The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Jul. 11, 2000
Filed:
Jul. 03, 1997
Jon Neese, Salt Lake City, UT (US);
Ben D Shirley, Salt Lake City, UT (US);
Utah Medical Products, Inc., Midvale, UT (US);
Abstract
The present invention provides an efficient and cost effective device for applying electrical stimulation to a body cavity. Preferred embodiments of the invention also provide the function of measuring the pressure exerted by the body cavity. The present invention is particularly useful when treating urinary incontinence in females. By providing electrical stimulation to the vagina, the present invention strengthens the pelvic floor muscles to improve urinary continence. The preferred embodiments of the invention which provide the function of measuring the pressure exerted by the body cavity convey to a user in a humanly perceptible manner the pressure exerted by the body cavity in order to provide feedback on the strengthening of the pelvic floor muscles. Most advantageously, a carrier structure which is inserted into the body cavity is fabricated from a low cost material, such as an injection molded thermoplastic material. The electrodes placed on the carrier structure can be fabricated separately from, and from a material different than, that used to fabricate the carrier structure. The pressure transducer preferably includes a semiconductor diaphragm sensitive to changes in pressure.