| abstract |
A medical bandaging product for being dispensed in lengths suitable for a given medical use, including an elongate sleeve of a predetermined length formed of a moisture-impervious material and sealable to prevent entry of moisture, and an elongate medical material having substantially the same predetermined length as the elongate sleeve and positioned within the sleeve in substantially moisture-free conditions and sealed therein against moisture until use. The medical material includes a flattened tubular substrate having a pair of opposed, major surfaces defining side edges extending along the length of the elongate sleeve and characterized by being substantially free of cut fibrous ends, a reactive system impregnated into or coated onto the substrate, the system remaining stable when maintained in substantially moisture-free conditions and hardening upon exposure to sufficient moisture to form a rigid, self supporting structure, and a protective wrapping enclosing the flattened tubular substrate along its length to provide a barrier between the substrate and the skin of a patient when the material is in use. |