Matrix interface for medical diagnostic and treatment advice system and method

• US 20060135859A1
• Filed: 10/24/2005
• Published: 06/22/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 10/22/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Healthways SC, LLC (Warner Bros. Discovery, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Clinical Decision Support, LLC (Tivity Health, Inc.)
• Inventors: Iliff, Edwin C.
• Granted Patent: US 9,081,879 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 600/300
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 10/20 for electronic clinical trials or questionnaires
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 10/60 for patient-specific data, e.g. for electronic patient records
• 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: G16H 70/60 relating to pathologies

Abstract

An automated medical diagnostic system and method are disclosed. In an embodiment of the system and method, a matrix of cells is displayed via a graphical user interface on a computing device, each cell being representative of a patient health item (PHI) associated with a particular disease. A PHI is entered on the display in one of the cells and a differential diagnosis is updated based on the input PHI. The updated differential diagnosis is then displayed to a user. The system includes multiple diagnostic functions that use the matrix for input and output, wherein the diagnostic functions are selectively executed according to each newly input PHI so as to result in the differential diagnosis. In certain embodiments, the input PHIs are stored in a patient medical record. The computing device can operate independently or in a connection with a system server.

Claims

1. An automated medical diagnostic system, comprising:

a graphical user interface (GUI) comprising a matrix of cells, each cell being representative of a patient health item (PHI) associated with a particular disease;

a plurality of diagnostic functions that uses the matrix for input and output, wherein the diagnostic functions are selectively executed according to each newly input PHI so as to result in and display a differential diagnosis.

2. The system defined in claim 1, wherein a disease is an abnormality, affliction, ailment, anomaly, disorder, illness, indisposition, infirmity, malady, problem or sickness of a patent.

3. The system defined in claim 1, wherein the system uses a meta analysis of the input PHIs.

4. The system defined in claim 1, wherein the system uses a reenter function so as to request a user of the system to consult the system at a later time.

5. The system defined in claim 1, wherein a PHI is a sign, symptom, complaint, presentation, manifestation, finding, laboratory test result, home test result, or an interpretation of an imaging study.

6. The system defined in claim 1, wherein the GUI is configured for use by a trained health professional.

7. The system defined in claim 1, wherein the system is configured for use by veterinarians, chiropractors, dentists, optometrists, and holistic health providers.

8. The system defined in claim 1, wherein the system uses software objects.

9. The system defined in claim 1, wherein scoring and thresholding is used by at least one of the diagnostic functions.

10. The system defined in claim 1, wherein the differential diagnosis is a single disease.

11. The system defined in claim 1, wherein the diagnostic functions form a list-based processing system.

12. The system defined in claim 1, wherein the diagnostic functions use a patient medical record.

13. The system defined in claim 1, wherein the system is run on a handheld computing device, a personal digital assistant (PDA) or a PDA-like computing device.

14. The system defined in claim 1, wherein the onset time shape of a PHI is captured in a graphical manner in which the x axis represents time and the y axis represents severity.

15. The system defined in claim 1, wherein the change in intensity of a PHI over time is graphically displayed on the GUI.

16. The system defined in claim 1, wherein the variability of any aspect of a PHI can be expressed graphically and this image transformed into information to diagnose a disease.

17. The system defined in claim 1, wherein the interrelationships of PHIs over time are input from a Gantt chart based input system.

18. The system defined in claim 1, in which the value of one PHI is varied producing changes in the differential diagnosis of a set of PHIs.

19. The system defined in claim 1, wherein the total amount of time the patient has presented a PHI or condition is input graphically and the area under a corresponding curve is determined by integrating the graphed function.

20. The system defined in claim 1, wherein when a patient indicates their condition begins to improve, the system causes a specific action or stops a particular consultation to allow more time to elapse to determine if a trend continues.

21. The system defined in claim 1, wherein the topographic area of a patient'"'"'s complaint(s) is indicated on an avatar displayed by the GUI which then causes different diagnostic weights to be added to various diseases.

22. The system defined in claim 1, wherein the sensitivity of a consultation can be varied by levels such that a number and area of specialty interest of diseases considered in a consultation can be increased in steps from urgent and common diseases to all diseases known to mankind.

23. The system defined in claim 1, wherein all human diseases stored in the system are considered in the differential diagnosis.

24. The system defined in claim 22, wherein the matrix is used to specify the levels and the area of specialty interest.

25. The system defined in claim 1, wherein a patient'"'"'s incidental symptoms are saved and evaluated at a later time in a different context.

26. The system defined in claim 1, wherein an ongoing disease process is distinguished from a disease process in which the symptoms have disappeared.

27. The system defined in claim 1, wherein each PHI has associated questions to establish the PHI, and wherein diagnosis occurs in two different modes, including a horizontal axis of inquiry (HAI) mode in which the questions for each PHI are selected with the understanding that several diseases are under diagnostic consideration, and a vertical axis of inquiry (VAI) mode in which one disease is the source of all the questions for each PHI or in which one disease is the focus of inquiry.

28. The system defined in claim 27, wherein diseases in the HAI are segregated into a subset for further focused evaluation in which all questions will be taken from the subset of diseases.

29. The system defined in claim 27, wherein the system starts operation in HAI mode and then turns to VAI mode upon certain criteria being met.

30. The system defined in claim 1, wherein the diseases are weighted if a PHI matches.

31. The system defined in claim 1, wherein the attributes of a PHI are evaluated to further define the PHI and in which diagnostic weight is sequentially added depending upon the number of matching attributes.

32. The system defined in claim 1, wherein each PHI in the system is represented by a portion of an inverted tree with a basic and general PHI at the root of the tree and a detailed and specific PHI at the leaves of the tree.

33. The system defined in claim 32, wherein diagnostic weight is sequentially added as a more precise match is made as the questioning proceeds down the tree.

34. The system defined in claim 33, wherein PHIs are hierarchically weighted based upon their position in the tree.

35. The system defined in claim 1, wherein the relationships between risk factors, causes, and complications of a disease are graphically displayed, with the x-axis being time, by the GUI.

36. The system defined in claim 1, wherein interrelated causality of diseases is expressed graphically and dynamically by the GUI.

37. The system defined in claim 1, wherein geographical information related to at least one PHI is entered on a graphic image of a world map.

38. The system defined in claim 1, wherein a patient work up is automatically planned to diagnose one disease from a set of possible diseases.

39. The system defined in claim 1, wherein questions may be presented directly to the patient.

40. The system defined in claim 1, wherein an interactive Gantt chart is used to express the relationships between various PHIs in a disease with respect to time and that information used to diagnose the patient.

41. The system defined in claim 1, wherein a disease is defined or represented by a Gantt chart displayed by the GUI.

42. The system defined in claim 1, wherein one or more predetermined PHIs are displayed and immediately selected if they should occur during an interview process of a consultation which causes a change in the execution path of the system or causes another action to take place.

43. The system defined in claim 1, in which potentially dangerous situations are automatically recognized and a metric of the potential danger to the patient is graphically displayed by the GUI.

44. The system defined in claim 1, wherein potentially dangerous situations are automatically recognized and a metric of the potential danger to the care giver is graphically displayed by the GUI.

45. The system defined in claim 1, wherein a feedback loop exists in which at least one diagnostic weight corresponding to at least one PHI is automatically changed based on data obtained by usage of the system over time.

46. An automated medical diagnostic method, comprising:

displaying a matrix of cells, each cell being representative of a patient health item (PHI) associated with a particular disease;

entering a PHI on the display in one of the cells;

updating a differential diagnosis based on the input PHI; and

displaying the updated differential diagnosis.

47. The method defined in claim 46, wherein the displaying is performed via a graphical user interface (GUI).

48. The method defined in claim 47, wherein the GUI is configured for use by a trained health professional.

49. The method defined in claim 46, wherein a PHI is a sign, symptom, complaint, presentation, manifestation, finding, laboratory test result, home test result, or an interpretation of an imaging study.

50. The method defined in claim 46, wherein the method is configured for use by veterinarians, chiropractors, dentists, optometrists, or holistic health providers.

51. The method defined in claim 46, wherein the updated differential diagnosis is a single disease.

52. The method defined in claim 46, additionally comprising storing the input PHI in a patient medical record.

53. The method defined in claim 46, wherein the method is performed on a handheld computing device, a personal digital assistant (PDA) or a PDA-like computing device.

54. The method defined in claim 46, additionally comprising presenting questions corresponding to at least one PHI directly to the patient.