@Article{JFBI-4-15,
author = {Lijing Wang, Martin Felder and Jackie Y. Cai},
title = {Study of Properties of Medical Compression Fabrics},
journal = {Journal of Fiber Bioengineering and Informatics},
year = {2011},
volume = {4},
number = {1},
pages = {15--22},
abstract = {Compression garments apply pressure to the body to provide health benefits, such as increasing the
blood circulation, shaping the body and supporting healing after medical procedures. Fabrics used for
compression garments are elastic, and the amount of fabric stretching and the ability of maintaining the
stretching force are directly related to the compression effectiveness. However, there is currently little
information about the fabric and its mechanical properties, and there is a demand from compression
garment manufacturers to better understand the fabric properties and their serviceability. This paper
studied the physical and mechanical properties of 4 Nylon/Spandex knitted fabrics as commercial
medical compression garments. In particular, fabric elasticity and bursting strength were examined
to demonstrate the applicability of the fabrics for providing satisfactory compression. It was observed
that the compression garment fabrics had an open knitted structure with stable dimensions, and Spandex
was only present in the wale direction. Tensile assessment revealed that the compression fabrics were
strong and their breaking extension was well beyond 200%. The fabric stretching force had a near
linear relationship with its elongation when the fabric was stretched upto 100% extension. After
fatigue stretching, the average immediate recovery of compression fabrics examined was more than
95% and the average elastic recovery after an extended period of relaxation was at least 98%. High
fabric bursting strength and compression extension were also found. The results of fabric physical
and mechanical properties from this study are very important for understanding whether a fabric is
suitable for engineering compression garments, and also for estimating the required compression force
for designing an individualised compression garments with the medical compression fabrics.},
issn = {2617-8699},
doi = {https://doi.org/10.3993/jfbi04201102},
url = {http://global-sci.org/intro/article_detail/jfbi/4898.html}
}