Method and Apparatus for Monitoring Long Term and Short Term Effects of a Treatment

• US 20080171913A1
• Filed: 11/14/2005
• Published: 07/17/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 11/15/2004
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Novo Nordisk A/S
• Original Assignee: Novo Nordisk A/S
• Inventors: Randlov, Jette, Hansen, Jon Ulrich
• Application Number:
  US11/666,802
• Publication Number:
  US 20080171913A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 600/300
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/10 relating to drugs or medications, e.g. for ensuring correct administration to patients
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 50/30 for calculating health indices; for individual health risk assessment

Abstract

A method and apparatus for monitoring long term and short term effects of a medical treatment having a build-in dilemma between conflicting objectives are provided. A plot of the temporal development of a balance between long term and short term effects is obtained. Thereby is provided an illustrative and easy-to-use tool to express contradicting objectives and enabling a user to balance the two in a deliberate and calculated fashion. Suitable for diabetes treatment balancing the risk of long term complications against the short term risk of severe hypoglycemia.

Claims

1. An apparatus for monitoring long term and short term effects of a medical treatment of a human or animal body, the apparatus comprising:

means for defining a treatment parameter of the body, which is susceptible to influence of the medical treatment, and for defining one or more predetermined intervals of values of the treatment parameter in such a way that values within the predetermined interval(s) are known to have larger significance with respect to short term effects of the medical treatment than values outside the predetermined interval(s),

means for providing data including a plurality of values of said treatment parameter,

means for processing said data, the processing means comprising;

means for obtaining an authentic mean value using the data,

means for applying a mathematical transformation to each of the values in the data to obtain transformed values,

means for obtaining a non-authentic mean value using the transformed values, said mathematical transformation influencing the transformed values in such a way that values in the data, which are within the predetermined interval(s), have more significant influence on the non-authentic mean value than on the authentic mean value,

means for plotting said authentic and non-authentic mean values as a point in a two-dimensional representation, said point thereby representing a balance between long term effects and short term effects of the medical treatment, and

means for displaying a temporal development of said balance between long term effects and short term effects of the medical treatment.

2. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the means for providing data comprises a blood glucose (BG) measurement apparatus.

3. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the processing means comprises a personal computer (PC).

4. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the apparatus forms part of a drug delivery device.

5. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the displaying means comprises at least one of a personal digital assistant (PDA), a personal computer (PC), a mobile phone and a medical device.

6. An apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising means for printing at least the temporal development of the balance between long term effects and short term effects of the medical treatment.

7. A method for monitoring long term and short term effects of a medical treatment of a human or animal body, the method comprising the steps of:

defining a treatment parameter of the body, which is susceptible to influence of the medical treatment,

defining one or more predetermined intervals of values of the treatment parameter in such a way that values within the predetermined interval(s) are known to have larger significance with respect to short term effects of the medical treatment than values outside the predetermined interval(s),

providing first data including a plurality of values of said treatment parameter, the plurality of values of said treatment parameter having been obtained at first points in time,

using the values of the first data to obtain a first authentic mean value,

applying a mathematical transformation to each of the values in the first data to obtain first transformed values,

using the transformed values to obtain a first non-authentic mean value, said mathematical transformation influencing the transformed values in such a way that values in the first data, which are within the predetermined interval(s), have more significant influence on the non-authentic mean value than on the authentic mean value, whereby it is achieved that;

short term effects of the medical treatment are more strongly reflected by the non-authentic mean value than by the authentic mean value, and

long term effects of the medical treatment are more strongly reflected by the authentic mean value than by the non-authentic mean value,

plotting said first authentic and non-authentic mean values as a point in a two-dimensional representation, said point thereby representing a balance between long term effects and short term effects of the medical treatment as provided by the first data,

the method further comprising the steps of;

providing second data including a plurality of further values of said treatment parameter, the plurality of further values having been obtained at second points in time, and using the values of the second data to obtain a second authentic mean value,

applying said mathematical transformation to each of the values in the second data to obtain second transformed values, and using the second transformed values to obtain a second non-authentic mean value,

plotting said second authentic and non-authentic mean values as a further point in said two-dimensional representation,

whereby said points in the two-dimensional representation provide a plot of temporal development of the balance of long term and short term effects of the medical treatment.

8. A method according to claim 7, wherein the first authentic mean value is obtained by calculating a weighted average of the values of the first data, and wherein the second authentic mean value is obtained by calculating a weighted average of the values of the second data.

9. A method according to claim 8, wherein the weighted averages are calculated using the formula:

10. A method according to claim 7, wherein the first non-authentic mean value is obtained by calculating a weighted average of the first transformed values, and wherein the second non-authentic mean value is obtained by calculating a weighted average of the second transformed values.

11. A method according to claim 10, wherein the weighted averages are calculated using the formula:

12. A method according to claim 7, wherein the steps of applying a mathematical transformation are performed in such a way that each transformed value is larger than 0.

13. A method according to claim 7, wherein the steps of applying a mathematical transformation are performed in such a way that lowering the value of the treatment parameter by 1 unit results in the corresponding transformed value being doubled.

14. A method according to claim 7, wherein the mathematical transformation applied is of the form:

15. A method according to claim 14, wherein the mathematical transformation applied is of the form:

16. A method according to claim 7, wherein the medical treatment is a diabetes treatment, and the treatment parameter is blood glucose (BG).