BLOOD PRESSURE MEASURING APPARATUS

• US 20120046561A1
• Filed: 08/17/2011
• Published: 02/23/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 08/17/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nihon Kohden Corporation
• Original Assignee: Nihon Kohden Corporation
• Inventors: KIKUCHI, Yoshiharu, HIRAHARA, Hideaki, KOBAYASHI, Naoki, USUDA, Takashi, SUZUKI, Katsuyoshi
• Granted Patent: US 10,349,842 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 600/494
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/02116 of pulse wave amplitude A61B5/02225 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/02141 Details of apparatus construction, e.g. pump units or housings therefor, cuff pressurising systems, arrangements of fluid conduits or circuits A61B5/02233, A61B5/0235 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/02225 using the oscillometric method
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0225 the pressure being controlled by electric signals, e.g. derived from Korotkoff sounds

Abstract

A blood pressure measuring apparatus, which measures a blood pressure of a living body, includes: a cuff-pressure control unit which controls a cuff pressure of a cuff that presses a part of the living body; an oscillation signal detection unit which detects an oscillation signal from the cuff pressure; a blood pressure specification unit which specifies systolic and diastolic blood pressures as the blood pressure of the living body from the oscillation signal; and a blood pressure determination unit which determines whether systolic and diastolic blood pressures are appropriate or not. The cuff-pressure control unit controls the cuff pressure to be inflated to a first set value, the blood pressure specification unit specifies the systolic and diastolic blood pressures based on a change of an oscillation signal that is detected by the oscillation signal detection unit when the cuff pressure is inflated to the first set value, and when the blood pressure determination unit determines that both the systolic and diastolic blood pressures are appropriate, the cuff-pressure control unit ends the inflating of the cuff pressure to release the cuff pressure.

Claims

1. A blood pressure measuring apparatus, which measures a blood pressure of a living body, the blood pressure measuring apparatus comprising:

a cuff-pressure control unit which controls a cuff pressure of a cuff that presses a part of the living body;

an oscillation signal detection unit which detects an oscillation signal from the cuff pressure;

a blood pressure specification unit which specifies systolic and diastolic blood pressures as the blood pressure of the living body from the oscillation signal; and

a blood pressure determination unit which determines whether systolic and diastolic blood pressures are appropriate or not, wherein

the cuff-pressure control unit controls the cuff pressure to be inflated to a first set value,

the blood pressure specification unit specifies the systolic and diastolic blood pressures based on a change of an oscillation signal that is detected by the oscillation signal detection unit when the cuff pressure is inflated to the first set value, and

when the blood pressure determination unit determines that both the systolic and diastolic blood pressures are appropriate, the cuff-pressure control unit ends the inflating of the cuff pressure to release the cuff pressure.

2. The blood pressure measuring apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

an air pump which is controlled by the cuff-pressure control unit to eject air to the cuff, thereby inflating the cuff pressure, wherein

the cuff-pressure control unit controls the air pump to eject air to the cuff with a cycle which is different from a cycle of a pulse wave.

3. The blood pressure measuring apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the cuff-pressure control unit controls the air pump so that the cycle at which the air pump ejects air is a cycle is which is shorter than at least one fifth of the cycle of the pulse wave.

4. The blood pressure measuring apparatus according to claim 2, wherein a flow of air ejected by the air pump is from 0.1 L/minute to 3.0 L/minute.

5. The blood pressure measuring apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the cuff-pressure control unit controls the cuff pressure to be inflated in a substantially linear manner.

6. The blood pressure measuring apparatus according to claim 1, wherein

when the blood pressure determination unit determines that at least one of the systolic and diastolic blood pressures is not appropriate, the cuff-pressure control unit controls the cuff pressure to be inflated to a second set value, and then deflated, and

the blood pressure specification unit specifies the systolic and diastolic blood pressures based on a change of an oscillation signal that is detected by the oscillation signal detection unit when the cuff pressure is deflated from the second set value.

7. The blood pressure measuring apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the cuff-pressure control unit controls the cuff pressure to be deflated in a stepwise manner.

8. The blood pressure measuring apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the cuff-pressure control unit controls the cuff pressure to be deflated in a substantially linear manner.

9. The blood pressure measuring apparatus according to claim 6, wherein

the first set value is a value which is lower than the second set value,

the first set value is a value which is higher than a systolic blood pressure of the living body, and

the second set value is a value which is higher than a value in which at least 30 mmHg to 50 mmHg is added to a systolic blood pressure of the living body.

10. The blood pressure measuring apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a cuff-size specification unit which specifies a size of the cuff when the cuff pressure is to be inflated, wherein

the cuff-pressure control unit controls pressure inflating of the cuff based on the size of the cuff which is specified by the cuff-size specification unit.

11. The blood pressure measuring apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the cuff-pressure control unit inflates or deflates the cuff pressure in a range of 5 mmHg/sec. to 20 mmHg/sec.