| CPC A61F 5/3746 (2013.01) | 20 Claims |
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1. A sling apparatus for supporting an arm of a person with respect to a torso of the person, the arm including an upper arm portion and a lower arm portion, the sling apparatus comprising:
a vest garment configured to be worn on the torso of the person, the vest garment having a neck opening configured for receiving the neck of the person, the vest garment having a torso opening opposite of the neck opening for receiving a portion of the torso of the person, the torso opening being formed by a lower edge of the vest garment, the vest garment having a pair of arm openings fer each configured for receiving an arm of the person, the vest garment having a front extending from the neck opening to the torso opening for positioning adjacent to a front of the torso, a back extending from the neck opening to the torso opening for positioning adjacent to a back of the torso, and a pair of lateral sides each extending from a respective one of the arm openings to the torso opening and each extending between the front and back of the vest garment for positioning adjacent to a side of the torso;
a garment cinching assembly mounted on the vest garment to cinch about the torso of a person, the garment cinching assembly comprising a pair of cinching straps each extending about the vest garment in an orientation substantially parallel to the lower edge of the vest garment, the pair of cinching straps including an upper cinching strap positioned further away from the lower edge of the vest garment and a lower cinching strap positioned closer to the lower edge of the vest garment forming the torso opening: and
arm support elements configured to support the arm of the person wearing the vest garment in at least two positions with respect to the torso, the at least two positions including a first position of the arm having the elbow extended with a shoulder associated with the arm of the person being in a neutral rotation orientation and a second position of the arm with the elbow flexed and the shoulder associated with the arm being in an adducted, internal rotation position;
wherein a first one of the arm support elements is configured to support the upper arm portion of the person on the vest garment and a second one of the arm support elements is configured to support the lower arm portion of the person on the vest garment;
wherein the first one of the arm support elements includes:
an upper cuff mount mounted on the upper cinching strap and positioned adjacent to a first one of the lateral sides of the vest garment; and
an upper arm cuff for receiving the upper arm portion of the arm of the person, the upper arm cuff being removably mounted on the upper cuff mount: wherein the second one of the arm support elements includes:
a lower arm cuff for receiving the lower arm portion of the arm of the person: a lower cuff mount mounted on the lower cinching strap and positioned at a first location adjacent to the first one of the lateral sides of the vest garment;
a forward cuff mount mounted on the upper cinching strap and positioned at a second location adjacent to the front of the vest garment, the second location on the vest garment being different than the first location on the vest garment; and
wherein the first location corresponds to a location of the lower arm cuff when the arm of the person is in the first position and the second location corresponds to a location of the lower arm cuff when the arm of the person is in the second position;
wherein the lower arm cuff of the second one of the arm support elements is mountable on and dismountable from each of the lower cuff mount and the forward cuff mount individually and independently of the first one of the support elements to permit interchangeable mounting of the lower arm cuff of the second one of the arm support elements to the vest garment in the first and second locations on the vest garment.
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