Giovanni Carlucci, Chieti, Italy; Andrea Peri, Kronberg, Germany; Remo Bellucci, Blue Ash, OH; Christopher Philip Bewick-Sonntag, Cincinnati, OH; and Tana Kirkbride, Cincinnati, OH.
Assigned to The Procter & Gamble Company, Cincinnati, OH.

Filed: 12/19/14
Issued: 2/14/17

An absorbent pad having a central longitudinal axis a first longitudinal end and a second longitudinal end, said absorbent pad comprising: a topsheet, a backsheet and an absorbent core disposed between said topsheet and backsheet, side flaps extending laterally on the sides of said absorbent pad, said side flaps each having a first end point biased toward said first longitudinal end of the pad and a second end point biased toward the second longitudinal end of the pad, said absorbent pad having a first transversal axis connecting the first end points of said side flaps and a second transversal axis connecting the second end points of said side flaps, said absorbent core comprising a storage layer having a first end biased toward the first longitudinal end of the pad and a second end biased toward the second longitudinal end of the pad, said storage layer comprising at least one superabsorbent polymer and being transversally divided along said central longitudinal axis into 5 adjacent portions: a central portion, first and second intermediate portions and first and second end portions, said first and second intermediate portions being defined as the portions of said storage layer overlapping respectively said first and second transversal axes and extending perpendicularly for from 3 to 20 mm along the longitudinal direction on both sides of respectively said first and second transversal axes; said central portion being defined as the portion of the storage layer comprised between said first and second intermediate portions, said first end portion being defined as the portion of said storage layer comprised between said first intermediate portion and said first end of said storage layer, said second end portion being defined as the portion of said storage layer comprised between said second intermediate portion and said second end of said storage layer, wherein the average basis weight of the Superabsorbent polymers in at least one of said first and second intermediate portions is at least 10 gsm higher than in at least one of said first and second end portions and wherein the average basis weight of the superabsorbent polymers in the central portion is at least 10 gsm lower than said first and second intermediate portions.