Stabilized foam for medical PSA substrate

Abstract

The present invention provides a stabilized foam having a crosslinked closed cell polyolefin foam having a top and a bottom surface; a stabilizing layer disposed onto at least one of the top and the bottom surfaces of the crosslinked closed cell polyolefin foam; and an adhesive layer disposed onto at least one of the top or the bottom surfaces. Also provided is a method of preparing the stabilized foam, a method of treating a wound, scrape, abrasion or skin puncture, a method of maintaining cleanliness of an operation incision site, suture site, catheter insertion site, or an intentional skin breach site, a method of monitoring electrical impulses during EKG or delivering electrical impulses in a TENS or biofeedback therapy, and a method of softening the collagen deposits on a scar and reducing the raised or keloid portion of the scar over time.

1 . A stabilized foam comprising: 
 a crosslinked closed cell polyolefin foam having a top and a bottom surface;    a stabilizing layer disposed onto at least one of said top and said bottom surfaces of said crosslinked closed cell polyolefin foam; and    an adhesive layer disposed onto at least one of said top and said bottom surfaces of said crosslinked closed cell polyolefin foam or onto at least one of said stabilizing layers.    
   
   
       2 . The stabilized foam of  claim 1 , wherein said crosslinked closed cell polyolefin foam has a thickness about 0.010 inches to 0.031 inches.  
   
   
       3 . The stabilized foam of  claim 1 , wherein said crosslinked closed cell polyolefin foam has a density about 4 pounds/cubic ft (pcf) to about 20 pcf.  
   
   
       4 . The stabilized foam of  claim 1 , wherein said stabilizing layer comprises a material selected from the group consisting of: HDPE, LLDPE, LDPE, ULDPE, metallocene catalyzed Polyethylene polymer (mLLDPE), vinyl acetate, polyurethane, polyamide, vinyl acetate, silicone gel, and silicone rubber.  
   
   
       5 . The stabilized foam of  claim 1 , wherein said stabilizing layer is laminated, bonded or adhered to the crosslinked foam.  
   
   
       6 . The stabilized foam of  claim 5 , wherein said stabilizing layer is bonded to the crosslinked foam film by a method selected from the group consisting of: extrusion, coextrusion, adhesive bonding, thermal bonding, ultrasonic bonding, electrostatic attraction and chemical bonding.  
   
   
       7 . The stabilized foam of  claim 1 , further comprising one or more additional stabilizing layers.  
   
   
       8 . The stabilized foam of  claim 1 , wherein said stabilizing layer has a thickness from about 0.0005 inches to about 0.005 inches.  
   
   
       9 . The stabilized foam of  claim 4 , wherein said stabilizing layer comprises a material selected from the group consisting of: HDPE, LLDPE, LDPE, ULDPE, metallocene catalyzed Polyethylene polymer (mLLDPE) polyurethane, polyamide, vinyl acetate, silicone gel, and silicone rubber.  
   
   
       10 . The stabilized foam of  claim 1 , wherein said stabilizing layer further comprises an effective amount of at least one pressure sensitive adhesive material.  
   
   
       11 . The stabilized foam of  claim 10 , wherein said effective amount of said pressure sensitive adhesive material is about 20 gsm to 70 gsm.  
   
   
       12 . The stabilized foam of  claim 1 , wherein said adhesive is a silicone adhesive or a silicone gel and is about 0.005 to 0.050 inches thick.  
   
   
       13 . The stabilized foam of  claim 1 , wherein said adhesive is in the form of a zone coat, patterned or discontinuous adhesive coating.  
   
   
       14 . The stabilized foam of  claim 1 , wherein said stabilized foam is perforated using a technique selected from the group consisting of: hot needle, ultrasonic perforation, slitting, die cutting and die punching.  
   
   
       15 . A method of preparing stabilized foam comprising the steps of: 
 providing a crosslinked closed cell polyolefin foam having a top and a bottom surface;    applying a stabilizing layer onto at least one of said top and said bottom surfaces of said crosslinked closed cell polyolefin foam; and    applying an adhesive layer onto at least one of said top and said bottom surfaces of said crosslinked closed cell polyolefin foam or onto at least one of said stabilizing layers.    
   
   
       16 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein the crosslinked closed cell polyolefin foam has a thickness about 0.01 inches to about 0.031 inches and a density about 4 pcf to about 8 pcf.  
   
   
       17 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein said stabilizing layer comprises a material selected from the group consisting of: HDPE, LLDPE, LDPE, ULDPE, metallocene catalyzed Polyethylene polymer (mLLDPE) polyurethane, polyamide, vinyl acetate, silicone gel, and silicone rubber.  
   
   
       18 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein said stabilizing layer is laminated, bonded or adhered to the crosslinked foam.  
   
   
       19 . The method of  claim 18 , wherein said stabilizing layer is bonded to the crosslinked foam film by a method selected from the group consisting of: adhesive bonding, thermal bonding, ultrasonic bonding, electrostatic attraction and chemical bonding.  
   
   
       20 . The method of  claim 15 , further comprising: 
 applying one or more additional stabilizing layers.    
   
   
       21 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein said stabilizing layer has a thickness from about 0.0005 inches to about 0.005 inches.  
   
   
       22 . The method of  claim 21 , wherein said stabilizing layer comprises a material selected from the group consisting of: HDPE, LLDPE, LDPE, ULDPE, metallocene catalyzed Polyethylene polymer (mLLDPE) polyurethane, vinyl acetate, polyamide silicone gel, and silicone rubber.  
   
   
       23 . The method of  claim 15 , further comprising: 
 introducing at least one pressure sensitive adhesive material into said stabilizing layer.    
   
   
       24 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein said effective amount of said pressure sensitive adhesive material is about 20 gsm to about 80 gsm.  
   
   
       25 . The method of  claim 24 , wherein said adhesive is a silicone adhesive, gel or rubber.  
   
   
       26 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein said adhesive is in the form of a zone, patterned or discontinuous adhesive coating.  
   
   
       27 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein said stabilized foam is perforated.  
   
   
       28 . The method of  claim 27 , wherein said perforation is achieved via hot needle, ultrasonic perforations, slitting, die cutting or die punching techniques.  
   
   
       29 . A method of treating a wound, scrape, abrasion or skin puncture in a patient comprising: 
 contacting said wound and a first-aid foam finger bandage dressing, butterfly dressing or tape having a stabilized foam according to  claim 1 .    
   
   
       30 . The method of  claim 29 , further comprising an absorbent, non-adherent and/or antimicrobial fibrous pad placed toward the wound for cleanliness, comfort and infection control.  
   
   
       31 . A method of maintaining cleanliness of an operation incision site, suture site, catheter insertion site, or an intentional skin breach site on a patient comprising: 
 treating said site with a shower water block system having a stabilized foam according to  claim 1 .    
   
   
       32 . The method of  claim 31 , further comprising an absorbent, non-adherent and/or antimicrobial fibrous pad placed toward the wound for cleanliness, comfort and infection control.  
   
   
       33 . A method of monitoring electrical impulses in a patient during EKG or delivering electrical impulses to a patient in a TENS or biofeedback therapy, said method comprising: 
 treating said patient with a foam electrical grounding pad or a foam device having a stabilized foam according to  claim 1 .    
   
   
       34 . A method of softening the scar tissue and collagen deposits in a scar and reducing the raised or keloid portion of the scar over time comprising: 
 treating said scar with a stabilized foam according to  claim 1 .    
   
   
       35 . The method of  claim 34 , wherein said adhesive layer in said stabilized foam is a silicone gel for producing a reduction in the visibility of the scar.  
   
   
       36 . The method of  claim 35 , further comprising in the silicone gel layer at least one active selected from the group consisting of at lease one vitamin and at least one antimicrobial for assisting in maintaining skin health.  
   
   
       37 . The method of  claim 36 , wherein said stabilized foam is cut to a shape and size sufficient to cover the scar.