US-12622662-B2 - Protective shield for radiology scanners

Abstract

A shield for the bore of radiology scanners provides a resilient sheet material that can be compressed against the inner surface of the bore by a circumference expander greatly simplifying installation.

Inventors

• Terrence R Oakes
• Azam Syed Ahmed
• Joseph A Kiel
• Jordan Henry
• Andrew Culp

Assignees

• WISCONSIN ALUMNI RESEARCH FOUNDATION

Dates

Publication Date

20260512

Application Date

20210719

Claims (18)

1. 1 . A shield for a medical scanner having a cylindrical bore extending along an axis, the shield comprising: a resilient sheet sized to fit loosely within the bore of a medical scanner in a first relaxed state and then to flex outward against an inner circumference of the bore in a second compressed state upon circumferentially directed compressive forces on the resilient sheet, the resilient sheet in the second compressed state extending along an axial length of the bore and over at least 50% of the inner circumference of the bore, the resilient sheet in the first relaxed state presenting circumferentially opposed and circumferentially spaced apart axially extending edges extending within the bore over the axial length of the bore bounded by circumferentially extending edges; and a compressor adapted to slide axially with respect to the resilient sheet and along at least one axially extending edge to urge the at least one axially extending edge in a circumferential direction following the extent of the resilient sheet and causing the resilient sheet to move outward against the inner circumference of the bore; wherein the shield has a first and second portion defining first and second circumferentially spaced edges, wherein the compressor is a connector adjustably joining the first and second circumferentially spaced edges to change a separation between the first and second circumferentially spaced edges to provide a circumferential compression of the resilient sheet in the second compressed state, wherein the connector provides a single actuator member extending along the bore and movable axially along the bore between a first and second position so that the axial movement causes the first and second circumferentially spaced edges to move between a first separation with the resilient sheet fitting within the inner circumference of the bore without pressing against the inner circumference of the bore, to a second separation with the resilient sheet pressed against the inner circumference of the bore in the second compressed state.
2. 2 . The shield of claim 1 wherein the resilient sheet is self-supporting on opposed edges against inner walls of a 20 inch diameter cylindrical bore.
3. 3 . The shield of claim 1 wherein the resilient sheet includes an inner coating of hydrophilic polymer.
4. 4 . The shield of claim 1 wherein the resilient sheet includes an inner antimicrobial coating.
5. 5 . The shield of claim 1 wherein at least a portion of the resilient sheet includes an outer coating of a releasable adhesive.
6. 6 . The shield of claim 1 wherein the single actuator member is a wedge extending parallel to an axis of the bore along an inner wall of the bore so that axial movement of the wedge wedges the first and second circumferentially spaced edges apart.
7. 7 . The shield of claim 1 wherein the single actuator member provides multiple points of contact along the axial length of the single actuator member to the first and second circumferentially spaced edges to provide circumferentially expanding force along the resilient sheet.
8. 8 . The shield of claim 1 further including a lock holding the single actuator member with respect to the first and second circumferentially spaced edges in the second position.
9. 9 . The shield of claim 8 wherein the lock is selected from the group consisting of a hook and loop fastener and a pressure sensitive adhesive joining the single actuator member and at least one of the first and second circumferentially spaced edges of the resilient sheet.
10. 10 . The shield of claim 1 wherein axial movement of the single actuator member between the first position and second position provides a change in the separation of the first and second circumferentially spaced edges of at least one cm.
11. 11 . The shield of claim 1 wherein the single actuator member communicates with the first and second circumferentially spaced edges through a set of toggle links.
12. 12 . The shield of claim 1 wherein the resilient sheet includes at least one panel of an air permeable filter material.
13. 13 . The shield of claim 1 wherein an outer surface of the resilient sheet includes a plurality of ribs to provide an air gap between the resilient sheet and the bore in the second compressed state.
14. 14 . The shield of claim 1 wherein the resilient sheet includes hinges extending along an axis of the bore allowing for non-resilient folding of the resilient sheet.
15. 15 . The shield of claim 14 wherein the hinges follow helical lines with respect to the cylindrical bore in the second compressed state.
16. 16 . The shield of claim 1 wherein the resilient sheet is transparent.
17. 17 . The shield of claim 1 wherein the shield is free from electrically conductive material.
18. 18 . The shield of claim 1 wherein the resilient sheet is adapted to provide a total linear attenuation of x-rays from the medical scanner along a line of radius of the bore in the second compressed state of less than or equal to that of a thickness of 0.8 cm of distilled water.

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION This application claims the benefit of U.S. provisional application 63/054,481 filed Jul. 21, 2020 and hereby incorporated by reference. STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT This invention was made with government support under CA177205 awarded by the National Institutes of Health. The government has certain rights in the invention. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to protective medical shields and in particular to a medical shield for radiology scanners such as CT machines, MRI machines, PET machines, etc. where the patient is received within a bore. Radiology scanners have proven to be important tools in identifying and managing the treatment of patients with novel infectious diseases, such as COVID-19. When radiology scanners are used with an infected patient, the scanner itself can become a fomite, or point-source for transmission of infectious agents to other patients using the scanner. For this reason, thorough cleaning of the scanner after such patience is required. Unfortunately, cleaning of a scanner can be time-consuming, in some cases taking over one hour. This delay, preventing other use of the scanner during the cleaning process, increases medical costs and significantly reduces the availability of the radiology scanner, something that is particularly a problem in an Emergency Room (ER) setting, where immediate access to scanners can be critical. In order to simplify the cleaning process, and/or to mitigate transmission of infectious agents to a patient, it is known to install fabric-like surgical drapes so as to cover the surfaces of the bore of the radiology scanner receiving the patient. Installing a standard surgical drape on the curved interior surface of the bore of a radiology scanner is difficult, may offer only irregular protection, and in some cases may be as time-consuming as cleaning the bore. Large patients, as they are moved in and out of the narrow scanner bore may distort or tear such drapes away from the bore. Loose or poorly secured drapery may also interfere with interventional procedures and with movement and observation of patients. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides a specialized shield for radiology scanner bores employing a thin sheet of self-supporting, semi-rigid material. While thicker material of this type is not normally considered for disposable drapes, the ability to quickly and effectively place this material over the bore surfaces can make it more cost-effective than managing thinner fabric-like materials. Providing a specialized disposal bag with the shield accommodates the fact that the stiffer shield material is not as easily compacted for disposal. In one embodiment, the invention provides a shield for a medical scanner having a sterile resilient sheet sized to fit loosely within the bore of a medical scanner in a first relaxed state and then to flex outward against an inner circumference of the bore in a second compressed state upon circumferentially directed compressive forces on the resilient sheet, the resilient sheet in the second state extending along an axial length of the bore and over at least 50% of a circumference bore. It is thus a feature of at least one embodiment of the invention to provide a shield for protecting the bore of a radiology scanner having greatly simplified installation facilitated by a natural resiliency of a constituent plastic sheet of the shield. The resilient sheet may be self-supporting on opposed edges against inner walls of a 20 inch diameter cylindrical bore. It is thus a feature of at least one embodiment of the invention to allow localized compressive forces to expand the shield against the bore. The shield may include an inner coating of hydrophilic polymer. It is thus a feature of at least one embodiment of the invention to provide a coating that aids in trapping and retaining moisture from a patient's breath that may carry infections. The resilient sheet may include an inner, antimicrobial coating. It is thus a feature of at least one embodiment of the invention to actively reduce the transfer of bacteria and viruses from the patient via the bore and shield. The shield may further include an outer coating of a releasable adhesive over some or all of the outer surface. It is thus a feature of at least one embodiment of the invention to provide improved resistance to dislodgment of the shield without the normal problems of adhesives on a highly flexible material that can fold over on itself during installation. The resilient sheet may have, in the first state, a first and second circumferentially spaced edge in the shield and may further include a connector adjustably joining first and second circumferentially spaced edges to change the separation between the first and second circumferentially spaced edges to provide the circumferential compression of the second state. It is thus a feature of at least one em