Automatic detection and registration of failure condition in a cardiac pacer monitoring system
First Claim
1. An improvement for automatically detecting a condition in a pacer for cardiac pacing and condition monitoring, including the conditions of failure to sense and failure to capture, the combination of a generating means for providing cardiac stimulation signals, sensing means responsive to cardiac stimulus for providing an electrical signal in accordance with said cardiac condition, comparing means for establishing capture and sense conditions for said electrical signal, and monitoring means providing an output signal for changing the electrical characteristics of the signal provided by such generating means by an amount sufficient to be discernible on an electro-cardiogram in accordance with the conditions of said comparing means, the improvement comprising detection means for monitoring said changed electrical signal from said generating means over a predetermined time period thereby indicating a capture failure or sensing failure, said detection means including first and second delay means for generating independently timed signals surrounding said failure signals, bistable means, gating means coupled to said first and second delay means and responsive to a coincidence between said time signals and said failure signals for activating said bistable means from a first condition indicating a non-failure to a second conditioning indicating failure, and means coupled to said bistable means for indicating said second condition, the activation of said bistable means to said failure condition thereby providing said automatic detection.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A pacer for cardiac pacing and condition monitoring in which the electrical characteristics of the pacer are altered upon a temporary or permanent change in monitored conditions, such as the failures defined as a "loss of capture" or a "failure to sense", in which the timed relationship between the pacer signal generator and the cardiac signal is monitored to indicate detection of failure condition. The monitor acts to provide both increased stimulus to recover capture and to provide warning pulses indicating loss of capture or failure to sense, which are sufficiently discernible upon an electrocardiogram to enable later diagnosis, even after self-correction. After diagnosis, the monitor can be reset to its original condition by means of an external control, such as a magnet. The unit may be surgically implanted or employed externally. Remote or patient operated local failure detectors can be employed with the pacer to automatically detect, indicate, and provide an alarm if any prior intermittent sensing or capture failure occurred.
40 Citations
4 Claims
- 1. An improvement for automatically detecting a condition in a pacer for cardiac pacing and condition monitoring, including the conditions of failure to sense and failure to capture, the combination of a generating means for providing cardiac stimulation signals, sensing means responsive to cardiac stimulus for providing an electrical signal in accordance with said cardiac condition, comparing means for establishing capture and sense conditions for said electrical signal, and monitoring means providing an output signal for changing the electrical characteristics of the signal provided by such generating means by an amount sufficient to be discernible on an electro-cardiogram in accordance with the conditions of said comparing means, the improvement comprising detection means for monitoring said changed electrical signal from said generating means over a predetermined time period thereby indicating a capture failure or sensing failure, said detection means including first and second delay means for generating independently timed signals surrounding said failure signals, bistable means, gating means coupled to said first and second delay means and responsive to a coincidence between said time signals and said failure signals for activating said bistable means from a first condition indicating a non-failure to a second conditioning indicating failure, and means coupled to said bistable means for indicating said second condition, the activation of said bistable means to said failure condition thereby providing said automatic detection.
Specification