WO2010019237A2

WO2010019237A2 - Pillow

Info

Publication number: WO2010019237A2
Application number: PCT/US2009/004627
Authority: WO
Inventors: Jay S. Berland; John Peterson
Original assignee: Breathe To Sleep, Inc.
Priority date: 2008-08-14
Filing date: 2009-08-13
Publication date: 2010-02-18
Also published as: WO2010019237A3

Abstract

The pillow (10) includes a main body having opposed upper (12) and lower surfaces (30), opposed front (14) and rear edges (16) and a pair of opposed side edges. The front edge (14) has an arcuate contour for receiving the shoulders of a user when the user's head rests on a central portion (18) of the upper surface (12). A pair of raised front portions (20, 22) are formed adjacent the front edge (14) and extend upwardly. A valley (24) is formed between the raised front portions (20, 22). The valley (24) extends between the front edge (14) and the central portion (18) for receiving the user's neck. A raised rear portion (26) is formed adjacent the rear edge (16) and extends upwardly so that an airflow channel (28) is defined between the raised rear portion (26) and the pair of raised front portions (20, 22).

Description

PILLOW

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to pillows, cushions or the like. Particularly, the present invention relates to a pillow designed to enable adequate and sufficient breathing for a user who is resting his or head thereon.

BACKGROUND ART

Sleep apnea is a sleep disorder characterized by pauses in breathing during sleep. Each episode, referred to as an "apnea", lasts long enough so that one or more breaths are missed, and such episodes occur repeatedly throughout sleep. The standard definition of any apnea event includes a minimum ten second interval between breaths, with either a neurological arousal, a blood oxygen desaturation of 3 to 4% or greater, or both arousal and desaturation. Sleep apnea is typically diagnosed by an overnight sleep test called a polysomnogram.

Clinically significant levels of sleep apnea are defined as five or more episodes per hour of any type of apnea (determined by the polysomnogram). There are three distinct forms of sleep apnea, including central, obstructive, and complex (i.e., a combination of central and obstructive), constituting 0.4%, 84% and 15% of cases, respectively. Breathing is interrupted by the lack of respiratory effort in central sleep apnea. In obstructive sleep apnea, breathing is interrupted by a physical block to airflow despite respiratory effort. In complex (or "mixed") sleep apnea, there is a transition from central to obstructive features during the events themselves.

The most common treatment for sleep apnea is the use of a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) device, which "splints" the patient's airway open during sleep via a flow of pressurized air into the throat. Such systems, however, are rather bulky and uncomfortable for the user. Until the user becomes accustomed to the CPAP device, he or she may be kept awake by the machine that is designed to aid him or her in sleeping properly.

In addition to CPAP, a dentist specializing in sleep disorders may prescribe Oral Appliance Therapy (OAT). The oral appliance is a custom-made mouthpiece that shifts the lower jaw forward, which opens up the airway. OAT is usually successful in patients with mild to moderate obstructive sleep apnea, but can cause tempomendibular joint disfunction, loosening or breakage of teeth, veneers, crowns, caps, and implants. As with CPAP, the OAT may prevent the user from gaining a good night's sleep until he or she becomes accustomed to the awkwardness of the device. It should be noted that CPAP and OAT are effective only for obstructive sleep apnea, not for central or mixed cases.

For patients who do not tolerate or who fail non-surgical measures, surgical treatment to anatomically alter the airway is available. Several levels of obstruction may be addressed, including the nasal passage, throat (pharynx), base of tongue, and facial skeleton. Surgical treatment for obstructive sleep apnea needs to be individualized in order to address all anatomical areas of obstruction. Often, correction of the nasal passages needs to be performed, in addition to correction of the oropharynx passage. Septoplasty and turbinate surgery may improve the nasal airway. Tonsillectomy and uvulopalatopharyngoplasty (UPPP or UP3) is available to address pharyngeal obstruction. Base of tongue advancement by means of advancing the genial tubercle of the mandible may help with the lower pharynx. A myriad of other techniques are available, including hyoid bone myotomy and suspension and various radiofrequency technologies. For patients who fail these operations, the facial skeletal may be advanced by means of a technique called maxillo-mandibular advancement, or two-jaw surgery (upper and lower jaws). The surgery involves a Lefort type one osteotomy and bilateral sagittal split mandibular osteotomies. Such severe treatments, however, come with the typical risks and discomforts of major surgery. It should be noted that sleep apnea is not simply an inconvenience for the sufferer.

Many drugs and agents used during surgery to relieve pain and to depress consciousness remain in the body at low amounts for hours or even days afterwards. In an individual with either central, obstructive or mixed sleep apnea, these low doses may be enough to cause life- threatening irregularities in breathing. Use of analgesics and sedatives in these patients postoperatively should therefore be minimized or avoided. Surgery on the mouth and throat, as well as dental surgery and procedures, can result in postoperative swelling of the lining of the mouth and other areas that affect the airway. Even when the surgical procedure is designed to improve the airway, such as tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy or tongue reduction, swelling may negate some of the effects in the immediate postoperative period. Once the swelling resolves and the palate becomes tightened by postoperative scarring however, the full benefit of the surgery may be noticed. Individuals with sleep apnea generally require more intensive monitoring after surgery for these reasons. For the complex variety of other respiratory ailments, each is specifically treated as needed with antibiotics, supplemental oxygen, aerobic exercise, corticosteroids, short-term use of ventilators or a host of other treatment options. Benefits from these treatments must be monitored for their effectiveness. The most common physical causes of apnea and other breathing disorders include the muscles which control the tongue and the soft palate relax, thus causing the airway to narrow and close and airway obstructions. Breathing disorders, such as those described above, may result in hypertension, arrhythmias, ischemia, or congestive heart failure. As noted above, the common treatments to prevent these serious conditions can be quite inconvenient and invasive for the user. Thus, a pillow solving the aforementioned problems is desired.

DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION

The pillow is a contoured pillow, cushion or the like designed to enable adequate and sufficient breathing for a user who is resting his or head thereon. The pillow includes a main body formed from a resilient material. The main body has opposed upper and lower surfaces, opposed front and rear edges and a pair of opposed side edges. The front edge has a substantially arcuate contour adapted for receiving and contacting the shoulders of a user when the user's head rests on a central portion of the upper surface.

A pair of raised front portions are formed adjacent the front edge and extend upwardly from the upper surface. A valley is formed between the pair of raised front portions. The valley extends between the front edge and the central portion of the upper surface for receiving the user's neck. A raised rear portion is formed adjacent the rear edge and extends upwardly from the upper surface so that an airflow channel is defined between the raised rear portion and the pair of raised front portions.

These and other features of the present invention will become readily apparent upon further review of the following specification and drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Fig. 1 is an environmental, perspective view of a pillow according to the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a front view of the pillow of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a rear view of the pillow of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a top view of the pillow of Fig. 1. Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the pillow of Fig. 1.

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of an alternative embodiment of a pillow according to the present invention.

Fig. 7 is a top view of another alternative embodiment of a pillow according to the present invention.

Similar reference characters denote corresponding features consistently throughout the attached drawings.

BEST MODES FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

Referring to Figs. 1-6, the pillow 10 is a contoured pillow, cushion or the like designed to enable adequate and sufficient breathing for a user who is resting his or head thereon. The pillow 10 includes a main body formed from a resilient material. The main body of pillow 10 has opposed upper and lower surfaces 12, 30, respectively, opposed front and rear edges 14, 16, respectively, and a pair of opposed side edges. As best shown in Figs. 1 and 4, the front edge 14 has a substantially arcuate contour adapted for receiving and contacting the shoulders of a user when the user's head rests on a central portion of the upper surface 12.

Preferably, a central depression 18 is formed in the central portion of the upper surface 12. The central depression 18 is adapted for receiving an ear of the user when the user's head rests on the central portion. Further, a pair of raised front portions 20, 22 are formed adjacent the front edge 14 and extend upwardly from the upper surface 12. A valley 24 is formed between the pair of raised front portions 20, 22. The valley 24 extends between the front edge 14 and the central depression 18 formed in upper surface 12 for receiving the user's neck. Each of the raised front portions 20, 22 preferably has a substantially sloping contour (best shown in Figs. 2 and 3) so that each of raised front portions 20, 22 slopes downwardly toward the valley 24. hi use, each of the raised front portions 20, 22 is adapted for advancing the user's mandible when the user's head rests in central depression 18 with the neck positioned in valley 24 to increase the dimensions of the user's airway in order to improve breathing (with airflow being indicated by directional arrows in Fig. 1). Further, the neck relief valley 24 allows the user to lie on his or her side without compressing the veins and arteries in the neck, thus allowing full, uninhibited blood flow.

A raised rear portion 26 is formed adjacent the rear edge 16 and extends upwardly from the upper surface 12 so that an airflow channel 28 is defined between the raised rear portion 26 and the pair of raised front portions 20, 22. As shown, the main body of pillow 10 is substantially symmetric about a central axis extending from a central point of the front edge 14 to a center of the central portion 18. The airflow channel 28 is also symmetric about the central axis, having a contour substantially matching the arcuate contouring of front edge 14 and rear edge 16.

The main body of pillow 10 may be formed from any suitable resilient, substantially flexible material. For example, the main body may be formed from a foam material, such as foam rubber, polyurethane foam, polyether foam, viscoelastic foam (or so-called "memory foam") or combinations thereof. Alternatively, as shown in Fig. 6, rather than being formed as a homogeneous, unitary body, the main body of pillow 10 may be formed from stacked layers, each layer 40, 42, 44, 46, 48, 50 being secured to the adjacent layer(s) and each layer having a unique durometer hardness. It should be understood that any number of layers may be used and that layers 40, 42, 44, 46, 48, 50 are shown for exemplary purposes only in Fig. 6. Additionally, the particular materials constituting each of the layers may be unique, and the pattern of durometer hardnesses may be varied.

In Figs. 1-6, the rear edge 16 also has a substantially arcuate contour, preferably with the rear edge 16 forming an arc substantially concentric with the arc defined by the front edge 14. It should be understood that the overall contour and relative dimensions of pillow 10 may be vary. As an example, pillow 100 of Fig. 7 is formed substantially similar to pillow 10, having a front edge 114, a pair of raised front portions 120, 122 with a valley 124 formed therebetween, a central depression 118, a raised rear portion 126 and a channel 128. However, as shown, the rear edge 116 has a substantially linear contour (with raised portion 126 matching the linear contour of rear edge 116). The channel 128 is formed between the substantially linear raised rear portion 126 and the raised front portions 120, 122, operating in the same manner as that described above with reference to pillow 10.

As best shown in Fig. 1, pillow 10 encourages the user to rest on his or her side, the depression 18 being adapted for comfortably receiving the ear of the user and supporting the side of the user's head. Sleeping on the side is encouraged in order to encourage proper and sufficient breathing in the sleeping user, specifically by preventing posterior displacement of the mandible, or lower jaw, and tongue. The sloping contours of front portions 20, 22, along with the contouring of the neck-supporting valley 28, advance the user's mandible by supporting the user's chin so as to properly open the user's mouth and ensure proper and sufficient breathing with an open airway. In this position, the jaw is moved forward to open the retrolingual space (i.e., the area behind the user's tongue) to improve and enhance airflow.

It is to be understood that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, but encompasses any and all embodiments within the scope of the following claims.

Claims

1. A pillow, comprising a main body formed from a resilient material, the main body having: opposed upper and lower surfaces; opposed front and rear edges and a pair of opposed side edges, the front edge having a substantially arcuate contour adapted for receiving and contacting the shoulders of a user when the user's head rests on a central portion of the upper surface; a pair of raised front portions formed adjacent the front edge and extending upwardly from the upper surface; a valley formed between the pair of raised front portions, the valley extending between the front edge and the central portion of the upper surface for receiving the user's neck; and a raised rear portion formed adjacent the rear edge and extending upwardly from the upper surface, an airflow channel being defined between the raised rear portion and the pair of raised front portions.

2. The pillow as recited in claim 1, wherein the upper surface has a central portion defining a central depression adapted for receiving an ear of the user when the user's head rests on the central portion.

3. The pillow as recited in claim 2, wherein each of said raised front portions has a substantially sloping contour so that each said raised front portions slopes downwardly toward the valley, whereby each said raised front portion is adapted for advancing the user's mandible to increase the dimensions of the user's airway in order to improve breathing.

4. The pillow as recited in claim 3, wherein the main body is substantially symmetric about a central axis extending from a central point of the front edge to a center of the central portion.

5. The pillow as recited in claim 1, wherein said main body is formed from a foam material.

6. The pillow as recited in claim 6, wherein said foam material is selected from the group consisting of: foam rubber, polyurethane foam, polyether foam and combinations thereof.

7. The pillow as recited in claim 1 , wherein said main body comprises a plurality of stacked layers, each said layer having a distinct durometer hardness.

8. The pillow as recited in claim 1, wherein said rear edge has a substantially arcuate contour.

9. The pillow as recited in claim 8, wherein said rear edge forms an arc substantially concentric with an arc defined by said front edge.

10. The pillow as recited in claim 1, wherein said rear edge has a substantially linear contour.