The present invention is directed to a hand held tool for cleaning and applying an antiseptic to a pierced body part, and may be particularly valuable to a freshly pierced body part where infection may result in a painful situation. Though earlobes may be the most common body part to be pierced, current lifestyles reveal that various and different body parts are being pierced to receive an earring or other ornamentation. Accordingly, the invention should not be limited to ear piercing, but rather body piercing, and the treatment thereof, in general.
It is now a common practice to pierce body parts, such as one's earlobes, so that earrings can be worn. This practice spans all ages, from infants to adults, male and female. Currently, it is popular to place multiple holes in an earlobe, and even continuing up to the top of the ear, so that many earrings may be worn at the same time.
The holes in the earlobes may be subject to infection at the initial piercing, or over time may be subject to buildup of residue including dried soap and shampoo, body oils and skin shed by the scar tissue formed around the hole. These residues can collect in the hole and on the earrings facilitating the growth of bacteria which can lead to further infection. As a result frequent cleansing and treatment is critical to a wearer of body piercing ornamentation.
The prior art describes a number of devices or systems for cleaning or applying medication to a pierced body part, most commonly an earlobe. Such devices or systems are reflected in the following U.S. patents:
a.) U.S. Pat. No. 5,183,461, to Hobbs, relates to a strand device for pierced earlobe cleansing, and comprises a flexible monofilament nylon or nylon-like material which is folded in half so that the two ends meet and are parallel. The ends are bonded by heating and melting the strands to form a single stem from the two strands, the stem having a greater stiffness than the single strand alone. The melting simultaneously creates a rounded tip at the end of the stem. The ends of the strand are joined so that a loop remains open at the fold. The stem is sufficiently stiff so that it can be fed through a pierced ear hole with the rounded end of the stem facilitating feeding the stem through the hole. The loop, which normally is open is compressed as the stem is pulled out the opposite side of the ear. The resilience of the loop is sufficient to permit it to remain slightly expanded so that its greater diameter "scrapes" the ear hole as it passes through. The loop resiles to its original shape as it exits the ear hole. PA1 b.) U.S. Pat. No. 4,798,216, to McCarty et al., also discloses a threaded member for cleansing a pierced earlobe. The thread is impregnated with a hypo-allergenic, anti-bacterial astringent for cleansing and conditioning pierced ear lobes. PA1 c.) U.S. Pat. No. 4,497,402, to Karos, teaches an apparatus for cleaning and sterilizing ear lobe holes for pierced earrings which utilizes a string of absorbent material having attached thereto a firm tip. Both the string and the tip are maintained in a sealed envelope adjacent a pad of absorbent material saturated with an antiseptic fluid in contact with the string to saturate the string with the fluid. When it is desired to clean and sterilize the ear lobe hole, the package and the string and tip are run through the ear lobe hole. The string both cleans the ear lobe hole and imparts the sterilizing fluid to the hole. PA1 d.) U.S. Pat. No. 4,353,370, to Evans, is directed to a device for cleaning the pierced ear hole of the earlobe. A grooved or ruffled rod member containing an absorbent material loaded with a cleaning agent is adapted to be passed into and out of the earlobe hole and then disposed of. In another embodiment, the ear rod is constructed as part of a permanent earring which can be worn to provide a constant supply of cleaning solution to the earlobe to prevent infection of the ear hole. PA1 e.) U.S. Pat. No. 4,041,946, to Barton, relates to a medicated member that is adapted to be passed through the ear lobe of a pierced ear and to be retained therein thereby speeding the healing of the process. PA1 f.) U.S. Pat. No. 3,500,829, to Abramowitz, teaches an apparatus for piercing the lobe of a human ear with a minimum of pain and with means for substantially eliminating the possibility of infection thereafter and while wearing the earring. PA1 g.) U.S. Pat. No. Des. 346,443, to Franklin, is directed to a pierced ear cleaner device.
While the prior art offers some assistance to provide cleansing and applying medication to pierced earlobes, none appear to give the simplicity and effectiveness of the present invention. The manner by which this simplicity and effectiveness is achieved will become more apparent from the following description, particularly when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.