METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR ADMINISTERING DIGITALIZING MEDICATIONS

• US 3,651,806 A
• Filed: 10/24/1969
• Issued: 03/28/1972
• Est. Priority Date: 10/24/1969
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Philip I. Hirshberg
• Original Assignee: Philip I. Hirshberg
• Inventors: Hirshberg, Philip I.
• Primary Examiner(s): Truluck, Dalton L.
• Application Number:
  US04/869,136
• Time in Patent Office: 886 Days
• Field of Search: 128/213-218,DIG.1,2,2.05,2.06,DIG.13
• US Class Current: 604/503
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/352 Detecting R peaks, e.g. for synchronising diagnostic apparatus; Estimating R-R interval
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/1723 using feedback of body parameters, e.g. blood-sugar, pressure measurement of body parameters A61B5/00
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 128/13 Infusion monitoring

Abstract

A method and apparatus for infusing digitalizing medication to a patient at a controlled rate. The apparatus including first detection means for recognizing an electrical event originating in the muscle of the heart, electrical stimulation means responsive to the electrical event for stimulating the heart with an electrical stimulating signal, second detection means for detecting an electrical signal indicative of the response of the heart to the electrical stimulating signal, and infusion means including means responsive to said last mentioned electrical signal to control the amount of medication administered to the patient.

Claims

1. In the method of administering digitalizing medications to a patient which includes automatically administering a digitalizing medication to a patient, the steps of applying an electrical stimulus to the heart of the patient, detecting the response to the stimulus to then determine the toxicity of the patient, and then adjusting the amount of digitalizing medication being automatically administered to the patient in accordance with the determined toxicity of the patient in order to maintain a predetermined percentage of toxic dosage of digitalizing medication in the patient.

2. The method according to claim 1 in which the digitalizing medication is administered to the patient by infusion.

3. The method according to claim 2 in which the stimulus is applied between an interval of heart contraction in order to elicit a response indicative of the toxicity of the patient.

4. The method according to claim 3 in which the stimulus is applied during the latter half of the interval between heart contractions, the portion of time in the R - R interval that the stimulus is applied, between contractions, which elicits a response indicates the toxicity of the patient.

5. The method according to claim 4 in which the presence of a response to the stimulus is converted to an error signal for controlling the rate of medication being provided to a patient using infusion means.

6. In a system for infusing digitalizing medications to a patient comprising means for infusing digitalizing medication into a patient, first means for detecting an electrical event originating in the muscle of the heart, second means responsive to the electrical event for providing an electrical stimulus to stimulate the heart a predetermined time interval after the onset of said electrical event, and third means for detecting the response to said electrical stimulus from said heart and set the amount of medication administered to the patient by said means for infusing.

7. In a system according to claim 6 wherein said first means detects the presence of an R wave produced by the muscle of the heart, wherein said second means produces an RVR electrical stimulus a predetermined time after the R wave is detected, wherein said third means detects the RVR response to the RVR electrical stimulus and also determines the position of the RVR electrical stimulus with respect to the normal R - R interval produced by the heart of the patient so as to determine the toxicity of the patient and set the rate of infusion.

8. In a system according to claim 6 wherein said third means includes means which provides an indication of the toxicity of the patient which is then used to maintain the amount of medication being administered to the patient at a predetermined desired rate.

9. In a system according to claim 8 including means for only permitting the response to be used to control the infusion of medication during a predetermined interval of the R - R wave interval.

10. In a system according to claim 6 including means for varying the time at which the heart is stimulated.

11. In the method of automatically administering digitalizing medication to a patient which comprises the steps of applying an electrical stimulatory signal to the heart of a patient, detecting if a response occurs to said stimulus, and then controlling the automatic administration of the digitalizing medication after the toxicity of the patient has been determined, depending upon where in the R - R interval the electrical stimulus is applied and a response is detected.