the barrier fold is separated away from the body surface 40 by the action of elastic contraction or compression of the elastic members. of separation 76. The barrier fold 62 is shown as being ready to restrain, contain and retain body exudates until the diaper 20 is removed from the wearer. The skin care composition 72 is shown in Figure 3 as being disposed on the body surface 70 of the barrier fold (the barrier fold element 63) such that the composition for the care of the skin can be transferred. the skin 73 towards the wearer's skin during use. The diapers of the present invention can have a number of well-known configurations, with the absorbent cores thereof being adapted to the present invention. The exemplary configurations are generally described in U.S. Patent No. 3,860,003 issued to Buell on January 14, 1975; U.S. Patent No. 5,151,092 issued to Buell et al. on September 29, 1992; U.S. Patent No. 5,580,411 issued to Nease et al. On December 13, 1996; U.S. Patent No. 5,569,232, issued to Roe et al. on October 29, 1996; and patent of the United States No. ,569,234 issued to Buell et al. On October 29, 1996. Each of these patents is incorporated herein by reference. The diaper chassis shown in the drawings as comprising the main body portion, (restraint assembly) of the diaper. The chassis comprises at least one absorbent core, and preferably an outer cover layer comprising the top sheet and the back sheet. When the absorbent article comprises a separate fastener and liner, the chassis generally comprises the fastener and the liner (i.e., the chassis comprises one or more layers of material to define the fastener while the liner comprises an absorbent composite such as a top sheet, a back sheet and an absorbent core). For articles ^ > Unitary absorbers, the chassis comprises the main structure of the diaper with other features added to form the composite structure of the diaper; in this way, the diaper frame comprises the top sheet, the back sheet, and the absorbent core. A top sheet 38 that is particularly suitable for use in the diaper 20 is carded and thermally bonded by means well known to those skilled in the art of fabrics. A top sheet satisfactory for the present invention comprises short length polypropylene fibers having a denier of about 2.2. As used herein, the term "short-length fibers" refers to to those fibers that have a length of at least about 16.9 mm. Preferably, the topsheet has a basis weight of about 14 to about 25 grams per square meter. A suitable top sheet is manufactured by Veratec, Ine, a division of Walpole, Mass, under the designation P-8. A preferred alternate top sheet is a poured non-woven web of 22 grams per square meters of base weight as available from Fiberweb North America, Ine de Simpsonville, S.C., under the designation 9694.

The topsheet 38 of the diaper 20 is preferably made of a hydrophilic material to promote the rapid transfer of liquids (eg, urine), through the topsheet. If the top sheet of a hydrophobic material is made, preferably at least the body surface of the top sheet or a portion thereof, is treated to make it hydrophilic, so that liquids will transfer through the top sheet more quickly. This decreases the likelihood that the body exudates will flow out of the top sheet instead of being drawn through the top sheet and absorbed by the absorbent core. The top sheet can be made hydrophilic by treating it with a surfactant. Suitable methods for treating the topsheet with a surfactant include spraying the top sheet material with the surfactant and immersing the material within the surfactant. A more detailed discussion of this treatment and hydrophilic capacity is contained in U.S. Patent No. 4,988,344, issued to Reisinig et al. On January 29, 1991, and U.S. Patent No. 4,988,345 issued to Reising on January 29, 1991., each of which is incorporated herein by reference. In a particularly preferred embodiment as described herein, the topsheet of the absorbent article will also have a skin care composition disposed thereon. Representative treated upper sheets are described in U.S. Patent No. 5,643,588 issued to Roe, Bakes & Warner on July 1, 1997; and in U.S. Patent No. 5,635,191 issued to Roe & Mackey on June 3, 1997, each of which are incorporated here by reference. Methods for delivering a skin care composition through repeated use of the absorbent articles having these treated topsheets are described in U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 08 / 926,532 filed September 10. of 1997; U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 08 / 926,533 Van Rijswijck et al., filed September 10, 1997; and U.S. Patent Application No. 08 / 908,852 Roe et al., filed August 8, 1997, each of which is incorporated herein by reference. As discussed herein, a skin care composition disposed on both the folds and the top sheet will facilitate the transportation of the skin care composition to a greater amount of the skin, in terms of surface area, in relation to the treatment of only the folds. In addition, the application to both components may allow the delivery of larger amounts of the skin care composition to a given region of the user and / or the delivery of different formulations of the skin care compositions for different benefits of the skin. the skin. In a preferred embodiment of a diaper as described herein, the backsheet 42 has a modified hourglass shape extending beyond the absorbent core around the total periphery of the diaper. The backsheet is preferably a soft weft laminate similar to the fabric comprising a selectively perforated formed polymeric film and a nonwoven web. This breathable backsheet is described more fully in the United States of America patent No. ,571, 096 issued to Dobrin et al. On November 5, 1996, the patent of which is incorporated herein by reference. The absorbent core 44 may assume any size or shape that is compatible with the diaper 20. A preferred embodiment of the diaper 20 has an asymmetric modified T-shaped absorbent core 44 having ears in the first waist region but a generally rectangular in the second waist region. Exemplary absorbent structures for use as the absorbent core of the present invention which have achieved wide acceptance and commercial success are described in U.S. Patent No. 4,610,678 issued to Weismann et al. On September 9, 1986; patent of the United States of America No. 4,673,402 issued to Weisman et al. On June 16, 1987; U.S. Patent No. 4,888,231 issued to Angstadt on December 19, 1989, European Patent Application 640,330, The Procter & Gamble Company, published on March 1, 1995; and in U.S. Patent No. 4,834,735 issued to Alemany et al. on May 30, 1989. The absorbent core may further comprise a dual core system containing a core of acquisition / distribution of chemically hardened fibers placed on a absorbent storage core as detailed in U.S. Patent No. 5,234,423 issued to Alemany et al. on August 10, 1993; and in U.S. Patent No. 5,147,345 issued to Young, LaVon and Taylor on September 15, 1992. All of these patents are incorporated herein by reference. In a preferred embodiment, the diaper 20 comprises folds each comprising leg folds 62 and / or packing folds 56 to provide improved containment of liquids and other exudates from the body. The folds provide improved containment of liquids and other exudates from the body, and can be constructed in a number of different configurations. The diaper 20 can also comprise folds comprising an elastic waist feature (not shown) and / or elasticized side panels (not shown) to provide a greater contour fit and more effective application of the diaper 20. These folds can also be treated with a composition for skin care. Each leg fold can comprise several different modalities to reduce leakage of body exudates in the leg regions. (The leg fold may be and is sometimes also referred to as leg bands, side flaps, barrier folds, elastic leg cuffs, packing folds, or elastic folds). U.S. Patent No. 3,860,003 incorporated herein by reference, discloses a disposable diaper that provides a collapsible leg opening having a side flap and one or more elastic members to provide an elasticized leg fold (packing fold). U.S. Patent No. 4,909,803 issued to Aziz et al. On March 20, 1990, and incorporated herein by reference, discloses a disposable diaper having "upright" elasticated fins (barrier folds) to improve containment regions of the leg. U.S. Patent No. 4,695,278 issued to Lawson on March 22, 1987, and incorporated herein by reference, discloses a disposable diaper, having double folds that include a gusset fold and a barrier fold. Although each elasticated leg fold can be configured to be similar to any of the leg bands, side flaps, barrier folds or elastic folds described above, it is preferred that the elasticated leg fold comprises leg barrier folds 62 and packing folds 56 as described in detail below. Each barrier fold 62 is a flexible member having a proximal edge 64, a distant bank 66, a garment surface 68 (also referred to herein as the inward surface), and a body surface 70 (also referred to herein as the outward surface). The garment surface 68 is oriented towards the interior of the diaper and the body surface 70 is oriented towards the wearer's skin when the diaper is being worn. The barrier fold 62 can be manufactured from a wide range of materials such as polypropylene, polyester, rayon, nylon, foams, non-woven plastic films, formed films, and foams or elastic films. A number of manufacturing techniques can be used to make the barrier fold. For example, the barrier fold 62 may be non-woven, woven, bonded, meltblown and spun and bonded, carded, coated, similarly laminated. A particularly preferred barrier fold comprises a polypropylene material that does not contain a finish or surfactant to make it impermeable to liquid. A non-woven material of exemplary polypropylene fiber is manufactured by Crown 4 Zellerbach Company as Celestra. A particularly preferred nonwoven material is a carded nonwoven web as available from PGI of Landisville, New Jersey, under the designation 67700. Alternatively, the material may be a non-woven web supplied by Corovin GmbH of Peine, Germany, under the MD300A designation. In addition, because of the hydrophobic skin care compositions used in the present invention, the barrier fold can be made from hydrophilic material and have a skin care composition disposed thereon to increase its properties of barrier. As shown in Figures 1 and 3, the barrier fold 62, and more particularly the proximal edge 64, is disposed inwardly of the longitudinal side edge 30 of the diaper, adjacent to and preferably inward of the packing fold 56. The term "inward" is defined as the direction toward the central line (34 or 36, respectively) of the diaper that is parallel to the respective edge of the diaper 20 along which the particular packing girdle 56 is disposed. The barrier fold 62 is disposed adjacent the packing fold 56 to provide a more effective double restriction against the flow of exudates. The barrier fold 62 is preferably inward of the packing fold 56 such that the exudates, especially the faecal watery material which is not readily absorbed and tends to float along the body surface 40 of the top sheet, will be in contact with the barrier fold 62 before it can be in contact with the packing fold 56. The barrier fold 62 is more preferably disposed between the elastic flap member 60 of the packing fold 56 and the longitudinal centerline 36 of the diaper 20. More preferably the barrier fold 62 is disposed between the fin elastic member 60 and the side edge 46 of the absorbent core 44 in the crotch region 26 of the diaper 20.

The proximal edge 64 and the distant edge 66 are in a spaced relation to each other and define the width of the barrier fold 62. The proximal and distant edges 64 and 66, respectively, may be in a parallel, non-parallel, rectilinear relationship, or curvilinear In addition, the barrier fold 62 can have a variety of different cross-sectional areas including, circular, square, rectangular or any other shape as shown in Figure 3. Preferably, the proximal edge 64 is separated from the distant edge 66 in a parallel and rectilinear relationship to provide a barrier fold that has uniform widths. A preferred embodiment of the diaper 20 shown in Figures 2 and 3 is provided with the barrier fold 62 attached to the top sheet 38. The term "attached" includes any means for attaching the barrier fold 62 to the diaper 20, and includes embodiments wherein the barrier fold 62 is a separate element having the proximal edge 64 directly or indirectly attached to the top sheet 38 (ie, integral), or embodiments wherein the barrier fold 62 is made from the same element or material as the top sheet 38 such that the proximal edge 64 is a continuous and undivided element of the top (i.e., unitary) sheet. The barrier fold 62 may alternatively be attached to the side flap 58, the backsheet 42, the absorbent core 44, the topsheet 38 or any combination of these or other diaper elements. 20. In the preferred diaper 20, the barrier folds 62 are integral with the top sheet 38. The integral barrier fold 62 is preferably formed by a single strip of material which is secured to the top sheet by the adhesive 92, being the distant edge 66 formed by bending one end of the material back on itself. The distal edge 66 is preferably disposed inwardly of the proximal edge 64 to present a more effective barrier against the flow of the exudates. The distant edges 66 are held inwardly by the proximal edges 64 by the closure members 78 to obviate their inversion. Although the distant edges 66 can be arranged alternately and in other positions relative to the adjacent edges 64, these positions are not preferred. The distal edge 66 is preferably not secured to any other element in at least the crotch region 26 of the diaper 20, such that it can be separated away from the body surface 40 of the topsheet 38. The distant edge 76 it is preferably separated away from the body surface 40 to increase the containment of the article. As used herein, "separate" includes the embodiment wherein the distant edges 66 may assume one or more positions relative to the body surface 40, sometimes including assuming a position adjacent to the body surface 40 of the upper sheet 38. The distance between the distant edge 66 to the body surface 40 of the upper sheet 38 is measured along a line drawn from the distant edge 66 to the nearest part of the upper sheet 38 when the Distant bank 66 to be separated away from the topsheet as far as possible (ie, in the elastically contracted position). In addition, of the barrier folds, the leg folds of the present invention preferably further comprise packing folds 56. The packing folds 56 are disposed adjacent the periphery 28 of the diaper 20, preferably along each longitudinal edge 30 of such that the packing folds 56 tend to pull and retain the diaper 20 against the user's legs. Although the packing folds 56 may comprise any of several means as are well known in the diaper art, a gusset folding construction preferably comprises a flexible side flap 58 and an elastic flap member 60, as described in detail in FIG. U.S. Patent No. 3,860,003 issued to Buell on January 14, 1975; and incorporated here by reference. In addition, a suitable method and apparatus for making a disposable diaper having elastically contractible gasket folds 56 is described in U.S. Patent No. 4,081,301 which was issued to K.B. Buell on March 28, 1978 and whose patent is incorporated herein by reference. The side flap 58 must be highly flexible and thus contractable, such that the elastic fin members 60 can contract the side flap 58 to provide a packing fold 56 around the user's legs or waist. The side flaps 58 are preferably that part of the diaper 20 between the periphery 28 and the edges of the absorbent core 44. Thus, in a preferred embodiment of the present invention as shown in Figure 1, the side flaps 58 are formed of an extension of the backsheet 42 and of the topsheet 38 from and along the lateral edges 46 of the absorbent core 44 of the diaper 20 in at least the crotch region 26. Alternatively, as described in the US Pat. the United States No. 3,860,003, the side flap may be a separate member attached to the chassis (top sheet, backsheet and / or absorbent core) or one of the components of the side flap may be a separate member. The elastic fin members 60 are preferably operatively bonded (secured) to the lateral fins 58 in an elastically contractible condition, such that in a normally unrestricted configuration, the elastic fin members 50 will effectively contract or collect the lateral fins. 58. The elastic fin members 60 can be secured to the lateral fins 58 in an elastically contractible condition in at least two ways. For example, the elastic fin members 60 can be stretched and secured to the lateral fins 58 while the lateral fins 58 are in an uncontracted condition. Alternatively, the side flaps 58 can be contracted, for example, by folding them and the elastic flap members 60 secured to the contracted fins 58 while the elastic flap members 60 are in their non-relaxed or undrawn condition. The packing bends can alternatively comprise a number of 2 different elastically extensible structures such as elastic nonwoven webs or foams; stretch laminates as described in U.S. Patent No. 5,151,092 issued to Buell et al. on September 29, 1992, incorporated herein by reference; and film frames in the form of structural elastic (SELF) as described in U.S. Patent No. 5,518,801 issued to Chappell et al. on May 21, 1996, and incorporated herein by reference. In the embodiment shown in Figure 1, the elastic flap members 60 essentially extend the total length of the side flaps 58. in the crotch region 26 of the diaper 20. Alternatively, the elastic members 60 can extend the total length of the flap. diaper 20, or any other suitable length to provide a packing fold. The length of the elastic fin members is dictated by the design of the diaper. An elastic fin member 60 that has been found to be suitable is an elastic yarn made from natural rubber as available from the Easthampton Rubber Thread Company of Stewart, Va., Under the trademark L-1900 Rubber Compound. Other suitable fin elastic members 60 may be made from natural rubber, such as the elastic tape sold under the Fulfex 9211 trademark by Fulflex Company of Scotland, N.C. An exemplary elastic member is a Lycra yarn as available from DuPont Co. of Waynesboro, Virginia, under the designation lycra-XA T-151. The elastic fin member 60 may also comprise any heat-shrinkable elastic material as is well known in the art. Other elastic fin members 60 may comprise a wide variety of materials as are well known in the art, including elastomeric films, polyurethane films, elastomeric foams and formed elastic canvases. In addition, the elastic fin members can adopt a multitude of configurations. For example, the width of the elastic fin members 60 can be varied from about 0.25 mm to about 25 mm or more; the elastic fin members 60 may comprise a single strand of elastic material may comprise several parallel or non-parallel strands of elastic material or the elastic members 60 may be rectilinear or curvilinear. Still further, the elastic fin members 60 can be secured to the diaper 20 in any of several ways that are well known in the art. For example, the elastic fin members 60 can be ultrasonically bonded, sealed with heat / pressure in the diaper 20 using a variety of bonding patterns, or the elastic members 60 can simply be glued to the diaper 20. In the diaper 20 of the Figure 3, the elastic fin members 60 are associated with the lateral fins 58 securing them to the lateral fins 58 with the elastic joint members 90. The elastic joint members 90 must be flexible and of sufficient adhesion to retain the elastic fin member in its stretched condition. The elastic joint member 90 of the present are preferably glue drops made of thermal fusion adhesives. A more detailed description of the manner in which elastic flap members 60 can be placed and secured to diaper 20 can be found in U.S. Patent No. 4,253,461, issued to Strickland and Visscher on March 3, 1981 and in U.S. Patent No. 4,081,301 issued to Buell on March 28, 1978, both of which are incorporated herein by reference. Similarly, the barrier fold 62 can be formed by securing a separate element, the barrier fold member 63, to the top sheet 38 preferably between the elastic fin members 60 and the side edge 46 of the absorbent core 44. The edge next 64 of the barrier fold 62 is formed by securing the barrier fold member 63 to the top sheet 38 of the proximal belay member 92. The elastic gap member 76 is encased in a tunnel that is formed when one end of the bending member barrier 63 is bent backwards on itself; the elastic separation member 76 being secured in the tunnel by the elastic separation fastening members 94. The oil-resistant adhesive materials suitable for use as any or all of an elastic fastening member 88, an elastic fastening member 90, a proximal securing member 92, or elastic spacer attachment member 94 are discussed in detail below in section C. One skilled in the art will recognize that the same considerations discussed above with respect to side flanges 58 and barrier fold 62 they are applicable to other components of diaper 20. Exemplary components (none shown in Figures 1 to 4) include but are not limited to: elastic waist features, elastic side panels, cavities to receive and contain waste, spacers to provide gaps for waste, and barriers that limit the movement of waste in the article. These components are also considered to be folds for the purposes of the present invention. These various components are discussed in greater detail in the aforementioned United States of America patent application Serial No. 08 / 962,310, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. Exemplary fastening systems 54 are disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 4,846,815 issued to Scripps on July 11, 1989; in U.S. Patent No. 4,894,060, issued to Nestegard on January 16, 1990; in U.S. Patent No. 4,946,527 issued to Battrell on August 7, 1990; U.S. Patent No. 3,848,594, issued Buell on November 19, 1974; in U.S. Patent No. B1 4,662,875, issued to Hírotsu et al. on May 5, 1987; and in U.S. Patent No. 5,151,092, issued to Buell et al. On September 29, 1992; each of which is incorporated herein by reference. A skin care composition may be disposed on one or more components of the restraint system to further increase the health of the skin. For example, a skin care composition as described herein, may be disposed on the tape tabs to facilitate the tape tab effects that rub against the skin. Figure 4 is a perspective view of the diaper 20 in its elastically contracted position before being placed on the wearer. The topsheet 38 is shown as the surface that is in contact with the body of the diaper 20, the backsheet 42 being disposed away from the wearer's body. The packing folds 56 are shown to be gathered or shrunk by the elastic flap members, (not shown in Figure 4). The diaper 20 is shown as having two barrier folds 62 extending adjacent to and into the packing folds 56. The distant edges 66 are shown to be gathered and contracted by the elastic separation members (not shown), in the region of crotch. In addition, the ends 74 of the barrier fold 62 are secured in a closed manner to provide comfort to the user, to obviate the inversion of the barrier folds, and for ease of application of the diaper. A skin care composition 72 is disposed on the body surface of (applied to the body surface or applied to be migrable towards the body surface of) each barrier fold 62 to be transferred to the wearer's skin for provide the benefits to the skin discussed here. The diaper 20 is applied to a user, placing the rear waist region 24 under the user's back, and pulling the rest of the diaper 20 between the user's legs such that the front waist region 22 is placed across the front of the person. The ends of the tape tab fasteners 54 are then preferably secured to the outward facing areas of the diaper 20. In this manner, the barrier folds 62 must be disposed in the crotch region of the wearer and must provide the provisions and functions described here above. Once applied, the distant edges 66 of the barrier folds 62 extend through the groin areas and diverge upwardly along both of the user's buttocks. None of the barrier folds 62 surround the user's thighs. However, the packing folds 56 will surround the thighs and create a packing action against the thighs. The barrier folds 62 are in contact with the wearer's skin and transfer the skin care composition 72 thereto to provide some or all of the benefits described herein. The treated folds of the present invention are also useful in training or taping pants. The term "training pants", as used herein, refers to disposable garments having fixed sides which thus define a waist opening and fixed leg openings. The training pants are placed in place on the user by inserting the user's legs into the leg openings and sliding the training pants into position around the user's lower torso. Suitable training pants are disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 5,246,433, issued to Hasse et al. On September 21, 1993; U.S. Patent No. 4,940,464 issued to Van Gompel et al. on July 10, 1990; and in U.S. Patent No. 5,092,861 issued to Nomura et al. on March 3, 1992, each of which is incorporated herein by reference. The treated folds of the present invention are also applicable to absorbent articles that are a combination or "hybrids" of training pants and diapers (nappies that mesh or mold) as described in U.S. Patent No. 5., 569,234, "Disposable Shingling Shorts" issued to Buell and Carlin on October 29, 1996, incorporated herein by reference. Another disposable absorbent article for which the treated folds of the present invention are useful are articles for incontinence. The term "incontinence article" refers to pads, undergarments (pads held in place by a suspension system of the same type, such as a belt, or the like), inserts for absorbent articles, capacity enhancers for articles absorbent, truss, bed pads, and the like regardless of whether they are used by adults or other incontinent persons. Suitable incontinence articles are described in U.S. Patent No. 4,253,461 issued to Strickland et al. On March 3, 1981; U.S. Patent No. 4,597,760 and 4,597,761 issued to Buell, the aforementioned U.S. Patent No. 4,704,115; U.S. Patent No. 4,909,802 issued to Ahr et al .; U.S. Patent No. 4,964,860 issued to Gipson et al. on October 23, 1990; and PCT Publication No. WO 92/11830, The Procter & Gamble Company, published on July 23, 1992; each of which are incorporated herein by reference. Other disposable absorbent articles of the present invention are articles for feminine hygiene, such as sanitary napkins. Suitable feminine hygiene articles are disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 4,556,146 issued to Swanson et al. On December 3, 1985; U.S. Patent No. B1 4,589,876 issued to Van Tilburg on April 27, 1993; U.S. Patent No. 4,687,478 issued to Van Tilburg on August 18, 1997; U.S. Patent No. 4,950,264 issued to Osborn III on August 21, 1990; U.S. Patent No. 5,009,653 issued to Osborn III on April 23, 1991; U.S. Patent No. 5,267,992, issued to Van Tilburg on December 7, 1993; U.S. Patent No. 5,389,094 issued to Lavash et al. on February 14, 1995; U.S. Patent No. 5,413,568 issued to Road et al. on May 9, 1995; U.S. Patent No. 5,460,623 issued to Emenaker et al. on October 24, 1995; U.S. Patent No. 5,489,283 issued to Van Tilburg on February 6, 1996; U.S. Patent No. 5,569,231 issued to Emenaker et al. on October 29, 1996; and in U.S. Patent No. 5,620,430, issued to Bamber on April 15, 1997; each of which is incorporated herein by reference.

B. Skin Care Composition Although the specific composition or compositions for skin care delivered or dispensed (referred to herein as "skin care composition and" composition "in accordance with the present invention is an important factor In the performance of desirable skin effects, it is preferred that the skin care composition should provide a non-occlusive, protective function (e.g., a barrier relatively impermeable to liquid but permeable to vapor), to avoid overhydration. skin and skin exposure to materials contained in body exudates, a function of reducing abrasion to reduce skin irritation in areas where the folds are in contact with the skin of the user, or contain agents that deliver or surrender, either directly or indirectly, skin care benefits, for example, indirect benefits include the improved removal of skin irritants such as feces or urine. The composition can be in a variety of forms including, but not limited to emulsions, lotions, creams, ointments, plasters, powders, suspensions, encapsulations, gels and the like. As used herein, the term "effective amount" of a skin care composition refers to an amount of a particular composition which, when applied or migrated toward ("arranged on") the body surface of a fold will be effective in reducing abrasion between the fold and in areas where the folds are in contact with the user's skin, providing a protective barrier and / or rendering or delivering a skin care benefit when delivered through the folds and / or reducing the adherence of faeces to the skin. Unless otherwise indicated, the description pertaining to the disposition of the skin care composition on the folds will be applicable to the compositions arranged on the topsheet, in these preferred embodiments. Of course, the effective amount of the composition disposed on the fold will depend to a certain extent on the particular skin care composition used. However, the amount of the skin care composition disposed on at least a portion of the body surface of the fold will preferably range from about 0.0078 mg / cm2 to about 12 mg / cm2, more preferably about 0.16 mg / cm2. at about 6 mg / cm2, still more preferably from about 0.06 mg / cm2 to about 4 mg / cm2. These ranges are by way of illustration only and the skilled artisan will recognize that the nature of the composition will dictate the level that must be disposed thereon to achieve the desired benefits of the skin, and that these levels are determinable by routine experimentation at the light of the present disclosure. Although the level of the skin care composition disposed on the folds is an important aspect of the present invention, more important is the amount of the composition transferred to the user's skin during the use of one or more of the treated folds. . Although the required level delivered to the skin to provide the desired skin benefits will depend to some degree on the nature of the composition employed, applicants have found that relatively low levels can be delivered while still providing the desired skin effects. This is especially true for preferred compositions, such as those described in the examples.

Another benefit of the present invention is the controlled application of the skin care composition to release low but effective levels of the required composition. This is in contrast to the typically sporadic manual application of skin care agents, where caregivers / users often apply significantly higher levels of material than are needed. Excess manually added materials can adversely impact the fluid handling properties of the absorbent article, as a result of the transfer of the skin to the article. Actually, for certain materials, such as petrolatum, manually applied levels can actually result in an occlusive effect, thus compromising the skin. A benefit of the present invention is to provide a barrier to surface moisture while preventing occlusion of the skin (i.e., maintaining skin respirability). In this way, the present invention allows the transfer of the optimal levels of the composition to the skin to maintain and / or improve the health of the skin. With respect to the level of the skin care composition that is transferred to the user during the use of a treated absorbent article used over a period of about 3 hours (a typical daytime usage time), particularly for the care compositions of preferred skin such as those described in Example 1, it is preferred where at least about 0.0016 mg / cm2, more preferably at least about 0.0078 mg / cm2, still more preferably at least about 0.016 mg / cm2, of the composition is transferred to the skin over a period of use of three hours. Typically, the amount of the composition released by a treated article will be from about 0.0016 mg / cm2 to about 1.24 mg / cm2, more preferably from about 0.0078 mg / cm2 to about 0.93 mg / cm2, even more preferably from about 0.016 mg / cm2 at approximately 0.78 mg / cm2 over a period of use of three hours.

It will be recognized that of the numerous materials useful in the skin care compositions released to the skin according to the present invention, those which have been considered safe and effective skin care agents are logical materials to be used here. These materials include the Category I assets defined by the Final Attempt Monograph on Products of Skin Protective Drugs for Human Use of the U.S. Federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) (21 CFR § 347), which already includes: allantoin, aluminum hydroxide gel, calamine, cocoa butter, dimethicone, cod liver oil (in combination), glycerin, kaolin, petrolatum, lanolin, mineral oil, shark liver oil, white petrolatum, talc, topical starch, zinc acetate, zinc carbonate, zinc oxide, and the like. Other potentially useful materials are Category III assets as defined by the Final Tentative Monograph on Drug Products.

Protectors of the Skin for Human Use of the U.S. Federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) (21 CFR § 347), which already includes: live yeast cell derivatives, aldioxa, aluminum acetate, microporous cellulose, cholecalciferol, colloidal oatmeal, cysteine hydrochloride, dexpantanol, balsam oil from Peru, protein hydrolysates, racemic methionine, sodium bicarbonate, Vitamin A, and the like. It will be recognized that one or more of these optional materials may be used in combination with other ingredients, such as those described herein. As will be discussed below, the skin care compositions useful in the present invention preferably, but not necessarily, have a melting profile such that they are relatively immobile and localized on the surface that is in contact with the user (surface body) of the fold at room temperature, at least a part of the composition will be transferable to the user at body temperature, and are not yet completely liquid under extreme storage conditions. Preferably, the compositions are easily transferable to the skin by means of normal contact, movement of the user, and / or body heat. Because the composition is preferably substantially immobilized on the surface that is in contact with the body of the folds, relatively low levels of the skin care composition are required to impart the desired skin care benefits. In addition, special barrier or wrapping materials may be unnecessary when packing articles useful in the present invention. In a preferred embodiment, the skin care compositions useful herein are solid, or more frequently semi-solid, at 20 ° C, ie at room temperature. By "semi-solid" it is implied that the composition has a typical relocation of pseudoplastic or plastic liquids. When no shear is applied, the compositions may have the appearance of a semi-solid but may be flowed as the shear rate increases. This is due to the fact that, while the composition contains mainly solid component it also includes some minor liquid components. Preferably, the compositions of the present invention have a low shear viscosity between about 1.0 x 106 centipoise and about 1.0 x 108 centipoise. More preferably, the viscosity under zero shear stress is between about 5.0 x 106 and about 5.0 x 107 centipoise. As used herein, the term "low shear viscosity viscosity" refers to a viscosity measured at very low shear rates (eg, 1.0 sec "1) using the plate and cone viscometer (a suitable instrument that is available from TA Instruments of New Castle, DE, as the model number CSL 100). A person of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that other means than components with high melting point (as discussed below) can be used to provide the comparable measured viscosities for these compositions comprising these means which are measured by extrapolating a graph of viscosity versus shear rate for these compositions for a shear rate of zero at a temperature of about 20 ° C. Preferred compositions are at least semi-solid at room temperature to minimize migration of the composition. In addition, the compositions preferably have a final melting point (100% liquid) above the storage conditions of "total stress", potential which may be greater than 45 ° C (for example, store in Arizona, loading truck in Florida, etc.). Specifically, the preferred compositions will have the following fusion profile: Most Preferred Preferred Interval Feature % liquid at temperature 2-50 3-25 atmosphere (20 ° C)% liquid at temperature 25-95 30-90 body (37 ° C) Final melting point (° C) > 38 > Four. Five By being solid or semi-solid at ambient temperatures, these preferred compositions do not have a tendency to flow and migrate to a significant degree towards undesirable locations of the absorbent article. This means that less composition is required for skin care to impart the desirable therapeutic, protective and / or conditioning benefits. To increase the immobility of the preferred compositions, the viscosity of the formulated compositions should be as high as possible to prevent them from flowing from the bend to the undesirable locations within the diaper. Unfortunately, in some instances, higher viscosities may inhibit the transfer of the composition to the user's skin or may be difficult to apply without processing problems. Therefore, an equilibrium must be achieved in such a way that the viscosities are sufficiently high to maintain compositions located on the body surface of the fold, but not so high to prevent transfer to the user's skin. The viscosities suitable for the compositions will typically range from about 1 to about 5000 centipoise, preferably from about 5 to about 300 centipoise, more preferably from about 5 to about 100 centipoise measured at 60 ° C, using a rotational viscometer (a suitable Lab viscometer). Line Instruments, Inc., of Melrose Park, IL, as Model 4537). The viscometer is operated at 60 rpm using a two-axis number. For compositions designed to provide a skin care benefit, a useful active ingredient in these compositions is one or more skin protectants or emollients. As used herein, the term "emollient" is a material that protects against moisture and irritation, softens, softens, softens, coats, lubricates, moisturizes, or cleanses the skin. (It will be recognized that several of the asset monographs listed above are "emollients" as that term is used herein.) In a preferred embodiment, these emollients will have a plastic or fluid consistency at room temperature, i.e., at 20 ° C. . Representative emollients useful in the present invention include, but are not limited to, emollients that are based on petroleum, fatty acids of sucrose ester; polyethylene glycol and its derivatives; humectants; type of fatty acid ester; type of polysiloxane; type of alkyl ethoxylates; fatty acid ester ethoxylates; type of fatty alcohol; type of polysiloxane; propylene glycol and its derivatives; glycerin and its derivatives; including glyceride, acetoglycerides and ethoxylated glycerides of C12-C28 fatty acids; triethylene glycol, and its derivatives; spermaceti and other waxes, fatty acids, and fatty alcohol ethers particularly those having from 12 to 28 carbon atoms in their fat chain, such as stearic acid; propoxylated fatty alcohols; lanolin and its derivatives; Caolina and its derivatives; and any of the skin care agents of monographs listed above; or mixtures thereof. Suitable oil-based emollients include those hydrocarbons, or mixtures of hydrocarbons, having chain lengths of 16 to 32 carbon atoms. Oil-based hydrocarbons that have these chain lengths include oil in mineral water also known as "liquid petrolatum" and petrolatum (also known as "mineral wax," "petroleum jelly," and "mineral jelly." Mineral oil usually it refers to lower viscosity mixtures of hydrocarbons having from 16 to 20 carbon atoms.The petrolatum usually refers to more viscous mixtures of hydrocarbons having 16 to 32 carbon atoms.The petrolatum and the mineral oil are the emollients in particular. Preferred for compositions of the present invention Suitable emollients of the fatty acid ester type include those derived from fatty acids of C? 2-C28, preferably C?-C22 saturated fatty acids, and short-chain monohydric alcohols (C Cβ, preferably C 1 -C 3). Representative examples of these esters include methyl palmitate, methyl stearate, isopropyl laurate, isopropyl myristate, isopropyl palmitate, ethylhexyl palmitatium and mixtures thereof. Suitable fatty acid ester emollients can also be derived from longer chain fatty alcohol esters (C12-C28, preferably C12-d6) and from shorter chain fatty acids, for example, lactic acid such as lauryl lactate and cetyl lactate. Suitable alkyl ethoxylates emollients include the C 12 -C 22 fatty alcohol ethoxylates having an average degree of ethoxylation of from about 2 to about 30. Preferably, the fatty alcohol ethoxylate emollient is selected from the group consisting of ethoxylate of lauryl, cetyl and stearyl, and mixtures thereof, having an average degree of ethoxylation ranging from about 2 to about 23. Representative examples of these alkyl ethoxylates include laureth-3 (a lauryl ethoxylate having a degree of of average ethoxylation of 3), laureth-23 (a lauryl ethoxylate having an average degree of ethoxylation of 23) ceteth-10 (a cetyl alcohol ethoxylate having an average degree of ethoxylation of 10) and steareth 10 (an ethoxylate of stearyl alcohol having an average degree of ethoxylation of 10). These alkyl ethoxylate emollients are typically used in combination with petroleum-based emollients, such as petrolatum, at a weight ratio of emollients of alkyl ethoxylate to oil-based emollient of from about 1: 1 to about 1: 5, preferably about 1: 2 to about 1: 4. Suitable fatty alcohol emollients include the C 2 -C 22 fatty alcohols, preferably C 16 -C 8 fatty alcohols. Representative examples include cetyl alcohol, and stearyl alcohol, and mixtures thereof.

These fatty alcohol emollients are typically used in combination with petroleum-based emollients, such as the petrolatum at a weight ratio of fatty alcohol emollient to oil-based emollient of from about 1: 1 to about 1: 5, preferably from about 1: 1 to approximately 1: 2. Other types of emollients suitable for use in the present invention include polysiloxane compounds. In general, polysiloxane materials suitable for use in the present invention, include those having the monomeric siloxane units of the following structure: wherein Ri and R2 for each monomeric independent siloxane unit can each independently be hydrogen or any of alkyl, aryl, alkenyl, alkaryl, arachidyl, cycloalkyl, halogenated hydrocarbon, or other radical. Any of these radicals can be substituted or unsubstituted. The radicals R1 and R2 of any particular monomer unit may differ from the corresponding functionalities of the next contiguous monomer unit. Additionally, the polysiloxane can be either a straight chain, a branched chain or have a cyclic structure. The radicals and R 2 may additionally independently be other hairless functionalities such as but not limited to siloxanes, polysiloxanes, silanes and polysilanes. The radicals Ri and R2 may contain any of a variety of organic functionalities, including, for example, alcohol, carboxylic acid, phenyl and amine functionalities. Exemplary alkyl radicals are methyl, ethyl, propyl, butyl, pentyl, hexyl, octyl, decyl, octadecyl and the like. Exemplary alkenyl radicals are vinyl, allyl, and the like. Exemplary aryl radicals are phenyl, diphenyl, naphthyl and the like. Exemplary alkaryl radicals are toyl, guyl, ethylphenyl and the like. Exemplary aralkyl radicals are benzyl, alpha-phenylethyl, beta-phenylethyl, alpha-phenyl-butyl and the like. Exemplary cycloalkyl radicals are cyclobutyl, cyclopentyl, cycloexoyl, and the like. Exemplary alkylated hydrocarbon radicals are chloromethyl, bromoethyl, tetrafluoroethyl, fluoroethyl, trifluoroethyl, trifluoromethyl, exafluoroxynyl, and the like. The viscosity of the useful polysiloxanes can vary as widely as the viscosity of the polysiloxanes in general varies while the polysiloxane is able to flow or can be made to be flowable for application to the absorbent article. This includes, but is not limited to viscosity as low as 5 centistokes (at 37 ° C as measured by a glass viscometer) at approximately 20,000,000 centistokes. Preferably, the polysiloxanes have a viscosity at 37 ° C ranging from about 5 to about 5,000 centistokes, more preferably from about 5 to about 2,000 centistokes, most preferably from about 100 to about 1000 centistokes. The high viscosity polysiloxanes which by themselves are resistant to flow can be deposited effectively on the absorbent articles by such methods as, for example, emulsifying the polysiloxane in the surfactant or providing the polysiloxane in solution with the aid of a solvent such as hexane, listed for exemplary purposes only. Particular methods for applying the polysiloxane emollients to the absorbent articles are discussed in more detail hereinafter. Preferred polysiloxane compounds for use in the present invention are disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 5,059,282 (Ampulski et al.), Issued October 22, 1991, which is incorporated herein by reference. Particularly preferred polysiloxane compounds for use as the emollients in the compositions of the present invention include polymethylsiloxane compounds with functional phenyl (e.g. Dow cosmetic grade fluid Corning 556: polyphenylmethylsiloxane), dimethicone compounds, and dimethicones functionalized with cetyl or stearyl such as Dow 2502 and Dow 2503 polysiloxane fluids, respectively. In addition, substitution with functional phenyl or alkyl groups can be effectively substituted with amino, carboxyl, hydroxyl, ether, polyether, aldehyde, acetone, amide, ester and thiol groups. Of these effective substituent groups, the family of groups containing phenyl, amino, alkyl, carboxyl and hydroxyl groups are more preferred than the others; and most preferred are groups with functional phenyl. Suitable wetting agents include glycerin, propylene glycol, sorbitol, trihydroxy stearin, and the like. When present, the amount of the emollient that can be included in the composition will depend on a variety of factors, including the particular emollient involved, the desired skin care benefits, other components in the composition, and the like. The composition may comprise from about 0 to about 100% by total weight, of the emollient. Preferably, the composition comprises from about 10 to about 95%, more preferably from about 20 to about 80%, and most preferably from about 40 to about 75%, by weight, of the emollient. Another optional, but especially key component of certain skin care compositions useful in the present invention is an agent capable of immobilizing the composition (including the emollient and / or other skin conditioning / protective agents) at the desired location within or about the treated fold. Because certain preferred emollients in the composition have a plastic or fluid consistency at 20 ° C, they tend to flow or migrate even when subjected to modest shear stress. When applied to a body surface or other location of a bend, especially in a molten or melted state, the emollient will not primarily remain inside or on the treated region. In contrast, the emollient will tend to migrate and flow into the unwanted regions of the absorbent article. Specifically, if the emollient migrates into the article, it may cause undesirable effects on the absorbency of the absorbent core due to the hydrophobic characteristics of many of the emollients and other skin conditioning agents used in useful compositions of the present invention. This also means that much more emollient has to be applied to the fold to achieve the desired benefits. Increasing the level of the emollient not only increases the cost, but also exacerbates the undesirable effect on core absorbency and unwanted transfer of the composition during processing / conversion of the treated folds.

The immobilizing agent counteracts this tendency of the emollient to migrate or flow by keeping the emollient mainly located on the surface or in the region of the fold to which the composition is applied. It is believed that this is due, in part, to the fact that the immobilizing agent raises the melting point and / or viscosity of the composition above that of the emollient. Since the immobilizing agent is also preferably miscible with the emollient (or solubilized in the emollient with the aid of an appropriate emulsifier or dispersed therein), it entraps the emollient on the surface of the surface which is in contact with the user. of the doubles or in the region to which it applies. It is also advantageous to "fix" the immobilization agent on the surface that is in contact with the user or in the region of the fold to which it is applied. This can be achieved by using immobilization agents which quickly dispose (ie, solidify) over the application to the fold. In addition, the external cooling of the bend treated through blowers, fans, cold rollers, etc., can accelerate the crystallization of the immobilization agent. In addition to being miscible with (or solubilized in) the emollient, the immobilizing agent will preferably have a melting profile that will provide a composition that is solid or semi-solid at room temperature. In this regard, the preferred immobilizing agents will have a melting point of at least about 35 ° C. This is such that the immobilization agent itself will not have a tendency to migrate or flow. Preferred immobilizing agents will have melting points of about 40 ° C. Typically, the immobilization agent will have a melting point in the range from about 50 ° to about 150 ° C.

When used, the immobilizing agents useful for the present invention can be selected from any of a group of agents, while the preferred properties of the skin care composition provide the benefits described herein. Preferred immobilizing agents will comprise a member selected from the group consisting of C14-C22 fatty alcohols, C12-C22 fatty acids and C12-C22 fatty alcohol ethoxylates having an average degree of ethoxylation ranging from 2 to about 30. , and mixtures thereof. Preferred immobilizing agents include C16-C18 fatty alcohols, more preferably selected from the group consisting of cetyl alcohol, stearyl alcohol, bene? N alcohol and mixtures thereof. (The linear structure of these materials can accelerate the solidification of the treated folds.) Mixtures of cetyl alcohol and stearyl alcohol are particularly preferred. Other preferred immobilizing agents include C16-C18 fatty acids, more preferably selected from the group consisting of palmitic acid, stearic acid, and mixtures thereof. Mixtures of palmitic acid and stearic acid are particularly preferred.

Still other immobilizing agents include C 16 -C 8 fatty alcohol ethoxylates having an average degree of ethoxylation ranging from about 5 to about 20. Preferably, the fatty alcohols, the fatty acids are linear. Importantly, these agents Preferred immobilization such as C16-C18 fatty alcohols increase the rate of crystallization of the lotion causing the lotion to crystallize rapidly on the surface of the substrate. Other types of immobilization agents that may be used herein include polyhydroxy fatty acid esters, polyhydroxy fatty acid amides, and mixtures thereof. Preferred amide esters will have 3 or more free hydroxy groups on the polyhydroxy moiety and are typically non-ionic in character. Because of the possible skin sensitivity of those who use folds to which the composition is applied, these esters and amides must also be relatively benign and non-irritating to the skin. The polyhydroxy fatty acid esters suitable for use in the present invention will have the formula: wherein R is a C5-C31 hydrocarbyl group preferably straight chain C-C19 alkyl or alkenyl, more preferably straight chain C9-C17 alkyl or alkenyl, more preferably C2 alkyl or alkenyl? Straight chain C17 or mixtures thereof; and is a polyhydroxyhydrocarbyl moiety having a hydrocarbyl chain with at least two free hydroxyls directly connected to the chain, and n is at least 1. The Y groups can be derived from polyols such as glycerol, pentaerythritol; sugars such as refining, maltodextrose, galactose, sucrose, glucose, gylose, fructose, maltose, lactose, mannose and erythrose; sugar alcohols such as erythritol, gylitol, malitol, mannitol and sorbitol; and anhydrides of sugar alcohols such as sorbitan. A class of polyhydroxy fatty acid esters for use in the present invention comprises certain glyceryl monoesters, preferably the sorbitan esters of saturated C 16 -C 22 fatty acids. Because of the manner in which they are typically manufactured, these sorbitan esters usually comprise mixtures of mono-, di-, tri-, etc., esters. Representative examples of suitable sorbitan esters include sorbitan palmitates (eg, SPAN 40), sorbitan stearates (eg, SPAN 60), and sorbitan benehatos, which comprise one or more versions of mono-, di-, and triesters of these sorbitan esters, for example, sorbitan mono-, di- and tri-palmitate, sorbitan mono-, di- and tri-stearate, sorbitan mono-, di- and tri-behenate, as well as mixed mono-, di- and tri-esters of bait fatty acid. Mixtures of different sorbitan esters, such as sorbitan palmitates with sorbitan stearates, can also be used. Particularly preferred sorbitan esters are sorbitan stearates, typically as a mixture of mono-, di- and tri-esters (plus some tetra-ester) such as SPAN 60, and sorbitan stearates sold under the trade name GLYCOMUL- S by Lonza, Inc. Although these sorbitan esters typically contain mixtures of mono-, di- and tri-esters, plus some tetra-ester, mono-, di- and tri-esters are generally the predominant species in these mixtures. Another class of polyhydroxy fatty acid esters for use in the present invention comprises certain glyceryl monoesters, preferably glyceryl monoesters of saturated C ?6-C22 fatty acids such as glycerol monostearate, glyceryl monopalmitate and glyceryl monobearate. Again, like sorbitan esters, glyceryl monoester mixtures will typically contain some di and tri-ester. However, these mixtures should predominantly contain glyceryl ester mono species to be useful in the present invention. Another class of polyhydroxy fatty acid esters suitable for use in the present invention may comprise certain fatty acid esters of sucrose, preferably the saturated fatty acid esters of C6- C22. The sucrose monster and diester are particularly preferred and include sucrose mono- and di-stearate and sucrose mono- and di-laurate. The polyhydroxy fatty acid amides suitable for use in the present invention will have the formula: O R R- C-N-Z wherein R is H, CrC 4 hydrocarbyl, 2-hydroxyethyl, 2-hydroxypropyl, methoxyethyl, methoxypropyl or a mixture thereof, preferably C 1 -C 4 alkyl, methoxyethyl or methoxypropyl, more preferably C 1 or C 2 alkyl, or methoxypropyl, more preferably C1 alkyl (ie methyl) or methoxypropyl; and R2 is a C5-C31 hydrocarbyl group, preferably straight chain C7-C19 alkyl or alkenyl, more preferably, straight chain C9-C17 alkyl or alkenyl, most preferably straight chain C11-C17 alkyl or a mixture thereof; and Z is a polyhydroxyhydrocarbyl moiety having a linear hydrocarbyl chain with at least three hydroxyls directly connected to the chain. See U.S. Patent No. 5,174,927 (Honsa), issued December 29, 1992 (incorporated herein by reference), which discloses these polyhydroxy fatty acid amides, as well as their preparation. The Z portion will preferably be derived from a reduced sugar in a reductive amination reaction; more preferably glycityl. Suitable reduced sugars include glucose, fructose, maltose, lactose, galactose, mannose and gylose. High-shelled corn syrups, high fructose corn syrup, and high-maltose corn syrup can be used, as well as the individual sugars listed above. These corn syrups can produce mixtures of the sugar components for the Z portion. The Z portion will preferably be selected from the group consisting of CH2- (CH0H) n-CH20H, -CH (CH2OH) - [(CHOH) p -?] - CH2OH, -CH2OH-CH2- (CHOH) 2 (CHOR3) (CHOH) -CH2OH, wherein n is an integer from 3 to 5, and R3 is H or a cyclic or aliphatic monosaccharide. More preferably are the glycityls where n is 4 particularly -CH 2 - (CHOH) 4 -CH 2 OH.

In the above formula R1 can be, for example N-methyl, N-ethyl, N-propyl, N-isopropyl, N-butyl, N-2-hydroxyethyl, N-methoxypropyl or N-2-hydroxypropyl. R2 can be selected to provide, for example, cocamides, stearamides, oleamides, lauramides, myristamides, capricamides, palmitamides, ceboamides, etc. The Z-portion can be 1-deoxyglucityl, 2-deoxyfuctititl, 1-deoxylactyl, 1-doygalactityl, 1-deoxyanityl, 1-deoxy-triotriotityl, etc. The most preferred polyhydroxy fatty acid amides have the general formula: O R1 OH I R2- C-N-CH2- -CH- -CH2-OH 4 wherein R 1 is methyl or methoxypropyl; R2 is a straight chain alkyl or alkenyl group of C ??-C17. These include N-lauryl-N-methyl glucamide N-lauryl-N-methoxypropyl glucamide, N-cocoyl-N-methyl glucamide, N-cocoyl-N-methoxypropyl glucamide, n-palmityl-N-methoxypropyl glucamide, N-ceboyl- N-methyl glucamide, or N-ceboyl-N-methoxypropyl glucamide. As previously indicated, some of the immobilization agents require an emulsifier for solubilization in the emollient. This is particularly the case for certain of the glucamides such as N-alkyl-N-methoxypropyl glucamides having HLB values of at least 7. Suitable emulsifiers will typically include those having HLB values below about 7. In this respect , the sorbitan esters described above, such as sorbitan stearates, having HLB values of about 4.9 or less have been found to be useful in solubilizing these glucamide immobilization agents in the petrolatum. Other suitable emulsifying agents include steareth-2 (polyethylene glycol ethers of stearyl alcohol which conform to the formula CH3 (CH2) 17 (OCH2CH2) nOH, where n has an average value of 2), sorbitan triestarate, isosorbide laurate and monostearate of glyceryl. The emulsifier may be included in an amount sufficient to solubilize the immobilizing agent in the emollient such that a substantially homogeneous mixture is obtained. For example, a mixture of approximately 1: 1 of N-cocoyl-N-methyl glucamide and petrolatum that will not normally melt in a single-phase mixture will melt in a single-phase mixture upon addition of 20% of a mixture of 1: 1 of Steareth-2 and sorbitan triestarate as the emulsifier. Other types of ingredients that can be used as immobilization agents, either alone or in combination with the aforementioned immobilization agents, include waxes such as carnauva, ozokerite, beeswax, candelilla, paraffin, ceresin, esparto, myicuri, prayer wax, isoparaffin and other mined waxes and known minerals. The high melting point of these materials can help immobilize the composition on the desired surface or location on the fold. Additionally, microcrystalline waxes are effective immobilizing agents. Microcrystalline fences can help bind low molecular weight hydrocarbons within the skin care composition. Preferably the wax is a paraffilic wax. An example of a particularly preferred paraffin wax is S.P. paraffin. 434 by Strahl and Pitsch Inc. P.O. Box 1098 West Babylon, NY 11704. The amount of immobilization agent that can be included in the composition will depend on a variety of factors, including the assets (eg, emollients) involved, the particular immobilization agent involved, if any. , the other components in the composition, if emulsifier is required to solubilize the immobilization agent in the emollient other components and similar factors. When present, the composition will typically comprise from about 5 to about 90% of the immobilizing agent.

Preferably, the composition will comprise from about 5 to about 50%, more preferably from about 10 to about 40% of the immobilizing agent. The compositions may comprise other optional components typically present in emulsions, creams, ointments, lotions, powders, suspensions, etc. of this type. These optional components include water, viscosity modifiers, perfumes, antibacterial disinfectant actives, antiviral agents, vitamins, pharmaceutical actives, film formers, aloe vera, deodorants, opacity modifiers, astringents, solvents, preservatives and the like. In addition, stabilizers may be added to increase the shelf life of the composition such as cellulose derivatives, proteins and lecithin.

All of these materials are well known in the art as additives to these formulations and may be employed in appropriate amounts within compositions of the present invention for use herein. If water-based skin care compositions are used, a preservative will be necessary. Suitable preservatives include propyl paraben, methyl paraben, benzyl paraben, benzylkonium alcohol, tribasic calcium phosphate, BHT, or acids such as citric, tartaric, maleic, lactic, malic, benzoic, salicylic, and the like. Suitable viscosity-increasing agents include alkyl galactomannan, silica, talc, magnesium silicate, sorbitol, colloidal silicon dioxide, magnesium aluminum silicate, zinc stearate, wool wax alcohol, sorbitol, sesquioleate, hydroxy cetyl ethyl cellulose , and other modified celluloses. Suitable solvents include propylene glycol, glycerin, cyclomethicone, polyethylene glycols, hexylene glycol, diol, and multi-hydroxy based solvents. Suitable vitamins include A, D-3, E, B-5 and E acetate.

C. Oil-based Resistant Adhesives As discussed above, materials suitable for use in the assembly of absorbent articles in accordance with the present invention are resistant to oleaginous components of the skin care compositions discussed herein and, at the same time, , do not unduly limit any option of material or flexibility of the process. For example, a material suitable for use as a fixing member of the separation elastic 94 must hold the elastic separation member 76 in a secured relationship with the barrier fold member 63 still in the exposure to oleaginous component (i.e. suitable are, of necessity, resistant to oil). Suitable materials should also have visco-thermal properties such as: 1) the application temperature of the material is not so high as to limit the choice of other materials used to assemble the absorbent article (ie, the adhesives are benevolent materials), ) the energy required to melt the material is not so great as to require an excessive amount of time before the material has a suitably low viscosity to be used (ie, the time required to reach the application temperature should not be unacceptably long) , and 3) the properties in use of the molten material must be such that the material does not create reliability problems of the application process. Each of these criteria will be discussed in detail in the following paragraphs.

Oil Resistance A key criterion for the suitability of the adhesive material to be used in the assembly of the absorbent articles of the present invention, such as to be used as the attachment member of the separation elastic 94 in the diaper 20, is the resistance to the liquids to which these adhesives may be exposed during the assembly, shipping, storage, or use of the absorbent article. Exemplary liquids include water, aqueous body exudates such as urine, other body exudates such as menstruation or fecal eses, and oleaginous components of the skin care compositions, such as mineral oil, petrolatum, fatty alcohols, fatty acids, silicone compounds, and other materials as may be listed in the description of the skin care composition of the present invention above. Although resistance to all the various liquid types listed above is important, the art has had particular difficulty in providing resistance to oleaginous materials, such as the components of the skin care compositions as they have been found to provide the benefits desirable health to the skin when applied to diapers. Applicants have found that for folds that have been treated with skin care compositions as described herein, progressive deformation values of less than about 8.9 mm are highly desirable. Specifically, when a sample of at least about 25 bends is evaluated for progressive deformation according to the method described in the TEST METHODS section below, no more than 10 percent of the ends should have a higher progressive strain value of approximately 8.9 mm. Preferably, less than about 7.5 percent of the ends should have a progressive strain value greater than about 8.9 mm, more preferably, less than 5 percent of the ends. Table 3 of Example 3 lists the average values of the progressive deformation and the percentage of the ends of the fiber having a progressive deformation value greater than about 8.9 mm for the barrier bends 62 that have been assembled using various adhesives and treated with a skin care composition (the progressive deformation data for the folds 62 assembled using a non-oil resistant adhesive of the prior art that were not treated with a skin care composition are also included by comparison ). Examples 1 and 2 describe the assembly and treatment of diapers with these folds. The bends were then evaluated for resistance to progressive deformation according to the method described in the TEST METHODS section below. As can be seen: 1) the resistance to progressive deformation of the non-oil resistant adhesive of the prior art substantially degrades when the fold is treated with a skin care composition; and 2) the resistance to progressive deformation of the folds 62 assembled using both the oil-resistant adhesive of the prior art and the oil-resistant adhesive of the present invention in the presence of a skin care composition is substantially the same as the resistance to progressive deformation of an untreated bead assembled using the non-oil resistant adhesive of the prior art. In other words, using the oil resistant adhesives minimize the limitations in the formulations and the disposition of any skin care composition that can be applied to a diaper. Adhesive compositions comprising a butylene homopolymer (1-butene) or copolymers have been found to have particularly desirable oil resistance. These adhesives may further comprise other polymers or copolymers, tackifying resins, waxes, stabilizers and the like, as is known in the art. Adhesive compositions of this type are also known in the art as thermal fusion adhesives. Applicants believe that this resistance to oil is due to the crystalline nature of the polybutylene polymers. As is known, block copolymers, which are frequently components of thermal melt adhesives, have regions of crystallinity and amorphous regions. Applicants believe that these amorphous regions provide sites where the oleaginous components of the skin care compositions can interact more easily with the polymeric components of the thermal fusion adhesives (causing plasticization) compared to the crystalline regions. Since the butylene polymers are substantially crystalline with little, if any, amorphous character, the oil resistance will get wet.Material friendliness Another important criterion for suitability according to the present invention is the "friendliness of the material". As used herein, an adhesive is "the propitious material if, when the adhesive is used in the assembly of an absorbent article, the use of the adhesive does not cause undue limitations on the types of materials available for use as a component of an absorbent article. For example, adhesive application temperatures of approximately 191 ° C have been found to create holes in films with low basis weight that are frequently used as a backsheet for absorbent articles.This temperature sensitivity effectively sets an upper limit at the application temperature for suitable thermal fusion adhesives Applicants have found that the oil-resistant adhesives of the present invention provide improved material friendliness This friendliness is shown in example 4 which compares the behavior of a resistive adhesive to the oil of the present invention with an adhesive resistant to the oil of the prior art. As can be seen, when the adhesives of the present invention are used in combination with typical top sheet and backsheet materials in the assembly of a side flap of the diaper, these flaps have the desirable oil resistance and improved integrity of the back sheet (compared with oil-resistant adhesives of the prior art). Importantly, the changes to the backsheet when the adhesives of the present invention are used are of an aesthetic nature and do not substantially affect the usefulness of the diaper. On the other hand, the changes to the backsheet caused by the necessarily higher application temperature of the oil-resistant adhesives of the prior art can affect the operation of the diaper (for example, the holes can be a source of leakage).

Process Friendliness The materials suitable for the present invention are also process friendly. As used herein, a material is "process friendly" if it does not impose unnecessary limitations on the application of the adhesive and the use of the process. Specific examples of the favorable attributes of the process include a low heat of fusion to allow rapid melting of the solid adhesive in a production atmosphere, low viscosity in use to minimize the pressure required to cause the adhesive to flow through the Application nozzles, and quick placement on cooling to minimize unwanted flow of adhesive as it can cause continuous spillage to process rollers. Each of these adhesive properties are discussed in more detail below. Rapid fusion is useful because the time required to bring an adhesive to a condition of use is one of the factors that requires attention for those who operate the process. Short melt times mean that less operator attention is required after replenishing an exhausted adhesive supply container. As noted above, the low viscosity at the process conditions is important to minimize the pressure required to cause an adhesive to flow through the application nozzles when the adhesive is used to bond materials as the absorbent article is assembled. As a person skilled in the art will recognize, low viscosity in use can be achieved by applying an adhesive at a high usage temperature. However, this approach to achieve a low viscosity in use causes additional problems. For example, it may be necessary to heat the adhesive to a temperature higher than that required for the adhesive to be friendly to the material. Another problem with elevated temperature is the "potential life". Since thermal fusion adhesives are compositions that comprise organic materials, materials can begin to degrade if they are kept at a high temperature for too long a time. "Potential life" is the time that an adhesive can be kept molten before the properties of the material become unacceptable, (for example, loss of viscosity due to molecular weight degradation). Again, if a satisfactory viscosity can be obtained at a lower application temperature, the potential life can be extended. Process hygiene is also important in the production of absorbent articles. The fixing time of the adhesive is important in this context because, if the fixing time is too long, a fluid adhesive can permeate through the material (for example, a non-woven component of the fold) and contaminate the underlying rollers. Once a roller is contaminated with the adhesive material, any of the webs that are carried by the roller come to join and roll on the roller causing the break in the web.

Properties of the adhesive material The qualitative criteria previously identified for the friendliness of the material and the friendliness of the process help to identify various material properties of importance for the adhesives of the present invention. In particular: 1) The viscosity / temperature ratio (visco-thermal properties) define the application temperature; and 2) The amount of energy required to elevate the adhesive to that application temperature defines the ease of fusion.

Each of these properties is discussed in detail below: The visco-thermal properties can be defined by considering the following: • In order to be considered the suitable material according to the present invention an adhesive material must have an application temperature less than about 177 °. C. Otherwise, as noted above, visible defects begin to appear in certain useful raster materials. Preferably, the application temperature is less than about 162 ° C. • Materials that have an apparent viscosity less than about 8,000 centipoise will have satisfactory flow through the application nozzles. Preferably, the apparent viscosity is less than about 6000 centipoise. The apparent viscosity can be measured according to the standard method ASTM D3236-88. • The adhesive must have fast fixation to ensure that permeation through the porous frames is acceptably low. Figure 6 is a graph of the apparent viscosity (V) vs. temperature (T) of an oil resistant adhesive of the prior art (H9254) and an oil resistant adhesive (H9268) of the present invention. As can be seen, the oil resistant adhesive of the present invention has a lower apparent viscosity than the prior art oil resistant adhesive at each of the temperatures where the data was taken. This lower viscosity is very evident at 121 ° C where the oil-resistant adhesive of the prior art has begun to set while the adhesive composition of the present invention is still a little fluid. As will be discussed below, applicants believe that the improved visco-thermal properties of the adhesives of the present invention overcome many of the problems of material friendliness and the process of the oil-resistant adhesives of the prior art while not becoming susceptible. to continuous undesirable permeation or spill. In particular, applicants believe that the lower heat of fusion of the adhesives of the present invention means that the fixing time can be acceptably short while, at the same time, maintaining the desirable viscosity / temperature ratio described above. As is known, time is required for a fluid flowing over a certain distance for a given pressure differential and fluids with higher viscosity require greater flow time than fluids with lower viscosity. It is also known that the heat transfer of a material depends on the temperature difference between the material and the surrounding environment, the area of the material exposed to the environment, the thermal capacity of the material, and the heat from any crystalline fusion. of the material. As can be seen in Figure 8 (Example 5), the prior art oil-resistant adhesive has a crystalline melting region at about 150 ° C. As the heat is removed the adhesive of the prior art begins to increase the viscosity as a portion of the adhesive crystallizes. Although the adhesive of the present invention does not show this crystalline melting region, Applicants believe that the combination of the lower application temperature of the adhesive of the present invention (see Example 4) and the relatively low heat transfer coefficient (related to the curve of the baseline of the curves of Figure 8) means that an adhesive of the present invention cools sufficiently fast to have an acceptably short fixation time. One aspect of this desirable viscosity / temperature ratio is clearly demonstrated in Example 5. In this example, the melting time for the adhesives of the present invention is compared to the prior art adhesives.

One of the prior art adhesives (H2511) is widely used in the assembly of absorbent articles but has unacceptable oil resistance. The other adhesive (H9254) is representative of the oil-resistant adhesives of the prior art. As can be clearly seen from the data in Figure 7, the adhesive according to the present invention (H9268) has both a melting profile much closer to that of the current adhesives that are widely used while also having the desirable strength to oil. Applicants believe that the differences in the melting profile can be explained by the heat of fusion of the various adhesive compositions. As used herein, the term "heat of fusion" is the amount of energy required for the crystalline melting of a material. The heat of fusion can be measured using differential scanning calorimetry techniques as described in the TEST METHODS section. In order to be suitable for use as an adhesive of the present invention, the heat of fusion of an adhesive composition must be less than about 20 joules per gram. Preferably, the heat of fusion is less than 15 joules per gram. Surprisingly, applicants have found that, by providing such a reduction in heat of fusion compared to adhesive compositions of the prior art, the adhesives of the present invention melt a lot. more quickly Also, a low melting heat and the resulting lower application temperature allows the adhesive compositions of the present invention to cool and increase in viscosity fast enough to substantially reduce the risk of process hygienic problems and other problems related to undesirable flow. of the adhesive after the application of the same.

D. Assembling and Fixing the Fold As previously noted, the oil-resistant adhesive materials are suitable for use as any or all of a fin fastening member 88, an elastic fastening member 90, a proximal fastening member 92, or a fixing member of the separation elastic 94. The following discusses an application means of an adhesive of the present invention to be used as a fixing member of the separation elastic 94 to form a barrier fold 62. A person skilled in the art will recognize methods analogs for using the adhesive materials of the present invention for other of the diaper elements 20. As can be seen very clearly in Figure 3, the elastic separation member 76 is enclosed within a tunnel that is formed when it is bent backwards. on itself one end of the barrier fold member 63, the elastic separation member 76 being secured in the tunnel by means of the fixing members of the separation elastic 94. The distant edge 66 of the barrier fold is separated away from the body surface 40 by the action of elastic recoil of the elastic separation member 76. To: 1) form this tunnel, 2) fixing the elastic separating member 76, and 3) providing the gathering action, the following steps have been found suitable. • First, an elastic separating member 76 is provided. Any elastically shrinkable material is suitable for use as the member. elastic separation 76. Particular materials are also described in the aforementioned U.S. Patent No. 4,695,278. • Second, a fastening member of the separation elastic 94 is provided.

As noted above, the adhesive compositions of the present invention are particularly preferred. • Third, the elastic separation member 76 and the separation elastic attachment member 94 are associated using means known in the art. Suitable means include, but are not limited to, slot extrusion, of the fastening member of the separation elastic 94 on the separation elastic 76 and spraying the fastening member of the separation elastic 94 on the separation elastic 76. Particularly preferred is spraying the fastening member of the elastic separation 94 over the elastic separation 76 using a spiral pattern as is known in the art whereby the width of the spirals are such that the fixing member of the separation elastic 94 is raised around the elastic separation member 76 to contact all the surfaces of it. That is, the elastic separation member 76 is wrapped by the separation elastic attachment member 94. • Fourth, a suitable material web is provided to form the barrier fold member 63. These materials are described as being suitable for forming the barrier fold 62 in the aforementioned U.S. Patent No. 4,695,278. Fifth, the wrapped separation elastic binding member 76 is attached to the barrier folding member 63 (forming the barrier fold 62) by folding a portion of the barrier fold member 63 around the wrapped elastic separation member 76 and combining the barrier fold member 63 and elastic wrapped separation member 76 using means known in the art. The longitudinal edge of the portion of the elastic separation member can also be attached to the rest of the elastic separation member using means for closing the barrier fold 96, such as a combination of heat and pressure, commonly known as pleating, adhesive means or other means as they may be known in the art.

E. Application of the Skin Care Composition to the Folds (user other frames) In preparing the products of the folds treated in accordance with the present invention, the skin care composition is preferably applied to the surface of the skin. body (that is, the surface that is in contact with the user), of a fold. However, since certain skin care compositions disclosed herein may penetrate or migrate through some of the fold materials described herein, the skin care composition may alternatively be applied to the surface of garment of the fold in such a way that an effective amount of the composition for skin care is deposited on the body surface. In fact, in some circumstances, this may be a preferred approach to achieving the benefits of a fully treated bending (ie, treating both sides) even if the application is only on one side. Any of a variety of application methods that uniformly distribute lubricious materials having a molten or liquid consistency can be used to apply the skin care composition to the folds. Suitable methods include coating (e.g., gravure or slot coating), spraying, printing (eg, flexographic printing), extrusion, or combinations of these application techniques (e.g., spraying the skin care composition over a rotating surface, such as a calender roll, which then transfers the skin care composition to the body surface of the diaper leg folds). If desired, the skin care composition can also be applied on both sides of the folds to improve the hydrophobic capacity of the folds. The manner of applying the composition for skin care to the folds should be such that the folds do not become over-saturated with the skin care composition. If the folds are treated with excessive amounts of the skin care composition, there is a greater potential for the skin care composition to migrate to undesired locations of the article, e.g., into the interior of the article where this can have a detrimental effect on the absorbency of the underlying absorbent core. Also, saturation of the folds is not required to obtain the therapeutic and / or protective benefits of the composition for skin care. The minimum level of the skin care composition that is applied to the fold is the less effective amount in reducing erythema, diaper rash, red marking, skin irritation or other adverse skin conditions, (the compositions may also be effective in reducing the adherence of feces to the wearer's skin.) Of course, the effective amount of a skin care composition will depend, to a greater extent, on the composition for care of the skin. particular skin used. Because the emollient is substantially immobilized on the body surface of the fold, less skin care composition is needed to impart the desired benefits of skin care.

These relatively low skin care composition levels are suitable for imparting the desired therapeutic and / or protective benefits of the skin fold composition. The skin care composition can be applied uniformly and evenly on either or both of the leg fold surfaces or parts thereof. The composition for skin care can also be applied with a pattern (ie, strips, boxes, dots, spirals, etc). Preferably, the composition for skin care is in register with the region of the leg fold that, in use, will be more in touch with the user. More preferably as described in the examples hereinafter, the skin care composition is applied in a strip to a discrete part of the leg barrier fold, eg, a patch 1.4 inches wide (in the lateral direction of the skin). diaper, such that the far edge of the fold is covered), and 11.75 inches in length (longitudinal direction of the diaper) generally disposed in the crotch portion of the inside surface of the fold. The skin care composition may also be applied unevenly to either or both of the fold surfaces. By "non-uniform", it is implied that the pattern, or distribution, etc., of the composition for skin care may vary over the surface of the fold. For example, some of the portions of the treated surface of the fold may have greater or lesser amounts of the skin care composition including the parts of the surface that have nothing of the skin care composition thereon. The composition for skin care can be applied to the fold or to a weft that forms a part of the fold at any point during assembly. For example, the composition for skin care can be applied to the fold of the finished product before it has been packaged. The skin care composition can be applied to the fold or the weft before it is combined with other raw materials to form a finished product, either at the conversion site before the combination with other components of the article or as a pre-treated raw material. The skin care composition is typically applied from a fusion thereof to the fold. Since the skin care composition melts at significantly above ambient temperatures, it is usually applied as a hot fold coating. Typically, the skin care composition is heated to a temperature in the range of about 35 ° to about 100 ° C, preferably 40 ° to about 90 ° C before being applied to the fold. Once the cast skin care composition has been applied to the fold, it is allowed to cool and solidify to form a solidified coating or film on the surface of the fold. Preferably, the application process is designed to assist in the cooling / fixing of the composition. When applying skin care compositions of the present invention to the folds, the methods of slot coating, extrusion coating, gravure coating and spraying are preferred. Figure 5 illustrates a preferred method involving continuous or intermittent slit contact coating of the skin care composition on a diaper barrier fold during the transport operation. With reference to Figure 5, the conveyor belt 1 advances in the direction shown by the arrows on the return rollers 3 and 4 and arrive at the return conveyor belt 2. The conveyor belt 1, carries the diaper without lotion 5 towards the contact station for slot covering 6 where the limb 7 of the barrier fold is coated with the hot (eg 65 ° C) skin care composition. After leaving the coating station by groove 6, the diaper 5 becomes the diaper 8 having the treated barrier folds. The amount of the skin care composition transferred to the barrier fold member 7 is controlled by: (1) the rate at which the melted skin care composition is applied from the coating contact station by slot 6 and / or (2) the speed at which the conveyor 1 travels under the slot covering station 6; and / or 3) the placement of the contact slot coating station. (If desired, the coating station 6 can be positioned to cover the barrier fold member 7, as well as portions of the top sheet 38 such that both of the fold and the top sheet have a deposited skin care composition. about them.) SPECIFIC ILLUSTRATIONS OF THE PREPARATION OF THE DOUBLES AND OF THE UPPER LEAF OF THE DIA TREATED ACCORDING TO THE PRESENT INVENTION The following are specific illustrations of the treatment of the folds and / or the top sheets or webs with the skin care compositions according to the present invention.

Example 1 This example is intended to demonstrate the preparation of a diaper having folds assembled using an oil resistant adhesive of the present invention and treating the folds with a skin care composition. A. Preparation of the skin care composition A skin care composition (Composition A) is made by mixing together the following molten (i.e. liquid) components: Petrolatum (available from Witco Corp., Greenwich, CT as Perfecta®), stearyl alcohol (available from The Procter &Gamble Company, Cincinnati, OH, as CO 1897) and aloe extract (available from Madis Botanicals, Inc., South Hackensack, NJ, as Veragel Lipoid in Kaydol). The percentages by weight of these components are shown in Table I below: Table I Component% in Weight Petrolatum 58 Stearyl alcohol 41 Aloe 1 B. Preparation of the diaper leg fold treated by thermal fusion coating To assemble the folds, the elastic separation members are operatively joined to the barrier fold member by an adhesive according to the present invention, such as Findley H9268 (ie, applying the adhesive to the elastic member, bending the barrier fold member around the adhesive treated elastic member, and combining the assembly) as briefly discussed herein. The fold is then attached to the top sheet using means known in the art to complete the assembly. The assembly is then treated with the composition for skin care A. Composition A for skin care is placed in a heated tank operating at a temperature of 170 ° F. The composition is subsequently applied with a contact applicator (ie, a Meltex EP45 thermal fusion adhesive applicator head operating at a temperature of 170 ° F) directly on the body surface of the barrier folds of a diaper on a 1.4-inch-wide area (lateral direction of the diaper, such that the distant edge of the barrier fold is covered), and 11.75 inches long, (longitudinal direction of the diaper), the patch is centered on the chassis in the longitudinal direction such that one or both ends of each elastic separation member is covered by the composition for skin care. Added level = 0.0116 g / inch2 (18.0 g / m2). These treated diapers are identified as diaper 1 in Example 3.

Example 2 This example is intended to demonstrate the preparation of a diaper having folds assembled using prior art adhesives and treating folds with a skin care composition. A set of diapers with folds assembled using a non-oil resistant adhesive of the prior art (H2511 from Ato Findley) is provided in substantially the same manner as described in Example 1. A second set of diapers is provided with folds assembled using an oil resistant adhesive of the prior art (H9254 by Ato Findley). A portion of the first set of diapers (without oil-resistant adhesive) and all of the diapers of the second set (oil-resistant adhesive) is subsequently treated with the skin care composition A (prepared according to the procedure of example 1) by melting the composition and applying the fused composition on the body surface of the barrier folds of a diaper on a strip 1.4 inches wide (lateral direction of the diaper, such that the distant edge of the barrier fold is covered) over each barrier fold and extending the total length of the barrier fold in substantially the same manner as described in Example 1. Added level = 0.116 g / in2 (18 g / m2) for both sets of diapers. The products from this example are identified as follows: Diaper 3 - adhesive not resistant to oil, without treatment with the composition for skin care; Diaper 4 - oil-resistant adhesive, of the prior art, treated with composition A.

Example 3 This example is intended to demonstrate the oil resistance of the adhesives of the present invention and of certain adhesives of the prior art when compared to typical adhesives of the prior art.

The folds of the diapers prepared according to examples 1 and 2 are removed from the diapers and evaluated for progressive deformation according to the method described in the TEST METHODS section. Table 3 shows the results of this evaluation.

Table 3 Test sample AAddhheessiivvoo Progressive strain assessment (In / mm) (%> 0.35 in / 8.9 mm) Diaper 1 * Yes H9268 0.09 / 2.3 4.7 Diaper 2 ** No H2511 0.10 / 2.5 0.0 Diaper 3 ** Yes H2511 0.27 / 6.9 17.8 Diaper 4 ** Yes H9254 0.13 / 2.8 4.6 * Folds assembled using adhesive of the present invention (H9268) ** Folds assembled using adhesive of the prior art (H2511 and H9254) As can be seen, the folds treated assembled using any of the oil resistant adhesives have progressive deformation values which are comparable to the progressive deformation value of the untreated adhesive, which is not resistant to the oil of the prior art. Also as can be seen, the treatment of the folds that are assembled using an adhesive not resistant to oil results in a substantial increase in the progressive deformation.

Example 4 This example is intended to demonstrate the friendliness of the material of the adhesives of the present invention.

Two adhesives of the prior art (H2511 and X9254) and the adhesive of the present invention (H9268) are used as the elastic fastening member to secure a flap elastic member as a part of a diaper assembly approval. The elastic fastening member attaches the elastic flap member to the backsheet and the topsheet. The backsheet is a laminate of a carded nonwoven material and a porous film as available from Fibertech of Simpsonville, SC as product 1008. All adhesive materials are applied at substantially the same basis weight in a spiral pattern as is known in the art. The finished diapers are then evaluated for the integrity of the backsheet in the vicinity of the elastic fastening member. The results of this evaluation are given in Table 4.

Table 4 Type of Adhesive Application Temperature Integrity of the Backsheet H2511 * 325 ° F / 162 ° C Without substantial deformation H9254 * 375 ° f / 191 ° c Visible deformation, holes, Weakness H9268 * 350 ° F / 177 ° C Deformation visible * Prior art adhesive ** Adhesive of the present invention As can be seen, at an application temperature of approximately 191 °, the holes and weakening of the backsheet begin to appear for the upper sheet of polyethylene film.

Example 5 This example is intended to demonstrate an aspect of the process friendliness of the adhesives of the present invention. The example compares the melting behavior of two adhesives of the prior art: • H2511, which is available from Ato Findley, Inc. of Battle Creek, Ml, which is widely used in the assembly of absorbent articles but is resistant to unacceptable oil; and • H9254, also available from Ato Findley, is representative of the oil-resistant adhesives of the prior art; With an oil resistant adhesive (H9268, also available from Ato Findley) of the present invention in two ways: 1) The time (t) in hours required to fully melt 13.6 kg of each of the adhesives at various temperatures (T) is determined. The results are shown in Figure 7. As can be clearly seen, the adhesive of the present invention and the widely used adhesive of the prior art having unsatisfactory oil resistance have a melting profile much more similar than the adhesive resistant to oil of the prior art. 2) The heat of fusion of each of the adhesives is measured according to the differential scanning calorimetry method described in the TEST METHODS section below. The results of these measurements are shown in Table 5 Table 5 Type of adhesive Melting heat (Joules / grams) H2511 * 2.64 H9254 * 27.10 H9268 ** 13.09 Adhesive of the prior art Adhesive of the present invention Figure 8 shows the results of this experiment in an alternative way where the thermal flux (HF) in watts per gram is plotted against the temperature (T). Curves are presented for an oil-resistant adhesive composition of the prior art (H2511), shown as 502 in Figure 8), an oil-resistant adhesive composition of the prior art (H9254), shown as 504 ), and an adhesive composition of the present invention (H9268, shown as 506). As is known, the area below the portions of the various peaks that are located above the baseline of the heating curve can be summarized to determine the heat of fusion. As clearly shown in Figure 8, the prior art oil resistant adhesive contains a peak or maximum a temperature of about 150 ° C. This means, unless the adhesives of the prior art are heated above this temperature, they will not melt.

TEST METHODS Elastic progressive deformation Abstract The displacement of the ends of the elastic bending members is determined after the bends are stored under tension (-100% elongation) for 2 hours at 100 ° F.

Incubator Apparatus: Able to maintain the temperature of 100 + 1 T. A suitable incubator is available from VWR Scientific of West Chester, PA as a model 2020. Sample substrate: Annular cylinder having 20 cm internal diameter and 9.5 mm thick wall. A suitable substrate is a cardboard core with the above dimensions as used to wrap weft substrates. These cores are available from Sonoco of Harsville, SC.

Preparation of the sample 1) Carefully break and / or cut all the ligations and separate the fold from the diaper. 2) Before the fold is removed, mark each elastic thread at both ends at the point where it begins to gather (folded / unfolded). Note: If it is difficult to determine where the folding begins, remove the fold and place on a light board to mark the elastic gathers). If the length of the glued elastic runs towards the ligand joints, mark the area of the longest joint bond. Each fold will have a pair of marks for each elastic member.

Operation 1) Fix the sample strip to the substrate in such a way that it is under tension. The following method has been found adequate. a) Place a sample strip on the sample substrate with the garment surface facing up and secure one end of the sample strip to the substrate that is secured to allow full freedom of movement for the detached ends of the elastic members. For the substrates of the cardboard sample discussed above, sample strips can be affixed by stapling them to the substrate. b) Stretch the sample strip to remove all puckers (-100% elongation). The stretch length is typically the same as the distance between the margins of diaper ends from which the fold of the sample is removed. c) While tension is maintained, fix the free end of the sample strip to the substrate with step a. 2) Place the stretched assembly in the incubator (set point of the 100 ° F incubator) being careful to minimize the amount of time the incubator is open (it takes the incubator five to ten minutes to recover if the door is left open 30 seconds and these will have a significant effect on the results of the test). Record the time that the assembly was placed inside the incubator. 3) Remove the assembly after two hours of incubation. Record the time the assembly was removed from the incubator. Allow the sample to re-equilibrate at room temperature before doing any of the measurements (-5 minutes).

Measurement and calculations 1) For each elastic end, determine if the end has moved relative to the initial mark. Measure and record any movement to the nearest 2mm. Register 0 for no movement. 2) For each endpoint calculate the time (minutes) in the incubator determining the elapsed time based on the time of placement and removal. 3) Add the total inches (millimeters) of progressive deformation of each bend sample. For example, a fold that has three elastic members will have six elastic ends in the sum. 4) For each bend sample calculate the average deformation per elastic end in accordance with the following equation: Inches of progressive deformation / Elastic end / Hour = Total inches of progressive deformation in 2 hours * Elapsed time Number of elastic ends 120 ) Repeat steps 1 to 4 for at least 25 folds per condition. 6) Report the average inches of progressive deformation / elastic end.

Differential scanning calorimetry The method described in the standard method ASTM D3417-83 is adequate.

The following clarifications are provided for additional detail. 1) The suitable differential scanning calorimeter apparatus is available from Perkin Elmer of Norwalk, CT as model DSC-7. This instrument provides the automatic calculation of the curve areas instead of the planimetric method described in section 11 of the standard method. 2) Intermediate samples can be removed from the adhesive blocks using a hot knife (available from Seal, Inc. of Derby, CT as Custom Iron Selector) before cutting the final samples as described in section 8 of the standard method. 3) All calibrations of the instrument are continued at a heating rate of 10 ° C / minute instead of 20 ° C / minute (section 9 of the standard method recommends using the same heating rate for calibration and evaluation of the sample ). 4) All samples are provided with an identical imposed thermal history following the following regime; a) Heat each sample from 0 ° C to 200 ° C at a rate of 20 ° C / minute. b) Cool each sample from 200 ° C to 0 ° C at a rate of 20 ° C / minute. c) Heat each sample from 0 ° C to 200 ° C at a rate of 20 ° C / minute. The measurements of the heat of fusion are made in the second heating.

Claims (10)

1. An absorbent article to be worn by a user adjacent to the skin, the absorbent article comprising: a chassis comprising an outer layer of cover comprising: a backsheet; and a liquid permeable top sheet bonded to the backsheet and an absorbent core positioned between the top sheet and the backsheet; a fold attached to said chassis, each fold having a first surface and a second surface disposed opposite the first surface, the bend comprising a fold member and an elastic member, wherein said elastic member has opposite elastic ends and is attached to said bend. bending member using an oil resistant adhesive, the adhesive being characterized in that: it has an apparent viscosity less than about 8000 centioise at a temperature of 177 ° C and less than about 50,000 centipoise at a temperature of 121 ° C and a heat of fusion less than about 20 joules per gram; and less than about 10% of said elastic ends exhibit a progressive deformation value greater than about 8.9 mm when the bend is evaluated according to the elastic progressive deformation method; and an effective amount of a skin care composition disposed in said fold, said skin care composition being semi-solid at 20 ° C and capable of transferring at least partially to a user's skin by contact, normal movement of the user and / or body heat.

The absorbent article according to claim 1, wherein the amount of said skin care composition over said fold ranges from about 0.05 mg / in2 to about 80 mg / in2.

The absorbent article according to claim 1 or 2, wherein said skin care composition comprises: i) from about 10% to about 95% of an emollient having a plastic or fluid consistency at 20 ° C, preferably the emollient comprises a component selected from the group consisting of petroleum-based emollients, fatty acid ester emollients, polysiloxane emollients, sucrose ester fatty acids, alkyl ethoxylate emollients and mixtures thereof; and ii) from about 5% to about 90% of an agent capable of immobilizing the emollient on the fold, preferably the immobilizing agent is selected from the group consisting of polyhydroxy fatty acid esters, polyhydroxy fatty acid amides, fatty alcohols of C14-C22, C12-C22 fatty acids, C12-C22 fatty alcohol ethoxylates, and mixtures thereof.

The absorbent article according to claim 3, wherein the emollient contains about 5% or less of water and comprises a petroleum-based emollient selected from the group consisting of mineral oil, petrolatum and mixtures thereof.

The absorbent article according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the skin care composition is disposed on the first surface, the first surface comprising the surface that it gives away from the user during use to form a surface of garment.

6. The absorbent article according to claim 5, wherein the skin care composition is transferred from the first surface to the second surface.

The absorbent article according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the fold comprises a packing fold comprising a side flap formed from a portion of the top sheet.

The absorbent article according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the fold comprises a barrier fold selected from the group consisting of a barrier fold that is unitarily formed with the top sheet and a barrier fold comprising a separate bending member having a proximal edge and a distant edge in spaced relation to the proximal edge, the proximal edge being attached to said outer covering layer, a portion of said distant edge not being secured to the absorbent article, and an elastic separation member operatively associated with the distal edge to allow the fold member to lift upwardly away from the outer cover layer, wherein the elastic member has opposite elastic ends and is joined to said bending member using said oil-resistant adhesive.

9. The absorbent article according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the absorbent article is a diaper.

10. The absorbent article according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the absorbent article is a sanitary napkin.