Ventilator monitor system and method of using same

• US 20050098178A1
• Filed: 09/28/2004
• Published: 05/12/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 06/30/1999
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Jose C. Principe, Michael J. Banner, Neil Russell Euliano, II, Paul B. Blanch
• Original Assignee: Jose C. Principe, Michael J. Banner, Neil Russell Euliano, II, Paul B. Blanch
• Inventors: Euliano, Neil Russell II, Principe, Jose C., Banner, Michael J., Blanch, Paul B.
• Granted Patent: US 7,210,478 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 128/204.23
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0205 Simultaneously evaluating both cardiovascular conditions and different types of body conditions, e.g. heart and respiratory condition
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0836 Measuring rate of CO2 production
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/087 Measuring breath flow
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/7264 Classification of physiological signals or data, e.g. using neural networks, statistical classifiers, expert systems or fuzzy systems neural networks per se G06N3/00; expert systems per se G06N5/00
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/7267 involving training the classification device
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 16/0051 with alarm devices
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 16/026 specially adapted for predicting, e.g. for determining an information representative of a flow limitation during a ventilation cycle by using a root square technique or a regression analysis
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 16/12 by mixing different gases
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2016/0021 with a proportional output signal, e.g. from a thermistor
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2016/0036 in the breathing tube and used in both inspiratory and expiratory phase
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2205/3553 remote, e.g. between patient's home and doctor's office
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2230/005 Parameter used as control input for the apparatus
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2230/06 Heartbeat rate only
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2230/205 partial oxygen pressure (P-O2)
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2230/30 Blood pressure A61M2230/04 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2230/432 partial CO2 pressure (P-CO2)
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2230/435 partial O2 pressure (P-O2)
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 2230/50 Temperature
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/40 relating to mechanical, radiation or invasive therapies, e.g. surgery, laser therapy, dialysis or acupuncture
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/63 for local operation
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 50/20 : for computer-aided diagnosis, e.g. based on medical expert systems
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 128/924 : using artificial intelligence
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 128/925 : Neural network

Abstract

Embodiments of the present invention described and shown in the specification and drawings include a system and method for monitoring the ventilation support provided by a ventilator that is supplying a breathing gas to a patient via a breathing circuit that is in fluid communication with the lungs of the patient.

Claims

1. A method for monitoring ventilation support for a patient having an airway, wherein said method comprises:

(1) providing a monitoring system comprising;

(a) a plurality of measuring sensors adapted to monitor the patient, or to monitor a breathing circuit coupled to the airway of the patient, each measuring sensor generating an output signal, and

(b) an intelligence system adapted to receive the at least one of the output signals, wherein the intelligence system evaluates at least one output signal to determine the appropriateness of ventilation for the patient;

(2) receiving into the intelligence system at least one of the output signals;

(3) implementing the intelligence system to evaluate the at least one output signal to determine the appropriateness of ventilation for the patient; and

(4) recommending a setting for at least one of the plurality of ventilator setting controls based on the evaluation of the at least one output signal by the intelligence system.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising providing a ventilator adapted to supply a gas to a patient via a breathing circuit in fluid communication with at least one lung of the patient, wherein the ventilator is operatively connected to the intelligence system, and wherein the ventilator includes a plurality of ventilator setting controls, wherein each ventilator setting control controls a parameter relating to the supply of gas from the ventilator to the patient.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

causing the ventilator to generate a ventilator parameter signal indicative of a parameter related to the supply of gas from the ventilator to the patient; and

providing the ventilator parameter signal to the intelligence system, wherein the intelligence system evaluates the at least one output signal and the ventilator parameter signal to determine the appropriateness of ventilation.

4. The method of claim 2, further comprising adjusting at least one of the plurality of ventilator setting controls based on the setting determined in the recommending step.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein said output signals are selected from the group consisting of:

an exhaled carbon dioxide signal indicative of the exhaled carbon dioxide (ExCO2) level of the exhaled gas expired by the patient within the breathing circuit;

a flow rate signal indicative of the flow rate (V) of the inhaled/exhaled gas expired by the patient within the breathing circuit;

a pulse oximeter hemoglobin oxygen saturation (SpO2) signal indicative of the oxygen saturation level of the patient;

a pressure (P) signal indicative of the pressure of the breathing gas within the breathing circuit;

a blood pressure (BP) signal indicative of the blood pressure of the patient; and

a temperature (T) signal indicative of the core body temperature of the patient.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the output signals also include at least one of the group consisting of:

an arterial blood gas PaO2 signal;

an arterial blood gas PaCO2 signal; and

an arterial blood gas pH signal.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the ventilator parameter signals include at least one of the group consisting of:

a minute ventilation (V_E) signal;

a ventilator breathing frequency of (f) signal;

a tidal volume (V_T) signal;

a breathing gas flow rate (V) signal;

a pressure limit signal;

a work of breathing (WOB) signal;

a pressure support ventilation (PSV) signal;

a positive end expiratory pressure (PEEP) signal;

a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) signal; and

a fractional inhaled oxygen concentration (FIO2) signal.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising displaying the recommended settings of the ventilator setting controls.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the intelligence system comprises a neural network, and wherein recommending the settings of the ventilator setting controls of the ventilator comprises applying at least a portion of the output signals and the ventilator parameter signals to the neural network of the intelligence system to determine the recommended settings of the ventilator setting controls.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

selecting output signals for display; and

displaying the selected output signals in real time.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising displaying at least one of the recommended ventilator setting control settings.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the intelligence system is programmed with a set of decision rules.

13. A monitoring system comprising:

a plurality of measuring sensors adapted to monitor a patient, or to monitor a breathing circuit coupled to an airway of a patient, wherein each measuring sensor generates an output signal; and

an intelligence system adapted to receive at least one of the output signals, wherein the intelligence system evaluates at least one output signal to determine the appropriateness of ventilation for the patient.

14. The system of claim 13, further comprising a ventilator operatively coupled to the intelligence system, wherein the ventilator is adapted to supply a gas to a patient via a breathing circuit in fluid communication with at least one lung of the patient, wherein the ventilator includes a plurality of ventilator setting controls, and wherein each ventilator setting control controls a parameter relating to the supply of gas from the ventilator to the patient.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the ventilator is adapted to generate a ventilator parameter signal indicative of a parameter related to the supply of gas from the ventilator to the patient, and wherein the intelligence system evaluates the at least one output signal and the ventilator parameter signal to determine the appropriateness of ventilation.

16. The system of claim 14, wherein the ventilator is configured and arranged such that at least one of the plurality of ventilator setting controls is adjusted based on a result of the evaluation of the at least one output signal.

17. The system of claim 13, further comprising an output device operatively coupled to the intelligence system, wherein the output device is adapted to present a result of the evaluation of the at least one output signal in a human-perceivable format.

18. The system of claim 13, wherein the plurality of ventilation support parameters is selected from the group consisting of:

a flow rate (V) of the exhaled gas inspired/expired by the patient within the breathing circuit;

exhaled carbon dioxide (Ex CO2) level of the exhaled gas expired by the patient within the breathing circuit;

hemoglobin oxygen saturation (SPO2) level of the patient;

pressure (P) of the breathing gas within the breathing circuit;

blood pressure (BP) of the patient; and

core body temperature (T) of the patient.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein the plurality of ventilation support parameters also includes at least one of the group consisting of:

an arterial blood gas PaO2 level of the patient;

an arterial blood gas PaCO2 level of the patient; and

an arterial blood gas pH level of the patient.

20. The system of claim 13, wherein the ventilator setting parameter signal comprises at least one of the group consisting of:

a minute ventilation (V_E) signal;

a ventilator breathing frequency of (f) signal;

a tidal volume (V_T) signal;

a breathing gas flow rate (V) signal;

a pressure limit signal;

a work of breathing (WOB) signal;

a pressure support ventilation (PSV) signal;

a positive end expiratory pressure (PEEP) signal;

a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) signal; and

a fractional inhaled oxygen concentration (FIO2) signal.

21. The system of claim 13, further comprising an alarm for notifying an operator that the setting of at least one of the ventilator setting controls differs from the recommended settings.

22. The system of claim 13, wherein:

the intelligence system comprises at least one neural network.

23. The system of claim 13, wherein the system is programmed with a set of decision rules.

24. The system of claim 22, wherein the system has means for training the neural network.