KR102686583B1 - Apparatus for the prevention and rehabilitation of lateral epicondylitis - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention can be conveniently used while worn on the hand, and can quickly improve the symptoms of patients with lateral epicondylitis or prevent recurrence of lateral epicondylitis by relaxing the muscles associated with lateral epicondylitis while worn. and a rehabilitation device, a glove portion formed to be worn on the user's hand; a band portion joined to the outer surface of the glove portion and extending from the wrist to the distal ends of the back of the hand of the four fingers; and a plurality of flexion and extension limiting parts attached to each of the joints of the four fingers in the band part to limit the bending movement of the joints. It is characterized by including.

Description

Apparatus for prevention and rehabilitation of lateral epicondylitis

The present invention relates to an apparatus for the prevention and rehabilitation of lateral epicondylitis. More specifically, it relates to an apparatus that can be easily used while worn on the hand and relieves the symptoms of patients with lateral epicondylitis by relaxing the muscles associated with lateral epicondylitis while worn. This relates to a device for the prevention and rehabilitation of lateral epicondylitis that can rapidly improve or prevent recurrence of lateral epicondylitis.

The device for preventing and rehabilitating lateral epicondylitis to which the present invention is applied is an assistive device for patients diagnosed with lateral epicondylitis or people who are concerned about recurrence of lateral epicondylitis.

Epicondylitis refers to a syndrome in which pain or local tenderness occurs at the origin of the epicondyle of the elbow joint (the origin of the medial and lateral epicondyles, the point where the muscles that flex or extend the wrist begin), and is one of the most common causes of elbow joint pain. It occurs in people who play sports that use their arms excessively, such as tennis or golf, or who use their arms a lot in their occupation.

Lateral epicondylitis is called ‘tennis elbow’ and medial epicondylitis is called ‘golf elbow’. Figure 1 shows the area where lateral epicondylitis occurs. Lateral epicondylitis refers to inflammation that occurs along with pain in the protruding area on the outside of the elbow (lateral epicondyle). It is commonly known as tennis elbow because it occurs when the outside of the elbow receives excessive force in a tennis backhand position.

It most commonly occurs on the arm that is used the most, occurs frequently in sports other than tennis and golf, and is also common in occupations that use the arm a lot, such as computer users, housewives, carpenters, and chefs. Lateral epicondylitis is more common than medial epicondylitis, with lateral epicondylitis having a prevalence of approximately 1% among general adults, and medial epicondylitis having a prevalence of approximately 0.1%.

In most cases, lateral epicondylitis is acute, and patients complain of pain, numbness, and a sensitive feeling on the outside of the elbow when extending or resisting extension by leaning the fingers or wrist back. This pain is not limited to the outside of the elbow but extends to the wrist. It may also appear as continuous radiating pain.

The principles of treatment for lateral epicondylitis can be summarized as controlling pain, relieving inflammation, promoting natural healing of soft tissues, restoring muscle strength, and returning to activity. In most cases, sufficient recovery can be achieved with conservative treatment alone, and the most important thing in conservative treatment is rest. If the tendon is repeatedly overloaded by excessive muscle use, the damaged tendon cannot recover normally, so muscle use should be minimized.

In practice, for conservative treatment of lateral epicondylitis, wearing a protective band or taping treatment to limit the movement of the affected area is performed. However, such protective bands or tapes only directly limit the movement of the lateral epicondyle area, which is the affected area, so they have the problem that it is difficult to expect conservative treatment and preventive effects.

The present invention was created to solve the above problems, and its purpose is to quickly improve the symptoms of patients with lateral epicondylitis by relaxing the muscles associated with lateral epicondylitis while wearing it on the hand. The goal is to provide a device for the prevention and rehabilitation of lateral epicondylitis that can prevent recurrence of lateral epicondylitis.

According to the present invention, a glove portion formed to be worn on the user's hand; a band portion joined to the outer surface of the glove portion and extending from the wrist to the distal ends of the back of the hand of the four fingers; and a plurality of flexion and extension limiting parts attached to each of the joints of the four fingers in the band part to limit the bending movement of the joints. Provides an apparatus for the prevention and rehabilitation of lateral epicondylitis, comprising:

Preferably, the glove part is formed to cover the wrist, the back of the hand, the palm, and the fingers, and is characterized by a wearing belt provided at the wrist.

Preferably, the band portion includes: a wrist band surrounding the wrist area; and a branch line band extending from the back of the hand of the wrist band to the ends of the index, middle, ring and little fingers. It is characterized by being composed of a.

Preferably, the wrist band and the feeder band are made of leather.

Preferably, the flexion and extension limiting portion is characterized in that it is attached in a module form to each of the joint portions of the four fingers on the branch line band.

Preferably, the individual flexion/extension limiting portions include a first pocket and a second pocket respectively attached to both joint portions facing each other based on the flexion/extension portion of the joint; a first magnet and a second magnet built into and fixed to the first pocket and the second pocket; It is characterized by being composed of a.

Preferably, the bottom surface of the first pocket and the second pocket is attached to the branchial band, and the portion of the branchial band to which the first pocket and the second pocket are attached is the metacarpophalangeal joint, proximal interphalangeal joint, and It is characterized by two opposing sides centered on the distal interphalangeal joint.

Preferably, the first pocket and the second pocket are formed in a dome shape with an internal space on the bottom surface attached to the branch band, and the relative pocket direction is formed to be open, and the first pocket and the second pocket are formed to be open to the finger. It is characterized in that the open portions are arranged in close contact in the unfolded state.

Preferably, a first magnet and a second magnet are built into the first pocket and the second pocket, respectively, with different polarities facing each other, so that an attractive force is applied.

Preferably, the facing surfaces of the first magnet and the second magnet respectively built in and adjacent to the first pocket and the second pocket are formed as vertical surfaces, so that in the operation of stretching the finger joints, the first magnet and the second magnet made of vertical surfaces 2 The attractive force generation area of the magnet induces the motion of stretching the finger joint, and in the motion of bending the finger joint, the first and second magnets arranged adjacent to the joint are centered on the lower joint point located at the joint area. The upper part is pushed out and spread in an arc shape, so that the attraction of the magnetic force in the shape of the vertical plane gradually weakens according to the movement of bending the finger joint, enabling flexible finger movement. Even if the finger is fully bent, the first and second magnets are connected. It is characterized in that the lower joint point is attached to provide force to straighten the finger joint at the corresponding joint area.

Preferably, a dorsiflexion plate portion is joined to the palm surface of the glove portion and extends from the wrist portion to the palm portion to fix the wrist in a dorsiflexed state; The feature further includes.

Preferably, the dorsal bending plate portion is characterized by being made of an aluminum plate.

Preferably, the dorsiflexion plate portion is manufactured to have a fixed posture bent toward the back of the hand in the range of 10° to 30° so that the wrist joint maintains a posture bent toward the back of the hand.

According to the present invention, it has the effect of quickly improving the symptoms of patients with lateral epicondylitis or preventing recurrence of lateral epicondylitis by relaxing the muscles associated with lateral epicondylitis while worn.

In addition, you can wear it on your hand and carry out conservative treatment along with your daily life, and you can easily put it on and take it off by yourself, which has the effect of increasing its usability.

Figure 1 is a diagram for explaining the occurrence site of lateral epicondylitis.
Figure 2 is a diagram to explain the muscles associated with lateral epicondylitis.
Figure 3 is a diagram showing an unfolded state of an apparatus for prevention and rehabilitation of lateral epicondylitis according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 4 is a diagram showing a folded state of an instrument for prevention and rehabilitation of lateral epicondylitis according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 5 is a diagram for explaining a flexion and extension limiting portion according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 6 is a diagram for explaining a pocket, a magnet, and their combined operation according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 7 is a diagram for explaining the movement of a magnet according to a finger joint bending operation according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 8 is a diagram for explaining the dorsal plate portion according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 9 is a diagram for explaining the dorsiflexion function of the dorsiflexion plate portion according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Since the present invention can make various changes and have various embodiments, specific embodiments will be illustrated in the drawings and described in detail in the detailed description. However, this is not intended to limit the present invention to specific embodiments, and should be understood to include all changes, equivalents, and substitutes included in the spirit and technical scope of the present invention. While describing each drawing, similar reference numerals are used for similar components.

Terms such as first, second, A, and B may be used to describe various components, but the components should not be limited by the terms. The above terms are used only for the purpose of distinguishing one component from another. For example, a first component may be named a second component, and similarly, the second component may also be named a first component without departing from the scope of the present invention. The term and/or includes any of a plurality of related stated items or a combination of a plurality of related stated items.

When a component is said to be "connected" or "connected" to another component, it is understood that it may be directly connected to or connected to the other component, but that other components may exist in between. It should be. On the other hand, when it is mentioned that a component is “directly connected” or “directly connected” to another component, it should be understood that there are no other components in between.

The terms used in this application are only used to describe specific embodiments and are not intended to limit the invention. Singular expressions include plural expressions unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. In this application, terms such as “comprise” or “have” are intended to designate the presence of features, numbers, steps, operations, components, parts, or combinations thereof described in the specification, but are not intended to indicate the presence of one or more other features. It should be understood that this does not exclude in advance the possibility of the existence or addition of elements, numbers, steps, operations, components, parts, or combinations thereof.

Unless otherwise defined, all terms used herein, including technical or scientific terms, have the same meaning as commonly understood by a person of ordinary skill in the technical field to which the present invention pertains. Terms defined in commonly used dictionaries should be interpreted as having a meaning consistent with the meaning in the context of the related technology, and should not be interpreted in an ideal or excessively formal sense unless explicitly defined in the present application. No.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments according to the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings.

Figure 2 is a diagram to explain the muscles associated with lateral epicondylitis.

The extensor carpi radialis brevis (ECRB) is a muscle in the superficial layer of the back of the forearm that rises from the humerus and touches the metacarpal bone. The extensor carpi radialis brevis arises from the lateral superior articular eminence of the humerus, the lateral intermuscular septum, and the radial collateral ligament of the elbow joint, just below the extensor carpi longus. Afterwards, it runs along the side of the forearm covered by the extensor carpi longus muscle.

The function of the extensor carpi radialis brevis causes extension and abduction of the wrist, and is responsible for extension of the wrist joint and deviation to the thumb side. It acts strongly in the movement of making a fist, and is a synergistic muscle with the extensor carpi radialis longus m (ECRL), which performs the same action. Conversely, the opposing muscle that gathers while bending the wrist is the flexor carpi ulnaris m. .)am.

Meanwhile, the extensor digitorum communis (EDC) is a muscle in the superficial layer of the back of the forearm that arises from the humerus and touches the middle and terminal phalanges of the fingers, and is responsible for finger extension.

The muscles involved in lateral epicondylitis are mainly the extensor carpi radialis brevis (ECRB) and extensor digitorum common (EDC). Therefore, the principle of the device for the prevention and rehabilitation of lateral epicondylitis to which the present invention is applied is to rigidly fix the wrist extensor, which is the main action of the extensor carpi radialis brevis (ECRB), and to rigidly fix the extensor digitorum radialis brevis (ECRB). It is an elastic extension of the main action, the finger extensor muscle, and as a result, it starts from the idea that if some finger movements are restricted, the two muscles will relax, thereby achieving rapid recovery and prevention of recurrence of lateral epicondylitis. .

Figure 3 is a diagram showing an unfolded state of an apparatus for prevention and rehabilitation of lateral epicondylitis according to an embodiment of the present invention.

An apparatus for preventing and rehabilitating lateral epicondylitis according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a glove portion (10) formed to be worn on the user's hand, joined on the outer surface of the glove portion (10), and includes four parts starting from the wrist. A band portion (20) extending to the end of the back surface of the finger, a flexion/extension restriction portion (30) attached to each joint of the four fingers on the band portion (20) to limit the bending movement of the joint, and the glove portion (10). ) and may be configured to include a dorsiflexion plate portion 40 that is joined to the palm surface of the wrist and extends from the wrist to the palm to fix the wrist in a dorsiflexed state.

First, the glove portion 10 may be made of soft cotton fabric to wrap the user's hand, and soft cotton thread or stretchable thread that can compress the hand may be used. As shown in Figure 3, the glove portion 10 can be formed to cover the wrist, the back of the hand, the palm, and the fingers, and can be put on and taken off, and can be worn on the wrist so that the wearing state can be fixed after wearing. A belt 11 may be provided.

At this time, the glove portion 10 may be formed so as not to cover the thumb area that is less directly related to the extensor digitorum (EDC).

The band portion 20 may include a wrist band 21 that surrounds the wrist and a branch band 22 extending from the back of the hand of the wrist band 21 to the extremities of the four fingers.

The wrist band 21 and the feeder band 22 may be made of a leather material with little elasticity.

The branch line band 22 has a thin shape like a strip, and the branch line band 22 divided into four strands is formed by extending to the end of each finger, more precisely, to the end joint of the finger. Here, the branch gland band 22 divided into four strands will extend to the end nodes of the index finger, middle finger, ring finger, and little finger excluding the thumb.

The flexion and extension limiting portion 30 may be attached in a module form on the branch line band 22 and is attached to each joint of the four fingers.

The individual flexion/extension limiter (30) includes a first pocket (31) and a second pocket (32) respectively attached to the joints on both sides facing each other based on the flexion/extension portion of the joint, and the first pocket (31) and the second pocket ( It may be composed of a first magnet 33 and a second magnet 34 that are built into and fixed to 32).

The bottom surfaces of the first pocket 31 and the second pocket 32 are attached to the branch wire band 22. The parts of the branchial band 22 to which the first pocket 31 and the second pocket 32 are attached are the metacarpophalangeal joint, proximal interphalangeal joint, and distal interphalangeal joint of the four fingers. More specifically, the first pocket 31 and the second pocket 32 may be attached to the metacarpal bone and the proximal phalanx respectively facing the metacarpophalangeal joint. Additionally, a first pocket 31 and a second pocket 32 may be attached to the proximal phalanges and middle phalanges facing each other around the proximal interphalangeal joint. Additionally, a first pocket 31 and a second pocket 32 may be attached to the middle phalanges and distal phalanges facing the distal interphalangeal joint, respectively.

As shown in FIG. 5, the first pocket 31 and the second pocket 32 are formed in a dome shape with an internal space on the bottom surface attached to the branch line band 22, and the relative pocket direction is open. is formed

Additionally, the open portions of the first pocket 31 and the second pocket 32 come into close contact when the fingers are spread out.

And in the first pocket 31 and the second pocket 32, as shown in FIG. 6, a first magnet 33 and a second magnet 34 having different polarities (different polarities facing each other) are provided. Each is built-in.

Therefore, as shown in FIG. 3, in the state of stretching the fingers, the first pocket 31 and the second pocket 32 of the individual flexion and extension limiting portions 30 come into close contact, and accordingly, the first pocket 31 and the second pocket 32 come into close contact with each other. The first magnet 33 and the second magnet 34 built into the second pocket 32 will be attached by manpower.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 4, when the fingers are bent, the first pocket 31 and the second pocket 32 of the individual bending and extension limiting portions 30 are separated, and accordingly, the first pocket 31 and the second pocket The first magnet 33 and the second magnet 34 built in (32) will also fall off.

Ultimately, this flexion/extension restriction unit 30 will limit the flexion movement of each joint within the four fingers. In other words, the wearer's hand will be forced to straighten the finger joints by magnetic force, and even if the finger is bent, the magnetic force will soon elastically guide the finger joint in the direction of straightening. This limitation of joint flexion movements for the four fingers of the flexion/extension restriction unit 30 will enable rapid recovery and prevention of recurrence of lateral epicondylitis.

Here, the first pocket 31 and the second pocket 32 facing the flexion and extension portion of the joint as the center are disposed adjacent to each other in the individual flexion and extension restriction portion 30 so as to interlock with the joint movement of the finger. Additionally, it is preferable that the facing surfaces of the first magnets 33 and the second magnets 34 built into and adjacent to the first pocket 31 and the second pocket 32, respectively, are formed as vertical surfaces.

Referring to FIG. 7, the opposing surfaces of the first magnet 33 and the second magnet 34, that is, the mating surfaces that are pulled by attraction and attached to the opposing magnet, are formed as vertical surfaces.

This vertical surface-shaped magnetic coupling surface structure expands the area of the coupling area, that is, the attraction generating area, of the first magnet 33 and the second magnet 34 as shown in (a) of FIG. 7, thereby making the finger joints stronger. This will induce stretching motion and limit the articulatory movement of the joint.

In addition, when the wearer bends the finger joint, the upper part of the first magnet 33 and the second magnet 34 arranged adjacent to the joint is pushed out in an arc shape centered on the lower joint point (P) located at the joint area. It happens. Therefore, the magnetic coupling surface structure of this vertical plane is formed by the first magnet 33 and the second magnet according to the arc-shaped movement of the first pocket 31 and the second pocket 32, as shown in (b) of FIG. 7. It is separated by falling away from the top of (34). This will eventually cause the attractive force of the magnetic coupling in the shape of a vertical plane to gradually weaken as the wearer bends his or her finger joints. The movement of the wearer bending the finger is to first apply a strong force to break the vertical surface bonding of the first magnet 33 and the second magnet 34 by manpower to bend the joint, and then gradually apply a weaker force, even though the device is worn. Even so, flexible finger movements will be possible.

In addition, this vertical surface-shaped magnetic coupling surface structure allows the lower joint points (P) of the first magnet 33 and the second magnet 34 to be attached even if the wearer completely bends the finger, so there is a certain degree of stretching at the corresponding joint area. provides strength. Therefore, the constant magnetic force of the lower joint point (P) will induce the motion of stretching the finger joints and limit the bending movement of the joints.

Meanwhile, the dorsiflexion plate portion 40 is joined to the palm surface of the glove portion 10 to fix the wrist in a dorsiflexed state.

The dorsiflexion plate portion 40 may be made of a hard plate-shaped steel material, and preferably may be made of a light aluminum plate.

As shown in FIG. 8, the dorsiflexion plate portion 40 extends from the wrist area to the palm area around the wrist joint.

In addition, as shown in FIG. 9, the dorsiflexion plate portion 40 is manufactured to have a fixed posture with a bending angle (θ) bent toward the back of the hand of about 10° to 30° so that the wrist joint maintains a posture bent toward the back of the hand. and is joined to the palm surface of the glove portion 10.

Therefore, while wearing the device, the wearer always has a posture of bending the wrist joint toward the back of the hand, thereby rigidly fixing the wrist extensor muscle, which is the main action of the extensor carpi radialis brevis (ECRB), thereby ensuring rapid recovery and prevention of recurrence of lateral epicondylitis. You will be able to look forward to it.

As described above, the optimal embodiment is disclosed in the drawings and specifications. Although specific terms are used here, they are used only for the purpose of describing the present invention and are not used to limit the meaning or scope of the present invention described in the claims. Therefore, those skilled in the art will understand that various modifications and other equivalent embodiments are possible therefrom. Therefore, the true scope of technical protection of the present invention should be determined by the technical spirit of the attached patent claims.

10: Glove part 11: Wearing belt
20: Band portion 21: Wrist band
22: Branch band 30: Flexion limiter
31: first pocket 32: second pocket
33: 1st magnet 34: 2nd magnet
40: Dorsal plate part

Claims (13)

A glove portion formed to be worn on the user's hand;
a band portion joined to the outer surface of the glove portion and extending from the wrist to the distal ends of the back of the hand of the four fingers; and
a plurality of flexion/extension limiting portions attached to each of the joint portions of the four fingers in the band portion to limit the bending movement of the joints; Including,
The band part,
A wrist band that wraps around the wrist area; and
A branch line band extending from the back of the hand of the wrist band to the ends of the index, middle, ring and little fingers; Includes,
The flexion/extension limiter is attached in a module form to each of the joints of the four fingers on the branch line band,
Individual bending restrictions,
A first pocket and a second pocket respectively attached to the joints on both sides facing each other based on the flexion and extension portion of the joint;
a first magnet and a second magnet built into and fixed to the first pocket and the second pocket; An apparatus for the prevention and rehabilitation of lateral epicondylitis, comprising:
According to clause 1,
The glove part is formed to cover the wrist, the back of the hand, the palm, and the fingers, and is provided with a wearing belt at the wrist.
delete According to clause 1,
A device for preventing and rehabilitating lateral epicondylitis, wherein the wrist band and branch band are made of leather.
delete delete According to clause 1,
The bottom surfaces of the first pocket and the second pocket are attached to the branch line band,
Prevention and rehabilitation of lateral epicondylitis, characterized in that the area of the branchial band to which the first pocket and the second pocket are attached are opposite sides centered on the metacarpophalangeal joint, proximal interphalangeal joint, and distal interphalangeal joint of the four fingers. organization for.
According to clause 7,
The first pocket and the second pocket are formed in a dome shape with an internal space on the bottom surface attached to the branch line band, and the relative pocket direction is formed to be open,
A device for the prevention and rehabilitation of lateral epicondylitis, characterized in that the first pocket and the second pocket are arranged in close contact with the open areas when the fingers are extended.
According to clause 1,
An apparatus for the prevention and rehabilitation of lateral epicondylitis, characterized in that the first and second magnets are installed in the first pocket and the second pocket, respectively, with different polarities facing each other, so that attractive force is applied.
According to clause 9,
Facing surfaces of the first magnet and the second magnet respectively built into and adjacent to the first pocket and the second pocket are formed as vertical surfaces,
In the motion of stretching the finger joints, the motion of stretching the finger joints is induced by the attractive force generated by the first magnet and the second magnet made of vertical surfaces,
In the motion of bending the finger joint, the upper part of the first and second magnets arranged adjacent to each other around the joint are pushed out and spread in an arc shape centered on the lower joint point placed at the joint, forming a vertical plane shape according to the motion of bending the finger joint. The attractive force of the magnetic bond is gradually weakened to enable flexible finger movements.
An apparatus for the prevention and rehabilitation of lateral epicondylitis, characterized in that even when the finger is completely bent, the lower joint points of the first magnet and the second magnet are attached to provide force to straighten the finger joint at the corresponding joint area.
According to clause 1,
a dorsiflexion plate portion that is joined to the palm surface of the glove portion and extends from the wrist portion to the palm portion to fix the wrist in a dorsiflexed state; An apparatus for the prevention and rehabilitation of lateral epicondylitis, further comprising:
According to claim 11,
An apparatus for the prevention and rehabilitation of lateral epicondylitis, wherein the dorsiflexion plate portion is made of an aluminum plate.
According to claim 11,
An apparatus for the prevention and rehabilitation of lateral epicondylitis, characterized in that the dorsiflexion plate is manufactured to have a fixed posture bent toward the back of the hand in the range of 10° to 30° so that the wrist joint maintains a posture bent toward the back of the hand.

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