Blood-pressure measuring apparatus for patient under blood-dialysis treatment

• US 6,406,434 B2
• Filed: 12/28/2000
• Issued: 06/18/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 06/15/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Colin Medical Technology Corporation (Omron Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Colin Corporation (Fukuda Denshi Company Limited)
• Inventors: Inukai, Hidekatsu, Oka, Tohru
• Primary Examiner(s): Shaver, Kevin
• Assistant Examiner(s): Natnithithadha, Navin
• Application Number:
  US09/749,376
• Publication Number:
  US 20010012917A1
• Time in Patent Office: 537 Days
• Field of Search: 600/490, 600/494, 600/492, 600/493, 600/495, 600/496, 600/500, 600/501, 600/502, 600/485, 600/481
• US Class Current: 600/490
• 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

An apparatus for iteratively measuring a blood pressure of a living subject who is undergoing a blood-dialysis treatment, including an inflatable cuff which applies a pressing force to a body portion of the subject, a blood-pressure measuring device which measures a blood pressure of the subject by changing the pressing force of the cuff, a starting device for starting the blood-pressure measuring device at a predetermined period in the dialysis duration, so that the blood-pressure measuring device iteratively measures a blood pressure of the subject at the predetermined period, a period memory device which stores, for a plurality of living subjects including the subject, a plurality of sets of predetermined periods each set of which includes respective predetermined periods for a plurality of partial durations of the dialysis duration, an identifying device for identifying the subject, and a selecting device for selecting, from the sets of predetermined periods stored in the period memory device.

Claims

1. An apparatus for iteratively measuring a blood pressure of a living subject who is undergoing a blood-dialysis treatment, comprising:

an inflatable cuff which applies a pressing force to a body portion of said subject;

a blood-pressure measuring device which measures a blood pressure of said subject by changing the pressing force of the cuff applied to the body portion of said subject;

a starting means for starting the blood-pressure measuring device at a predetermined period in a dialysis duration in which said subject undergoes the blood-dialysis treatment, so that the blood-pressure measuring device iteratively measures a blood pressure of said subject at the predetermined period;

a period memory device which stores, for a plurality of living subjects including said subject, a plurality of sets of predetermined periods each set of which comprises respective predetermined periods for a plurality of partial durations of the dialysis duration;

an identifying means for identifying said subject; and

a selecting means for selecting, from the sets of predetermined periods stored in the period memory device, the set of predetermined periods for said subject, so that the starting means starts, in each of the partial durations of the dialysis duration, the blood-pressure measuring device at a corresponding one of the predetermined periods of the selected set, and the blood-pressure measuring device iteratively measures a blood pressure of said subject in said each of the partial durations of the dialysis duration at said corresponding one of the predetermined periods of the selected set.

2. An apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a detecting means for detecting a change of the blood pressure values iteratively measured by the blood-pressure measuring device; and

a modifying means for modifying, when the detecting means detects the change of the blood pressure values at an elapsed time in a first one of the partial durations of the dialysis duration that is associated with a longer predetermined period than a predetermined period associated with at least one of a second partial duration preceding the first partial duration, and a third partial duration following the first partial duration, the set of predetermined periods selected by the selecting means for said subject, such that the modified set of periods comprises. for a predetermined partial duration including said elapsed time, a period shorter than said longer predetermined period, said modifying means storing, in the period memory device, the modified set of periods in place of the selected set of periods.

3. An apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a blood-pressure memory device which stores, for said subject, the blood pressure values iteratively measured by the blood-pressure measuring device in the dialysis duration, and respective elapsed times, after a commencement of the dialysis duration, at which the blood pressure values are iteratively measured by the blood-pressure measuring device; and

a modifying means for modifying, when the blood pressure values stored in the;

blood-pressure memory device in the dialysis duration for said subject comprise at least one blood pressure value lower than a reference value, the set of predetermined periods selected by the selecting means for said subject, such that the modified set of periods comprises, for at least one first predetermined partial duration including at least one elapsed time corresponding to said at least one blood pressure value, a first predetermined period shorter than a second predetermined period for at least one second partial duration of the dialysis duration other than said at least one first partial duration, said modifying means storing, in the period memory device, the modified set of periods in place of the selected set of periods.

4. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the period memory device stores a plurality of sets of identification data identifying said plurality of living subjects, respectively, such that the sets of identification data are associated with the sets of predetermined periods, respectively, and wherein the identifying means comprises:

an input device which is operable by said subject for inputting a set of identification;

data identifying said subject; and

judging means for judging whether the set of identification data input through the input device is identical with one of the sets of identification data stored in the period memory device, wherein when the judging means judges that the set of identification data input through the input device is identical with one of the sets of identification data stored in the period memory device, the selecting means selects, from the sets of predetermined periods stored in the period memory device, the set of predetermined periods associated with the set of identification data identifying said subject.

5. An apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the detecting means comprises:

calculating means for calculating an absolute value of a proportion of an amount of change of each of the blood pressure values iteratively measured by the blood-pressure measuring device, from a preceding blood pressure value thereof, relative to the preceding blood pressure value; and

judging means for judging whether said absolute value is greater than a reference value, wherein when the judging means judges that said absolute value is greater than the reference value, the detecting means detects said change of the blood pressure values.