NASAL PLUG

Abstract

Nasal plug for treatment of nosebleed in a subject, comprising: a body adapted to fit into a nostril of the subject, the body comprising a first end arranged to face inward and a second end arranged to face outward during use; a hollow tubular member disposed inside the body and comprising a first opening facing inwardly and a second opening facing outwardly during use; wherein the tubular member further comprises a collar, adapted to prevent blood of a subject from escaping the body of the nasal plug, and wherein the collar is disposed completely inside the body.

Claims

1. Nasal plug for treatment of nosebleed in a subject, comprising: a body adapted to fit into a nostril of the subject, the body comprising a first end arranged to face inward and a second end arranged to face outward during use; a hollow tubular member disposed inside the body and comprising a first opening facing inwardly and a second opening facing outwardly during use; wherein the tubular member further comprises a collar, adapted to prevent blood of a subject from escaping the body of the nasal plug, and wherein the collar is disposed completely inside the body.

2. The nasal plug according to claim 1, wherein the body comprises a recess adapted to receive the tubular member and the collar.

3. The nasal plug according to claim 1, wherein the collar of the tubular member is cupped, with a concave side facing the first end of the body and a convex side facing the second end of the body.

4. The nasal plug according to claim 1, wherein the tubular member protrudes from the second end of the body.

5. The nasal plug according to claim 1, wherein a first end of the tubular member is disposed proximally of the first end of the body.

6. The nasal plug according to claim 1, wherein the body of the nasal plug is coated with a substance to be inhaled by the subject.

7. The nasal plug according to claim 1, wherein the body is made from a resilient foam material.

8. The nasal plug according to claim 7, wherein the width of the collar in the widest transverse extension of the collar is substantially equal to or greater than the width of the body such that the collar when disposed in the body will stretch and push the body outwardly.

9. The nasal plug according to claim 1, wherein the tubular member is made from a flexible thermoplastic material.

10. The nasal plug according to claim 1, wherein a cross-section of the body and/or collar has an oval shape.

11. The nasal plug according to claim 1, wherein the body is bell-shaped.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0024] The solution will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0025] FIGS. 1A and 1B are perspective front and side views of a tubular member of a nasal plug according to one embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0026] FIGS. 2A and 2B are sectional front and side views of a nasal plug with the tubular member according to one embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0027] FIGS. 3A and 3B are top and bottom views of a nasal plug with the tubular member according to one embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0028] FIG. 3C is a cross-sectional view of a nasal plug with the tubular member according to one embodiment of the present disclosure; and

[0029] FIGS. 4A and 4B are front and side cutaway views of the nasal plug according to one embodiment of the present disclosure in use inserted in a nostril of a subject.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

[0030] In the following, a detailed description of the different embodiments of the solution is disclosed with reference to the accompanying drawings. All examples herein should be seen as part of the general description and are therefore possible to combine in any way in general terms. Individual features of the various embodiments may be combined or exchanged unless such combination or exchange is clearly contradictory to the overall function of the implementation.

[0031] Briefly described, the present disclosure relates to a nasal plug 1 arranged to be inserted into the nostril 2 of a subject in order to stop a nosebleed. In the context of the present disclosure, the terms distal and proximal when referring to the nasal plug 1 and its components should be interpreted from the point of view of a person handling the nasal plug 1, regardless whether the subject suffering from nosebleed and the person handling the nasal plug 1 is the same or different persons.

[0032] In FIGS. 1A and 1B, perspective views from the front and from the side are shown, respectively, of the tubular member 20 intended to be used in conjunction with the nasal plug 1 according to the present disclosure. The hollow tubular member 20 comprises a substantially cylindrical tube with a first opening 21 in a first end 23 and a second opening 22 in a second end 24 thereof. Additionally, the tubular member 20 comprises a collar 25 arranged on the external surface and extending outwardly. In one embodiment, the collar 25 is shaped like a cup, with a concave side 26 facing towards the first end 23 and a convex side 27 facing towards the second end 24. In one embodiment, the collar 25 is oval or elliptic, wherein the width when viewed from the front in FIG. 1A is given by the minor axis of the ellipse, and when viewed from the side in FIG. 1B is given by the major axis of the ellipse. I.e. the widest transverse extension of the collar 25 corresponds to the major axis of the ellipse. In one embodiment, the tubular member 20 comprises a flexible material, e.g. a thermoplastic material which is flexible yet provides a certain stiffness.

[0033] In FIGS. 2A and 2B, the nasal plug 1 according to the present disclosure is illustrated as viewed from the front and side, respectively. The nasal plug 1 comprises a body 10 and the hollow tubular member 20 disposed inside the body 10. The body 10 comprises a first end 11 and a second end 12 which substantially coincide or correspond with the first and second ends 21, 22, respectively, of the hollow tubular member 20 when inserted. The first end 11 of the body 10 is arranged to face inwardly when inserted into the nostril 2 of the subject during use. Conversely, the second end 12 is arranged to face outwardly during use. As such the first opening 21 of the tubular member 20 faces inwardly and the second opening 22 faces outwardly during use of the nasal plug 1.

[0034] As may be seen in FIGS. 2A and 2B as well as 3C, the collar 25 of the tubular member 20 fits into a recess 15 formed in the body 10 and facing towards the second end 12. The collar 25 forms a stop against the body 10 in the recess 15. The recess 15 may have a distal cylindrical portion which is narrow to fit snugly against the tubular member 20, and a wider proximal portion which is shaped to accommodate the collar 25.

[0035] In one embodiment, the body 10 comprises a resilient foam material adapted to absorb liquid, i.e. blood from the subject. Examples of suitable materials for the body 10 include polyurethane foam, polyether foam, (poly) ethylene-vinyl acetate (EVA/PEVA) foam, foam materials from forestry and agricultural by products based on organic cellulose or hemi-cellulose and special woven cotton, so called cotton-foam.

[0036] In one embodiment, the body 10 is coated with a haemostatic agent to promote blood clotting and stop bleeding. Examples of suitable haemostatic agents include calcium alginate naturally present in e.g. brown algae (i.e. seaweed extracts), glycine, calcium, kaolin, zeolite, topical microfibrillar collagen and chitosan derived from shells of shrimp and other sea crustaceans.

[0037] In one embodiment, the body 10 is coated with an aroma compound to be inhaled by the subject. Examples of suitable aroma compounds include menthol, peppermint, lubricating oils such as sesame oil, Aloe vera or liquid paraffin which lubricate the mucosa in the nostril to prevent dehydration and formation of cracks or fissures and reduce the risk of rebleeding. When the subject inhales through the nasal plug 1, the air passes through the tubular member 20. As a result, near the first opening 21 a local vacuum is formed which acts to draw the substance out from the body 10 of the nasal plug 1 such that it is mixed with the inhaled air.

[0038] When the subject exhales through the nasal plug 1, the air again passes through the first opening of the tubular member 20. Conversely to inhalation, due to the reduced diameter of the tubular member 20 compared to the nostril, the pressure in the nostril proximal to the nasal plug 1 increases. A small part of the exhaled air together with the substance will enter the body 10 of the nasal plug 1 but the collar 25 acts to retain the substance in the body 10. Thus, the collar 25 prevents the substance to be inhaled by the subject from exiting the nasal plug 1, but instead retaining the substance in the body 10.

[0039] The nasal plug 1 and/or body 10 may in one embodiment have an oval-shaped cross-section as illustrated in FIGS. 2A and 2B, wherein the width of the nasal plug 1 is greater in the transverse extension corresponding to the major axis of the collar 25 as shown in FIG. 2B (side view). In one embodiment, the nasal plug 1 and/or body 10 is bell-shaped with a substantially cylindrical central portion, wherein the first end 11 is substantially hemispherical or dome-shaped and the second end 12 is flared outwardly. In one embodiment, the width of the collar 25 corresponding to the major axis of the oval shape is substantially equal to or greater than the width of the body 10. Thus, the collar 25 when inserted into the recess 15 will stretch and push the body 10 outwardly. Thus, the nasal plug 1 will brace against the lateral wall of the nostril to increase the pressure against the bleed site, e.g. Kiesselbach's plexus.

[0040] The tubular member 20 and the body 10 have substantially equal length, although in one embodiment the tubular member 20 is slightly offset from the body 10 such that the first end 23 of the tubular member 20 is arranged proximal to the first end 11 of the body 10, and the first opening 21 is sunk into the body 10. In this way, the second (distal) end 23 of the tubular member 20 is shielded inside the body 10 of the nasal plug 1 during insertion, to reduce the risk of damaging the nasal mucosa. In one embodiment, the tubular member 20 protrudes from the second end 12 of the body 10, i.e. the second (proximal) end 24 of the tubular member 20 extends further proximally than the body 10 to provide a grip when handling the nasal plug 1 during insertion into and removal from the nostril 2.

[0041] FIGS. 3A and 3B show the nasal plug 1 as seen from above (FIG. 3A) and below (FIG. 3B). Note that the collar 25 is only visible from below. FIG. 3C shows the nasal plug 1 in cross-section.

[0042] Turning now to FIGS. 4A and 4B, the nasal plug 1 according to the present disclosure is shown inserted into the nostril 2 of the nose 5 of a subject in a front and side view, respectively. Illustrated in FIG. 4A is the approximate site of Kiesselbach's plexus 3 in the nostril 2, located in the anteroinferior part of the nasal septum. As mentioned above, four arteries anastomose in this area forming a vascular plexus. About 80-90% of nosebleeds occur in Kiesselbach's plexus as it is exposed to the drying effect of inspiratory currents and to finger nail trauma.

[0043] The nasal plug 1 according to the present disclosure provides an effective treatment of nosebleed in that the absorbent body 10 applies direct pressure to the site of the nosebleed due to the resilient properties of the body 10 and absorbs the blood exiting the wound site. In cases of excessive and/or prolonged bleeding, the collar 25 forms a stop which effectively prevents blood from escaping the body 10 and thus avoids dripping from a saturated nasal plug 1. Additionally, the collar 25 acts like an umbrella to push the body 10 outwardly to stabilise and aid in applying pressure on the walls of the nostril 2.

[0044] At the same time, the tubular member 20 provides a fluid passage for air which enables the subject to continue breathing through the nose 5 even with the nasal plug 1 inserted in the nostril 2.

[0045] Although the description above contains a plurality of specificities, these should not be construed as limiting the scope of the concept described herein but as merely providing illustrations of some exemplifying embodiments of the described concept. It will be appreciated that the scope of the presently described concept fully encompasses other embodiments which may become obvious to those skilled in the art, and that the scope of the presently described concept is accordingly not to be limited. Reference to an element in the singular is not intended to mean one and only one unless explicitly so stated, but rather one or more. Moreover, it is not necessary for an apparatus or method to address each and every problem sought to be solved by the presently described concept, for it to be encompassed hereby.