An Idea - Inflatable Cast and Splint

Over the weekend, while watching one of the Battlestar Galactica episodes, where one of the soldier had a broken leg, it came across to me that it would be a good idea to use inflated plastic/fabric/related materials as a cast or splint for broken legs or arm.

So I did some research on the Internet and found that no one has had this idea of making an inflatable cast or splint yet, which could mean a few things. Either, this is a stupid idea or that googling around and considering it research is not enough... LOL. Almost all the articles I found were about plaster or fiber glass cast. There were a few companies that manufacture casting tapes, pretty cool but tedious to apply.

Anyways, just to take the idea further on inflatable cast. I think that an inflatable cast would be easy to apply and very portable. Depending on the materials and internal lining, the inflatable cast can be very rigid and sturdy.

They would be re-usable. They are light and does not hinder a patient's movement as compared to a plaster cast or a fibre glass cast. The doctor could easily remove the cast to examine how the patient's bone is healing.

I would imagine that a lot of prototyping and research need to be done in order for inflatable casting to be viable and later to go into production.

I cannot think of any problem that cannot be solved by good and innovative design.

Can some one tell me the "con" of an inflatable cast? If not would you like to invest in this venture? LOL...

Originally posted - 26 Apr · Thu 2007