METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR OBTAINING AND DISPLAYING CARDIOVASCULAR DATA

• US 3,773,033 A
• Filed: 11/15/1971
• Issued: 11/20/1973
• Est. Priority Date: 11/15/1971
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Bruce E. Mount, Simon Rodbard
• Original Assignee: Bruce E. Mount, Simon Rodbard
• Inventors: Rodbard, Simon, Mount, Bruce E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Gaudet, Richard A.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Cohen, Lee S.
• Application Number:
  US05/198,863
• Time in Patent Office: 736 Days
• Field of Search: 128/2.6R,2.6A,2.6B,2.6F,2.6G,2.6V,2.1A,2.1R,2.5R,2.5A,2.5H
• US Class Current: 600/500
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/02208 using the Korotkoff method
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/318 Heart-related electrical modalities, e.g. electrocardiography [ECG]
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 7/00 Instruments for auscultation

Abstract

Method and apparatus for obtaining and displaying cardiovascular data by simultaneously sensing the performance of both the heart and an artery during a succession of cardiac cycles. A microphone adjacent the heart and a sensor adjacent an artery are coupled to the input of a cathode ray tube for intensity and/or amplitude modulation of its output. The horizontal sweep of the cathode ray tube is initated at the beginning of each cardiac cycle as by ECG electrodes. Variable pressure applied externally to the artery is also used to establish the quiescent vertical output of the cathode ray tube. In one embodiment, a memory tube temporarily stores the output of the cathode ray tube for visual examination, after which facsimiles can be made if desired.

Claims

1. Apparatus for obtaining cardiovascular data, including in combination:

ECG electrodes;

microphone means for detecting heart sounds;

sensing means for monitoring the pulse waveform of a specified artery;

a cathode ray tube having x-axis, y-axis and z-axis inputs, said ECG electrodes connEcted to said x-axis inputs for initiating a horizontal sweep at the beginning of each cardiac cycle, and said microphone means and said sensing means each connected to at least one of said y-axis and z-axis inputs;

pressure means for applying variable external pressure to said artery, said pressure means connected with said y-axis input to control the quiescent vertical position of said output of said cathode ray tube and to display the waveforms generated by said microphone means and said sensing means during each of a succession of cardiac cycles with the waveforms of each of said succession of cardiac cycles vertically aligned; and

readout means coupled to said ECG electrodes and said sensing means for continuously monitoring, measuring, and displaying the magnitude of the time interval between the beginning of each cardiac cycle and the onset of the pulse waveform in the artery.

2. ECG electrodes connected to said x-axis input for initiating the horizontal sweep at the beginning of each cardiac cycle;

3. first microphone means for detecting heart sounds;

4. A method of obtaining cardiovascular data during a succession of cardiac cycles, including:

detecting an onset reference for each cardiac cycle;

applying a varying external pressure to an artery;

sensing the existence and magnitude of heart sounds and arterial vibrations relative to said onset reference;

initiating a horizontal sweep of a cathode ray tube at the same predetermined time during each cardiac cycle;

modulating the output of the cathode ray tube to generate a waveform reflecting the existence and magnitude of the heart sounds and the arterial vibrations obtained by said sensing; and

changing the quiescent vertical output of the cathode ray tube at a rate proportional to said varying to display the modulated output for one cardiac cycle in vertical alignment with the modulated output for the other cardiac cycles.

5. said first and second microphone means connected with said y-axis input to provide amplitude modulation of the output of said cathode ray tube and also connected with said z-axis input to provide intensity modulation of the output of said cathode ray tube;

6. pressure means for applying variable external pressure to an artery, said pressure means connected with said y-axis input to change the quiescent vertical position of the output of said cathode ray tube at a rate proportional to the variable external pressure applied to the artery to generate a series of vertically aligned waveforms of both heart sounds and arterial sounds;

and

7. means coupled to said cathode ray tube for temporarily preserving the output of said cathode ray tube during a succession of cardiac cycles and for producing a facsimile of said output of said cathode ray tube.