Programmer storage of implantable medical device settings

• US 20040215291A1
• Filed: 04/24/2003
• Published: 10/28/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 04/24/2003
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Medtronic Incorporated (Medtronic Plc)
• Original Assignee: Medtronic Incorporated (Medtronic Plc)
• Inventors: Van Bentem, Maarten
• Application Number:
  US10/423,034
• Publication Number:
  US 20040215291A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 607/60
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 1/08 Arrangements or circuits for monitoring, protecting, controlling or indicating for external stimulators A61N1/3603; for implantable neurostimulators A61N1/36128; for heart stimulators A61N1/37; for defibrillators A61N1/3925

Abstract

The invention is directed to the storage of patient-specific settings in a programmer of an implantable medical device (IMD). Specifically, following the communication of patient-specific settings from the programmer to the IMD, the programmer can maintain the patient-specific settings in memory for later use. If the IMD is reset, the programmer can re-communicate the same patient-specific settings without requiring a technician to re-load the programmer with the original settings. Also, when a subsequent communication session is established between the IMD and the programmer, the programmer can display the stored settings without requiring an upload from the IMD, which can save time and power.

Claims

1. A programmer for an implantable medical device (IMD) comprising:

a control unit;

a user interface coupled to the control unit to receive patient-specific settings for an implantable medical device;

a telemetry unit to communicate the patient-specific settings from the programmer to the implantable medical device; and

a memory that stores the patient-specific settings in the programmer for an extended period after the patient-specific settings have been communicated to the implantable medical device.

2. The programmer of claim 1, wherein the telemetry unit re-communicates the patient-specific settings to the implantable medical device following a reset of the implantable medical device.

3. The programmer of claim 1, wherein the telemetry unit receives IMD-specific parameters and the memory stores the IMD-specific parameters for the extended period.

4. The programmer of claim 1, wherein the control unit accesses the patient-specific settings from the memory in response to the programmer establishing a communication session with the implantable medical device.

5. The programmer of claim 4, wherein during the communication session the control unit performs a checksum comparison to ensure that the patient-specific settings in the programmer are the same as the patient-specific settings in the implantable medical device.

6. The programmer of claim 5, wherein during the communication session the control unit performs the checksum comparison to further ensure that IMD-specific parameters stored in the programmer are the same as IMD-specific parameters stored in the implantable medical device.

7. The programmer of claim 5, wherein during the communication session the control unit:

identifies from the checksum comparison that the patient-specific settings in the programmer are not the same as the patient-specific settings in the implantable medical device; and

requests the implantable medical device to communicate the patient-specific settings in the implantable medical device to the programmer.

8. The programmer of claim 5, wherein during the communication session the control unit:

identifies from the checksum comparison that the patient-specific settings in the programmer are the same as the patient-specific settings in the implantable medical device; and

does not request the implantable medical device to communicate the patient-specific settings in the implantable medical device to the programmer.

9. The programmer of claim 8, wherein the user interface includes a display that displays the patient-specific settings stored in the programmer as being the patient-specific settings stored in the implantable medical device.

10. The programmer of claim 5, wherein during the communication session the programmer receives from the implantable medical device a checksum value for use in the checksum comparison.

11. A method comprising:

receiving in a programmer, patient-specific settings for an implantable medical device (IMD);

communicating the patient-specific settings from the programmer to the implantable medical device;

storing the patient-specific settings in the implantable medical device; and

storing the patient-specific settings in the programmer for an extended period for use after the patient-specific settings have been stored in the implantable medical device.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising re-communicating the patient-specific settings from the programmer to the implantable medical device following a reset of the implantable medical device.

13. The method of claim 11, further comprising following storing the patient-specific settings in the implantable medical device:

establishing a communication session between the implantable medical device and the programmer; and

accessing the patient-specific settings in the programmer in response to establishing the communication session.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising performing a checksum comparison to ensure that the patient-specific settings in the programmer are the same as the patient-specific settings in the implantable medical device.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising performing the checksum comparison to further ensure that IMD-specific parameters stored in the programmer are the same as IMD-specific parameters stored in the implantable medical device.

16. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

identifying from the checksum comparison that the patient-specific settings in the programmer are not the same as the patient-specific settings in the implantable medical device; and

communicating the patient-specific settings in the implantable medical device to the programmer.

17. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

identifying from the checksum comparison that the patient-specific settings in the programmer are the same as the patient-specific settings in the implantable medical device; and

not communicating the patient-specific settings in the implantable medical device to the programmer.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising displaying the patient-specific settings stored in the programmer as being the patient-specific settings stored in the implantable medical device.

19. The method of claim 15, further comprising:

identifying from the checksum comparison that the IMD-specific parameters in the programmer are not the same as the IMD-specific parameters in the implantable medical device; and

communicating the IMD-specific parameters in the implantable medical device to the programmer.

20. The method of claim 11, further comprising

communicating first patient-specific settings from the programmer to a first implantable medical device;

storing the first patient-specific settings in the implantable medical device;

storing the first patient-specific settings in the programmer for use after the first patient-specific settings have been stored in the first implantable medical device;

communicating second patient-specific settings from the programmer to a second implantable medical device;

storing the second patient-specific settings in the second implantable medical device; and

storing the second patient-specific settings in the programmer for use after the second patient-specific settings have been stored in the second implantable medical device.

21. The method of claim 20, further comprising following storing the first and second patient-specific settings in the implantable medical device:

establishing a communication session between the first implantable medical device and the programmer;

accessing the first patient-specific settings in the programmer in response to establishing the communication session between the first implantable medical device and the programmer

establishing a communication session between the second implantable medical device and the programmer; and

accessing the second patient-specific settings in the programmer in response to establishing the communication session between the second implantable medical device and the programmer.

22. A system comprising an implantable medical device and a programmer that communicate via telemetry, wherein:

the programmer receives patient-specific settings for the implantable medical device;

the programmer communicates the patient-specific settings from the programmer to the implantable medical device;

the implantable medical device stores the patient-specific settings in the implantable medical device; and

the programmer stores the patient-specific settings in the programmer for an extended period use after the patient-specific settings have been stored in the implantable medical device.

23. The system of claim 22, wherein the programmer re-communicates the patient-specific settings from the programmer to the implantable medical device following a reset of the implantable medical device.

24. The system of claim 22, wherein following storing the patient-specific settings in the implantable medical device:

the programmer establishes a communication session between the implantable medical device and the programmer; and

the programmer accesses the patient-specific settings in the programmer in response to establishing the communication session.

25. The system of claim 24, wherein in response to establishing the communication session the programmer performs a checksum comparison to ensure that the patient-specific settings in the programmer are the same as the patient-specific settings in the implantable medical device.

26. The system of claim 25, wherein:

the programmer identifies from the checksum comparison that the patient-specific settings in the programmer are the same as the patient-specific settings in the implantable medical device;

the implantable medical device does not communicate the patient-specific settings in the implantable medical device to the programmer; and

the programmer displays the patient-specific settings stored in the programmer as being the patient-specific settings stored in the implantable medical device.

27. A programmer for an implantable medical device comprising:

means for receiving patient-specific settings for an implantable medical device;

means for communicating the patient-specific settings from the programmer to the implantable medical device; and

means for storing the patient-specific settings in the programmer for an extended period for use after the patient-specific settings have been stored in the implantable medical device.

28. The programmer of claim 27, further comprising means for re-communicating the patient-specific settings from the programmer to the implantable medical device following a reset of the implantable medical device.

29. The programmer of claim 27, further comprising:

means for establishing a communication session between the implantable medical device and the programmer following communication of the patient-specific settings to the implantable medical device; and

means for accessing the patient-specific settings in the programmer in response to establishing the communication session.

30. The programmer of claim 29, further comprising means for performing a checksum comparison to ensure that the patient-specific settings in the programmer are the same as the patient-specific settings in the implantable medical device.

31. The programmer of claim 30, further comprising:

means for identifying from the checksum comparison that the patient-specific settings in the programmer are the same as the patient-specific settings in the implantable medical device; and

means for displaying the patient-specific settings stored in the programmer as being the patient-specific settings stored in the implantable medical device.