Rheological treatment methods and related apheresis systems
First Claim
1. A therapeutic method comprising the step of depleting at least two species of rheologically active macromolecules from a patient'"'"'s plasma;
- wherein the macromolecules are depleted for a period of time and to a level that is effective to produce an improvement in a measurable endpoint or clinical improvement in a disease associated with elevated levels of rheologically active macromolecules.
3 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
Therapeutic apheresis treatments and diagnostic monitoring methods are described, specifically relating to the depletion and/or removal of a broad bandwidth of certain rheologically active elements from the blood of a patient followed by return of the blood so treated to the patient, and to methods or procedures of apheresis treatment, especially biophysiologic blood filtering treatments and computer medicated delivery methods configured to provide such apheresis treatments to patients with certain chronic, age-related, degenerative, atherogenic, thrombotic or inflammatory diseases; especially those associated with RAM accumulation-deposition causing disturbances of blood rheology or microcirculatory impairment.
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Citations
77 Claims
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1. A therapeutic method comprising the step of depleting at least two species of rheologically active macromolecules from a patient'"'"'s plasma;
wherein the macromolecules are depleted for a period of time and to a level that is effective to produce an improvement in a measurable endpoint or clinical improvement in a disease associated with elevated levels of rheologically active macromolecules. - View Dependent Claims (2, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
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3. A therapeutic method comprising the step of depleting from a patient'"'"'s plasma the high molecular weight fraction of plasma constituents;
wherein the high molecular weight fraction of plasma constituents are depleted for a period of time and to a level that is effective to produce an improvement in a measurable endpoint or clinically observable improvement in a disease associated with elevated levels of rheologically active macromolecules in the high molecular weight fraction of plasma constituents. - View Dependent Claims (4, 5, 6)
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13. A Rheopheresis®
- blood filtration filter packaged together with a label or package insert indicating its use for treatment of an age-related, degenerative, atherogenic, thrombotic or inflammatory disorder characterized by elevated plasma levels of rheologically active macromolecules.
- View Dependent Claims (14)
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15. A diagnostic method comprising the step of measuring the absolute or relative levels of at least two rheologically active macromolecules depleted from a patient'"'"'s plasma by Rheopheresis®
- blood filtration.
- View Dependent Claims (16)
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17. A method of providing Rheopheresis®
- blood filtration treatment, comprising the steps of
(a) evaluating a candidate patient to identify whether the patient has a RAM associated disease and to determine that state and extent of that disease;
(b) determining whether the patient exhibits elevated plasma levels of at least two RAMs;
(c) declining to treat patients with Rheopheresis®
blood filtration who are not likely to respond to treatment or who might be harmed by the treatment;
(d) selecting a particular Rheopheresis®
blood filtration treatment protocol appropriate for chronic versus acute medical situations; and
(e) providing Rheopheresis®
blood filtration treatment. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20)
- blood filtration treatment, comprising the steps of
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21. An integrated apheresis treatment process comprising the steps of:
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(a) providing at least one dedicated out-patient, non-hospital, apheresis treatment facility;
(b) locating and selecting ambulatory, community-dwelling patients potentially capable of benefiting from apheresis treatments within a community that can be served by said apheresis facility;
(c) identifying and selecting from among said patients, by-means which include measurement of serum levels of circulating rheologically active macromolecules in said patients, a subset of patients capable of benefiting from apheresis treatments;
(d) performing apheresis treatments in sessions on the selected patients in said dedicated out-patient apheresis treatment facility; and
(e) determining clinical endpoints to said apheresis treatments based upon reductions in serum levels of said rheologically active macromolecules and correlations of clinical symptomatology through disease-specific testing and serial endpoint and clinical assessments.
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22. An apheresis treatment method, comprising the steps of:
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(a) identifying chronically ill patients having age-related, degenerative, atherogenic, thrombotic or inflammatory diseases, said chronically ill patients being considered candidates for an apheresis procedure;
(b) storing patient profile data for an identified chronically ill patient;
(c) analyzing qualifying data for said identified chronically ill patient to determine applicability of an apheresis treatment; and
(d) performing apheresis treatments in sessions on said identified chronically ill patient. - View Dependent Claims (23, 24, 25, 26)
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27. An apheresis treatment qualification method, comprising the steps of:
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(a) identifying a chronically ill patient having an age-related, degenerative, atherogenic, thrombotic or inflammatory disease, said chronically ill patient being considered a candidate for an apheresis procedure;
(b) storing patient profile data for said identified chronically ill patient;
(c) receiving, from a centralized database system, a composite patient profile derived from other patients similarly situated to said identified chronically ill patient;
(d) comparing said patient profile data with said received composite patient profile; and
(e) determining based upon the comparison in step (d), whether said identified chronically ill patient would likely benefit from apheresis treatments. - View Dependent Claims (28)
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29. A method of screening patients for a Rheopheresis®
- blood filtration treatment comprising the steps of;
(a) identifying whether the patient has a RAM associated disease and determining that state and extent of that disease;
(b) determining whether the patient exhibits elevated plasma levels of at least two RAMs;
(c) selecting patients who are likely to respond to Rheopheresis®
blood filtration treatment or who will not be harmed by the treatment; and
, optionally,(d) selecting a particular Rheopheresis®
blood filtration treatment appropriate for treating a specific RAM associated disease. - View Dependent Claims (30, 31)
- blood filtration treatment comprising the steps of;
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32. A treatment protocol generator for use in a system that endeavors to generate disease specific treatment protocols based on a patient profile, said treatment protocol generator comprising:
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(a) a treatment protocol derivation means for analyzing disease specific historical composite patient profiles to derive treatment protocols having enhanced therapeutic effects;
(b) an identifying means for identifying particular data of a patient profile which will serve to optimize the disease specific apheresis treatment; and
(c) a treatment protocol generating means for generating treatment protocol that, when executed, will enable optimization of the therapeutic effect of apheresis treatment. - View Dependent Claims (33, 34, 35, 36, 37)
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38. An apheresis treatment data collection and treatment system, comprising:
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(a) a plurality of interconnected computer systems located at a respective plurality of apheresis treatment sites, said plurality of interconnected computer systems being configured to receive input reflective of apheresis treatment parameters and clinical effects produced by apheresis treatments, wherein at least one of said plurality of interconnected computer systems is located at a dedicated out-patient apheresis treatment facility; and
(b) a centralized database system including a storage facility that stores apheresis treatment parameter data and clinical effects data that are received from said plurality of interconnected computer systems, said centralized database system further including a means for creating a composite patient profile based upon apheresis treatment data that is collected for patients treated at said plurality of apheresis treatment sites. - View Dependent Claims (39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47)
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48. A method for storing and processing input reflective of apheresis treatment parameters and clinical effects produced by apheresis treatments in a apheresis treatment data collection and treatment system, said method comprising the steps of:
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(a) configuring-a plurality of interconnected computer systems located at a respective plurality of apheresis treatment sites to receive input reflective of apheresis treatment parameters and clinical effects produced by apheresis treatments, wherein at least one of said plurality of interconnected computer systems is located at a dedicated out-patient apheresis treatment facility; and
(b) storing apheresis treatment parameter data and clinical effects data that are received from said plurality of interconnected computer systems in a centralized database system, said centralized database system further including a means for creating a composite patient profile based upon adheresis treatment data that is collected for patients treated at said plurality of apheresis treatment sites. - View Dependent Claims (49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57)
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58. A system for storing and processing input reflective of apheresis treatment parameters and clinical effects produced by apheresis treatments in a apheresis treatment data collection and treatment system, said system comprising:
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(a) means for configuring a plurality of interconnected computer systems located at a respective plurality of apheresis treatment sites to receive input reflective of apheresis treatment parameters and clinical effects produced by apheresis treatments, wherein at least one of said plurality of interconnected computer systems is located at a dedicated out-patient apheresis treatment facility; and
(b) means for storing apheresis treatment parameter data and clinical effects data that are received from said plurality of interconnected computer systems in a centralized database system, said centralized database system further including a means for creating a composite patient profile based upon apheresis treatment data that is collected for patients treated at said plurality of apheresis treatment sites. - View Dependent Claims (59, 60, 61, 62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67)
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68. An apheresis treatment data collection and treatment system, comprising:
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(a) first means for enabling a user to enter information about a patient in a computer database;
(b) second means for creating a summary of the information entered into the local computer database;
(c) third means for periodically transmitting the summarized information to a data management system database;
(d) fourth means for allowing local users to search the data management system database for a specific patient profile;
(e) fifth means for performing data aggregation and analysis on the data management system database and for producing reports based on a search criterion; and
(f) sixth means for allowing the local users to download the produced reports. - View Dependent Claims (69, 70, 71, 72)
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73. A method in an apheresis treatment data collection and treatment system, comprising the steps of:
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(a) enabling a user to enter information about a patient in a computer database;
(b) creating a summary of the information entered into the local computer database;
(c) periodically transmitting the summarized information to a data management system database;
(d) allowing local users to search the data management system database for a specific patient profile;
(e) performing data aggregation and analysis on the data management system database and producing reports based on a search criterion; and
(f) allowing the local users to download the produced reports. - View Dependent Claims (74, 75, 76, 77)
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Specification